jobstrain

Job strain refers to a pattern of workplace psychosocial risk arising from high psychological demands combined with low decision latitude, or control, over one’s work. The term originates from the Demand-Control Model proposed by Robert Karasek in 1979 and is central to occupational health psychology. Within this framework, high job strain results when individuals face substantial workloads, time pressure, or mental demands but have little authority, autonomy, or skill discretion. The model also identifies quadrants such as active (high demands, high control), passive (low demands, low control), and low-strain (low demands, high control). Social support can moderate the impact of demands and control on outcomes. The term is commonly written as “job strain” in the literature; “jobstrain” appears in some datasets and discussions.

Empirical research associates job strain with adverse health and well-being outcomes, including cardiovascular disease, hypertension, depression, anxiety, burnout, and reduced job performance. Measurement commonly uses the Job Content Questionnaire (JCQ) to assess demands, control, and social support; the broader family of demand-control instruments is widely used in population and occupational studies. The related effort-reward imbalance (ERI) model provides a complementary view, focusing on perceived unfairness between effort and rewards.

Risk factors include heavy workloads, tight deadlines, role ambiguity, low decision authority, limited skill utilization, and job insecurity. Prevention emphasizes reducing excessive demands, increasing employee autonomy, improving social support, and implementing job redesign, participatory decision-making, and staffing adjustments.

Critiques note methodological limitations, cultural differences, and the need to consider additional psychosocial factors. Modern perspectives often integrate job strain within broader models of work organization, resilience, and resources that support well-being and productivity.