NEBOSH MSW flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Work-related stress definition

The adverse reaction people have to excessive pressures or other types of demand placed on them at work. Stress is not itself an illness but can lead to ill health.

Demand-control-support model

Karasek and Theorell's model predicting highest strain when psychological demands are high, decision latitude is low and social support is weak, increasing risk of mental ill health.

Effort-reward imbalance

Siegrist's model in which high effort combined with low reward in money, esteem, security or career opportunity produces sustained stress and increased risk of ill health.

Yerkes-Dodson curve

An inverted-U relationship between arousal and performance: moderate pressure improves performance, while very low or very high arousal degrades it, illustrating the stress-performance link.

Presenteeism

Attending work while unwell, including with stress-related conditions, which reduces productivity and is a recognised organisational cost distinct from absenteeism.

Biopsychosocial model

A model holding that mental ill health results from interacting biological, psychological and social factors, so workplace stressors act alongside individual vulnerability rather than alone.

HSE six Management Standards

Demands, control, support, relationships, role and change: the six categories of working conditions HSE uses to assess and manage work-related stress risks.

Role ambiguity

A stressor where an employee lacks clear information about expectations, responsibilities and limits of authority, causing uncertainty and reduced confidence in performance.

Role conflict

A stressor arising when incompatible demands are placed on an employee by different people or duties, making it impossible to satisfy all expectations simultaneously.

Demand stressors

Workload, work patterns and environment factors such as excessive hours, unrealistic deadlines, shift work, lone working, noise and poor ergonomics that overload the individual.

Control stressors

Low decision latitude, micromanagement, lack of autonomy over pace or method, and unclear limits of authority that reduce an employee's sense of influence at work.

Organisational stress effects

Consequences for the organisation including increased absence, higher turnover, more accidents and errors, poor quality output and reduced overall productivity.

Individual stress effects

Personal consequences including fatigue, sleep disturbance, anxiety, irritability, reduced concentration, more errors and musculoskeletal complaints arising from sustained pressure.

Health and Safety at Work Act

The 1974 Act requiring employers to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare of employees, which includes psychological health.

Management of Health and Safety Regulations

The 1999 Regulations requiring suitable and sufficient risk assessment of hazards including work-related stress, with controls and review of their effectiveness.

Equality Act reasonable adjustments

The 2010 Act duty to make reasonable adjustments for disabled employees, which can include those with stress-related mental health conditions meeting the statutory disability definition.

Manager responsibilities for stress

Setting clear expectations, holding regular one-to-ones, managing workload, addressing conflict promptly and implementing team-level controls arising from stress risk assessments.

Individual employee responsibilities

Raising concerns early, using available support such as employee assistance programmes, and complying with agreed control measures designed to reduce stress risks.

Safety representative consultation

The right of safety representatives under the 1977 Regulations to be consulted on health and safety matters, including stress risk assessments affecting their members.

Confidentiality in stress cases

A legal and ethical duty to protect personal health information, sharing it only on a need-to-know basis consistent with data protection law.

Five-step risk assessment

HSE's process: identify hazards, decide who might be harmed and how, evaluate risks and controls, record and implement, then monitor and review.

HSE Indicator Tool

A 35-item questionnaire measuring employee perceptions against the six Management Standards, with results compared against benchmark data to identify priority areas.

Indicator Tool thresholds

HSE analysis guidance: scores in the bottom 20% of benchmarks indicate urgent action; scores between the 20th and 50th percentiles indicate improvement needed.

Focus groups in stress assessment

Small facilitated discussions held after survey results to explore why scores are low, identify causes and generate practical, locally owned solutions.

Recording stress findings

Documenting the stressor identified, who is affected, the control measure, the responsible person and a review date to evidence the risk assessment process.

Monitoring and review methods

Repeat Indicator Tool surveys, absence data, turnover data, incident reports and focus group feedback used to test whether stress controls are working.

Primary intervention

A control that removes or reduces the stressor at source, such as workload balancing or job redesign, and is preferred by HSE guidance over individual-level measures.

Secondary intervention

A measure helping individuals cope with existing stressors, such as stress awareness training, time management or resilience programmes, without removing the source.

Tertiary intervention

Rehabilitation and support for those already affected, including counselling, employee assistance programmes, occupational health referral and phased return-to-work plans.

Work redesign interventions

Organisational changes including workload balancing, job rotation, increased autonomy, clearer role definitions and improved communication of change to reduce stressors.

Employee assistance programme

A confidential support service offering counselling and advice to employees, typically used as a tertiary measure alongside primary controls rather than as a substitute.

Intervention evaluation measures

Pre- and post-intervention data such as Indicator Tool scores, absence rates, turnover and focus group feedback used to test whether controls achieved intended outcomes.