Work-Related Stress in the Banking Sector: A Review of Incidence, Correlated Factors, and Major Consequences

Abstract

For a number of years now, banks have been going through enormous changes in organization and structure. New technology and new ways of structuring the operation have left their mark on the working conditions and daily lives of employees. Deregulation of labor markets, emerging technologies and new types of jobs have significantly reshaping working lives by continuous changes on employment and working conditions. Such a scenario has a relevant impact not only on companies' organization but also on working population's health. The banking sector is particularly well-deserved of a specific and thorough analysis, in view of the recent increase in psycho-social disorders of employees. This may be related to the major organizational changes affecting this sector and, in particular, to the restructuring processes resulting from the global economic crisis. Our aim is to assess the scale of the phenomenon and how far it relates specifically to the processes of bank organization. With this in mind, through a review of the literature, we selected the main studies dealing with work-related stress in banking, so that we could reach a better understanding of the phenomenon as it relates specifically to this set of workers. The search took place on the MEDLINE® database; in total 20 articles were chosen. There was uniform agreement among the studies that stress in the banking workplace is now at critical levels, and that it can have deleterious psychological effects on workers, and on their physical health, and that organizations, too, are affected. Most studies showed that mental health problems had increased in the banking sector, and that they were stress-related. Examples began with anxiety and depression, carried on through maladaptive behaviors, and ended in job burnout. The reviewed studies' limitations were then discussed, and possible ways forward considered.

Keeping Calm and Carrying On: Relating Affect Spin and Pulse to Complex Skill Acquisition and Adaptive Performance

“…Those with high affect variability likely perceive fast-paced, complex performance contexts (such as the one used in this study) as a hindrance stress, with constraints perceived to be outside of one's control and thus threatening, whereas those with lower affect variability likely view such contexts as a challenge stress, with constraints perceived to be within one's control and thus an opportunity (Beal and Ghandour, 2011). In contrast to increases in task engagement and goal striving associated with challenge stress, hindrance stress is associated with task withdrawal and burnout (Podsakoff et al, 2007;Giorgi FIGURE 1 | Proposed model of relationship between task performance and task effort, moderated by affect variability and acquisition/adaptation phase. Deng et al, 2019).…”

“…As mentioned earlier, the general profile of those high in affect variability speaks to an increase in reactivity to emotionally charged events, difficulties in adjustment, and a general negative profile that includes negative expectations for the future (Kuppens et al, 2007;Beal et al, 2013). These characteristics in turn can lead to greater strain (Beal et al, 2013), the depletion of cognitive resources via emotion regulation (Park, 2015), and even burnout (Giorgi et al, 2017), all of which hinder the ability to sustain effort over time.…”

“…Thus, traits that may have an impact on directing and sustaining effort, like affect spin and pulse, are particularly relevant to adaptive performance. Additionally, this change in demands may lead to higher psychological strain (Giorgi et al, 2017), particularly for those high in spin and pulse, leading to additional deleterious effects on effort and performance during adaptation. Therefore, we tested the following hypotheses.…”

Sleep and Organizational Behavior: Implications for Workplace Productivity and Safety

“…Although many human resource models incorporate necessary functions for organizational success such as hiring and staffing practices, benefits and compensation, and training for employees, it is less common for human resource divisions to focus on employee well-being. Work-related stress and strains are related to the employee's perceived well-being but can be compensated for through social support (Giorgi et al, 2017). Human resources could be part of that social support system.…”

Psychosocial Work Environment Explains the Association of Job Dissatisfaction With Long-term Sickness Absence: A One-Year Prospect Study of Japanese Employees

“…In the present study, we focused especially on financial service employees because they experience increased stress and worries due to greater time pressures, problems with ergonomics, conflicting roles, work demands, and difficult relationships with customers. 38…”