Narrative reconstruction of mental illness as a work‐stress‐induced disorder: Processes, consequences and implications

Abstract

Stress‐induced mental illnesses have become the focus of increasing international attention, particularly in Japan since the 1990s, where judiciary cases and welfare‐state initiatives established causal links between work stress and mental illness. However, how individuals retrospectively construct this causality remains a marginal topic in the literature. This ethnographic article explores the ways in which male workers seeking compensation for their condition (depression and adjustment disorder) reconstruct aetiology narratives and to what avail. This paper demonstrates two themes: (1) how objectivising stress (related to specific formats of worker compensation), no‐faulting (dispensing with individual blame to view stress as pervasive in the workplace) and negotiating blame (seeking explanation in terms of individual psychology) construct a case, and (2) how narrative reconstruction functions as both a barrier to recovery and way of working towards recovery and collective function. It is argued that the narrative reconstructions of workers, who become unwell and seek recognition, suggest uncertain self‐victimisation despite the broader understanding of mental illness in contemporary Japan. The findings imply the heuristic potential of relativising causality and treating analytical dichotomies, including causality–narrative, victimhood–agency and fact–fiction, not as contradictory alternatives, but as different analysis levels, to better understand ambiguous illness narratives.

Explanations for sickness absence due to common mental disorders: A narrative study of young health and social care workers

“…Some explanations involve the negotiation of normality (Korhonen & Komulainen, 2019) and responsibility, or 'blame' (Kangas, 2001;Shimizu, 2021) and can be placed on either an 'internal' or an 'external' axis (Danielsson et al, 2009;Kangas, 2001). Danielsson et al (2009) studied the narratives of depression among primary care patients with clinical depression and found that while internalising explanations focused on self-blaming, externalising explanations presented the aetiological factors outside the body (Danielsson et al, 2009).…”

“…Danielsson et al (2009) studied the narratives of depression among primary care patients with clinical depression and found that while internalising explanations focused on self-blaming, externalising explanations presented the aetiological factors outside the body (Danielsson et al, 2009). Applying the theory of narrative reconstruction (Williams, 1984), Shimizu (2021) identified three work-related explanations for the aetiology of mental health problems among male workers: objectivising stressful events as psychological symptoms, non-faulting of the self, emphasising work stress as an unavoidable occurrence and negotiating blame with reference to individual causes. In Kangas' (2001) study of lay narratives of depression, internal and external causes were discussed in terms of responsibility.…”

“…The theoretic-methodological approach of illness narrative (Bury, 2001;Frank, 1995;Hydén, 1997;Williams, 1984) emerged as a response to the hegemonic biomedical explanations of ill-being (Bell, 2000;Mishler, 1984) to give voice and power to defining conditions to those suffering from illness (Frank, 1995;Hydén, 1997). While illness narratives have traditionally focused on physical chronic diseases (Bury, 1982;Williams, 1984), recent studies have utilised the approach to explore (lay) the understandings of the aetiology of common mental disorders (Danielsson et al, 2009;Kangas, 2001) and related sick leave (Korhonen & Komulainen, 2019;Shimizu, 2021).…”

“…To be granted sick leave, a worker must justify their work disability and explain what caused it (Korhonen & Komulainen, 2019; Mik‐Meyer & Obling, 2012). In the case of mental health problems, which are not as clear cut as most physical complaints, such legitimation may be particularly challenging (Korhonen & Komulainen, 2019; Shimizu, 2021). Previous sociological research into health and illness has explored the explanations for depression (Danielsson et al., 2009; Kangas, 2001; Shimizu, 2021) and mental health problems being work induced in the context of seeking sick leave compensation (Shimizu, 2021) in working‐age populations.…”

Caracterización de los efectos del estrés laboral en las funciones cognitivas del personal de las empresas hoteleras

“…The negative impacts of job stress on job performance are well documented. In addition, stress can also trigger physical ailments such as headaches, hypertension, and muscle tension, as well as emotional problems such as mood swings, irritability, and disorientation, among others [13].…”