Age Diversity Climate Affecting Individual-Level Work-Related Outcomes.

The present study answers the call for more studies to investigate the age diversity climate's effect on individual-level outcomes. Building on the social identity approach and social exchange theory, we surveyed 110 Italian employees aged between 18 and 61 years old (M = 46.10, SD = 10.02) and investigated the role of age diversity climate in predicting intentions to quit (H1), job-related wellbeing (H2), and work engagement (H3). Our findings confirmed the hypotheses (H1 and H2), showing the added effect of age diversity climate over and above age, job tenure, role clarity, job demands, job control, perceived support, and perceived job and organizational fit. In fact, age diversity climate accounted for a significant increase in the variance explained for two of the three hypothesized models (i.e., intentions to quit and job-related wellbeing, but not work engagement). To conclude, this study contributes to the existing literature by showing the age diversity climate's predictive value for turnover intentions and job-related wellbeing, and corroborating the importance of supporting age diversity through a variety of Human Resources Management strategies.

Workplace physical aggressions in Italy and Emilia Romagna region.

BACKGROUND: Workplace physical aggressions determine severe consequences for people and organizations. Previous studies reported their spread in organizations and described factors related to their occurrence (e.g. aggressor within/outside the organization, type of activity, etc.). However, such data are not available in the Italian work contexts, limiting the possibility of intervention. OBJECTIVES: This study aims to provide a description of workplace physical aggressions in the Italian context and the Emilia-Romagna region, considering the main variables described in the literature. METHODS: We used data available from the "Flussi informativi" database, containing national data provided by INAIL (National Institute for Insurance against Accidents at Work), which concern all injuries, occupational illness and insured companies' information, from 2000 to 2018. Information about aggressions in the workplace in Italy and Emilia-Romagna are derived from a subset of these data, coded according to ESAW (European Statistics for Accidents at Work) requirements. The number of events per year per 100,000 estimated insured employees by INAIL is considered as an indicator. RESULTS: In the period 2014-2018, 23,084 injures from aggression were registered in Italy (an average of 28.7 events per 100,000 employees) and 2,308 in Emilia Romagna (30.2). Aggressions by people outside the organization accounted for 85.14 % in Italy and 87.87% in Emilia-Romagna region. "Health and social services", "Offices and other activities" and "Transportation" were the sectors that showed the highest numbers of events and rates. Furthermore, we reported detailed results about the variation of the events between professions, the site and nature of the lesion and gravity of events. DISCUSSION: The study provides a description of workplace physical aggressions in the Italian context and we discuss the implication of these results for primary, secondary and tertiary prevention strategies of intervention.

Job Demand, Job Control, and Impaired Mental Health in the Experience of Workplace Bullying Behavior: A Two-Wave Study.

Workplace bullying is an extreme social stressor at work leading to a severe deterioration of health amongst its targets. Research has revealed two important orders of factors that may trigger workplace bullying: Poor working conditions and individual factors such as impaired mental health that determine a personal psychological vulnerability to bullying. However, research has rarely investigated their role simultaneously. In response, we investigated whether the relationship between poor working conditions (i.e., high job demand) at time 1 (T1) and the experience of bullying at time 2 (T2) is strengthened by experiencing symptoms of impaired mental health at T1. We also tested whether job control-which contributes to better working conditions-at T1 moderates the relationship between job demand at T1 and bullying at T2. Participants (N = 235) were workers in the health sector. The time lag between T1 and T2 was one year. Cross-lagged path analysis revealed that the relationship between job demand at T1 and the experience of bullying behavior at T2 was strengthened by T1 impaired mental health. This suggests that considering both working conditions and individual factors together may be important for reaching a better understanding of the development of bullying.

Reclassification of the work-related stress questionnaires scales based on the work system model: A scoping review and qualitative study.

BACKGROUND: Given the wide variety of factors affecting work-related stress, a work system approach could be adopted in order to better identify factors that impact individual stress. OBJECTIVES: To provide a scoping review of the available work-related stress questionnaires and to reclassify their scales on the basis of the five elements included in the work system model using a content analysis method. METHODS: The main available work-related stress questionnaires used in previous studies in the time range of 1975 to 2017 were collected through a search in several indexing and citation databases. To reclassify the scales of these questionnaires, a qualitative content analysis was used and then reclassified in accordance with the five components of work system model: job (tasks), organizational condition, individual characteristics, technology and tools, and physical environmental. RESULTS: In total, 22 questionnaires met the conditions required to be entered into the final stage of the study. Emphasis of these questionnaires was on measuring job-related factors and organizational condition-related factors. 22.7% of them had considered no scales to measure the individual characteristics-related factors. CONCLUSIONS: The results of the reclassification can help organizations select areas that encompass their own specific problems. Practical implications are also discussed.

Role of Psychosocial Job Stressors on Sexual Function of Male Nurses: The Mediator Role of Work Ability.

There is limited information on the specific psychosocial risks at work that can impact sexual function. The general aim of this study was to investigate the effects of multiple dimensions of psychosocial work stressors on the male sexual function. This was a cross-sectional study conducted among 153 male nurses working in two hospitals in Iran. Sexual function and psychosocial job stressors were measured using the Persian version of the International Index of Erectile Function (P-IIEF) and the Persian version of the Health and Safety Executive (P-HSE) Management Standards Indicator Tool. The Persian version of the Work Ability Index (P-WAI) was used to assess the mediating effect of work ability on the relationship between overall stress and subscales of sexual function. The data were analyzed using Pearson product-moment correlation, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), and multiple linear regressions. The subscales of psychosocial job stressors, especially the subscale of role, had a significant correlation with several domains of sexual function. The regression modeling indicated that the subscales of role and job demands were significant predictors of various domains of sexual function. The effect of overall stress on intercourse satisfaction was fully mediated by WAI. In the other indicators of sexual function, overall stress score had only a significant direct effect, not mediated by WAI. Intervention programs to improve sexual function should focus on increasing nurses' involvement in making decisions related to jobs and on using ergonomic principles related to balancing job demands and the level of nurses' capabilities.

Stress-Preventive Management Competencies, Psychosocial Work Environments, and Affective Well-Being: A Multilevel, Multisource Investigation.

The Management Competencies for Preventing and Reducing Stress at Work framework represents one of the few tailored models of leadership for work stress prevention purposes, but it has never been empirically evaluated. The aim of this study was to investigate whether supervisors' stress-preventive management competencies, as measured by the Stress Management Competencies Indicator Tool (SMCIT), are related to employees' affective well-being through psychosocial work environmental factors. To this end, multilevel structural equation modelling (MSEM) was developed and tested, including data provided by both supervisors and employees. Supervisors (n = 84) self-assessed their stress-preventive management competencies (i.e., being respectful and responsible, managing and communicating existing and future work, reasoning and managing difficult situations, and managing the individual within the team) with a previously validated reduced version of the SMCIT. The supervised employees (n = 584) rated job content (e.g., job demands) and work context (e.g., role clarity) psychosocial factors and their job-related affective well-being. Supervisors' job-related affective well-being was also included in the tested model. The results revealed that the stress-preventive competencies factor was related to employees' affective well-being through the psychosocial work environment only when the latter was operationalized by means of contextual work factors. Supervisors' affective well-being was related to their stress-preventive competencies, but it was not related to employees' affective well-being. We discuss the implications of the results obtained.

Can Leader-Member Exchange Contribute to Safety Performance in An Italian Warehouse?

Introduction: The research considers safety climate in a warehouse and wants to analyze the Leader-Member Exchange (LMX) role in respect to safety performance. Griffin and Neal's safety model was adopted and Leader-Member Exchange was inserted as moderator in the relationships between safety climate and proximal antecedents (motivation and knowledge) of safety performance constructs (compliance and participation). Materials and Methods: Survey data were collected from a sample of 133 full-time employees in an Italian warehouse. The statistical framework of Hayes (2013) was adopted for moderated mediation analysis. Results: Proximal antecedents partially mediated the relationship between Safety climate and safety participation, but not safety compliance. Moreover, the results from the moderation analysis showed that the Leader-Member Exchange moderated the influence of safety climate on proximal antecedents and the mediation exist only at the higher level of LMX. Conclusion: The study shows that the different aspects of leadership processes interact in explaining individual proficiency in safety practices. Practical Implications: Organizations as warehouses should improve the quality of the relationship between a leader and a subordinate based upon the dimensions of respect, trust, and obligation for high level of safety performance.

Psychometric Properties of a 36-Item Version of the "Stress Management Competency Indicator Tool".

The development of supervisors' behaviours has been proposed as an innovative approach for the reduction of employees' work stress. The UK Health and Safety Executive (HSE) developed the "Stress Management Competency Indicator Tool" (SMCIT), designed to be used within a learning and development intervention. However, its psychometric properties have never been evaluated, and the length of the questionnaire (66 items) limits its practical applicability. We developed a brief 36-item version of the questionnaire, assessed its psychometric properties and studied the relationship with the employees' psychosocial work environment. 353 employees filled in the brief SMCIT and the "Stress Management Indicator Tool". The latter is a self-report questionnaire developed by the UK HSE, measuring workers' perceptions of seven dimensions of the psychosocial work environment that if not properly managed can lead to harm. Data were analysed with structural equation modelling and multiple regressions. The results confirmed the factorial structure of the brief SMCIT questionnaire and mainly supported the convergent validity and internal consistency of the scales. Furthermore, with few exceptions, the relations hypothesized between supervisors' competencies and the psychosocial work environment were confirmed, supporting the criterion validity of the revised questionnaire and the UK HSE framework. We conclude that the brief 36-item version of the SMCIT represents an important step toward the development of interventions directed at supervisors and we discuss the practical implications for work stress prevention.

Reducing psychosocial risks through supervisors' development: a contribution for a brief version of the "Stress Management Competency Indicator Tool".

With the recent changes in the world of work psychosocial risks are increasingly prevalent, causing work stress and physical and mental illnesses, which have a tremendous impact on public health and social participation. Supervisors' behaviour development was proposed as an innovative intervention that can reduce psychosocial risks. The "Stress Management Competency Indicator Tool" is one of the most important questionnaires that assess managers' preventive behaviour. However, its psychometric properties have never been evaluated and the length of the questionnaire (66 items) limits its practical applicability. The aim of this study was to contribute to the development of the questionnaire by providing psychometric evidence on a brief version of the tool focusing on the "Managing and Communicating existing and future Work" cluster of behaviours, which has been found to be the crucial one in terms of stress prevention. A questionnaire was administered to 178 employees of two Italian public organizations (a municipality and a hospital), measuring the supervisors' "Managing and Communicating existing and future Work" competency, and the affective well-being and work team effectiveness. The results showed excellent psychometric properties of the supervisors' behaviour scale and confirmed the expected relationships with criterion outcomes (affective well-being and team effectiveness). Overall, the factorial structure and dimensionality, the construct validity and reliability, and the concurrent validity of the tool were strongly supported by this study. We concluded that the brief version of the scale is a valid and reliable measure that can be easily used in practice and that can contribute to the development of research and practice on this topic.

[Risk perception, use of PPE and injuries among firefighters]. / Percezione dei rischi, uso dei DPI e infortuni tra i vigili del fuoco.

INTRODUCTION: The present study, situated in the safety at work issue, is aimed to evaluate the risk perception and preventive behaviour (the use of individual protection devices) in the fire brigade work, with reference to the most typical risk for these workers: cylinder blast; fire and exhalation of toxic steam; road accidents; falls, cuts, contusions; stress and physical strain. To this end a psychosocial perspective is adopted and different dimensions of risk perception are considered. METHODS: Data were collected through a questionnaire filled in by 115 fire brigade workers and were statistically analysed to describe the risk perception about the different risks, to evaluate the relationship between the different dimensions of risk perception and to verify the variables that are more predictive of injuries. RESULTS: Cylinder blast is perceived as the most severe risk and participants report to be more exposed and trained to this specific risk in comparison with others. Falls, cuts, contusions as well as stress and fatigue are considered to be contributing factors of injuries. Participants with previous injuries are more likely to report to be exposed (r = .23; p < .05) and to be in danger (r = .22; p < .05) to occupational risks and to report less compliance with individual protective devices (r = .23; p < .05). CONCLUSIONS: Results show the relevance of promotion of safe-related behaviours among fire fighters and to take into account specific risk related to the job.