Personnel Today
  • OHW+
  • Join
  • Resources
    • Clinical governance
    • Disability
    • Ergonomics
    • Health surveillance
    • OH employment law
    • OH service delivery
    • Research
    • Return to work and rehabilitation
    • Sickness absence management
    • Wellbeing and health promotion
  • Conditions
    • Mental health
    • Musculoskeletal disorders
    • Blood pressure
    • Cancer
    • Cardiac
    • Dementia
    • Diabetes
    • Respiratory
    • Stroke
  • CPD
  • Webinars
  • OHW Awards
  • Jobs
  • Personnel Today

Personnel Today

Register
Log in
Personnel Today
  • OHW+
  • Join
  • Resources
    • Clinical governance
    • Disability
    • Ergonomics
    • Health surveillance
    • OH employment law
    • OH service delivery
    • Research
    • Return to work and rehabilitation
    • Sickness absence management
    • Wellbeing and health promotion
  • Conditions
    • Mental health
    • Musculoskeletal disorders
    • Blood pressure
    • Cancer
    • Cardiac
    • Dementia
    • Diabetes
    • Respiratory
    • Stroke
  • CPD
  • Webinars
  • OHW Awards
  • Jobs
  • Personnel Today

StressLatest NewsMental healthWellbeing

Stressful jobs place younger and vulnerable staff at risk of depression

by Nic Paton 30 Aug 2007
by Nic Paton 30 Aug 2007

Highly stressful jobs can help to tip younger, more vulnerable workers into bouts of major depression and anxiety, a study has suggested.


The King’s College, London study of the psychiatric assessments of nearly 1,000 people in the early stages of their careers found as many as one in 20 expected to experience serious depression or anxiety every year as a direct result of work.


The research, which has been published in the journal Psychological Medicine, is thought to be the first of its kind to establish a firm link between stressful working conditions and poor mental health among people with no previous history of these disorders before their careers began.


The psychiatrists interviewed 972 employed men and women, all aged 32, from Dunedin in New Zealand.


They had held a variety of jobs, but the study revealed a marked increase in cases of major depressive disorder and generalised anxiety disorder among people in highly demanding jobs, with 14% of women affected and 10% of men.


Of these, 45% were directly attributed to stress in the workplace.


“Work stress appears to bring on diagnosable forms of depression and anxiety in previously healthy young workers,” said lead author Dr Maria Melchior. “In fact, the occurrence is two times higher than among workers whose jobs are less demanding.”


Reference: Psych Med, Vol 37, Issue 08, August 2007, pp 1073-1074


Leasy stressful jobs




  • Postmen


  • Librarians


  • Hairdressers


  • Legal/accounts administrators


  • Speech therapists

Most stressful jobs




  • Head chefs in large restaurants


  • Schoolteachers


  • Slaughterers


  • Construction workers


  • Top managerial positions

Nic Paton
Nic Paton

Nic Paton is consulting editor of OHW+. One of the country's foremost workplace health journalists, Nic has written for OHW+ and Occupational Health & Wellbeing since 2001, and edited the magazine from 2018.

previous post
Workplace deaths warning as on-the-spot health and safety inspections are cut
next post
Banning access to social networking sites at work is an over-reation says TUC

You may also like

Police Scotland pays out £948,000 to female officer...

16 May 2022

Crumbling school buildings ‘risk to life’ suggests leak

16 May 2022

Gender equality facing growing backlash from male managers

16 May 2022

Lack of flexibility pushes half of women to...

16 May 2022

How firms need to comply with sponsor licence...

16 May 2022

easyJet joins battle for cabin crew with £1,000...

16 May 2022

Ethnicity pay gaps: Not making reporting mandatory is...

16 May 2022

MP demands timeline on carer’s leave legislation

13 May 2022

Employment tribunal: use of word ‘bald’ can amount...

13 May 2022

Workers feeing increasingly anxious, burnt out and fearful...

13 May 2022

  • The importance of being an ethical leader and how to become one PROMOTED | What is ethical leadership?...Read more
  • RPO Report: 2022, The Year to Outsource PROMOTED | Employers should be overwhelmed with choice...Read more
  • Report: Enabling organisational agility through talent & people success PROMOTED | Work has been challenged...Read more
  • Employee Trends 2022 report PROMOTED | Edenred research on employees analysed the key employees’ trends for 2022...Read more
  • How finance apprenticeships can boost business PROMOTED | As the world’s most forward-thinking professional accountancy body...Read more
  • Paul Devoy: Showing appreciation to the Investors in People community PROMOTED | Ask most people what comes to mind when you mention Investors in People...Read more
  • White paper: How digitalisation can support evolving occupational health PROMOTED | Download this free white paper to discover how digitalisation can help occupational health meet emerging challenges...Read more

PERSONNEL TODAY

About us
Contact us
Browse all HR topics
Email newsletters
Content feeds
Cookies policy
Privacy policy
Terms and conditions

JOBS

Personnel Today Jobs
Post a job
Why advertise with us?

EVENTS & PRODUCTS

The Personnel Today Awards
The RAD Awards
Employee Benefits
Forum for Expatriate Management
OHW+
Whatmedia

ADVERTISING & PR

Advertising opportunities
Features list 2022

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin


© 2011 - 2022 DVV Media International Ltd

Personnel Today
  • OHW+
  • Join
  • Resources
    • Clinical governance
    • Disability
    • Ergonomics
    • Health surveillance
    • OH employment law
    • OH service delivery
    • Research
    • Return to work and rehabilitation
    • Sickness absence management
    • Wellbeing and health promotion
  • Conditions
    • Mental health
    • Musculoskeletal disorders
    • Blood pressure
    • Cancer
    • Cardiac
    • Dementia
    • Diabetes
    • Respiratory
    • Stroke
  • CPD
  • Webinars
  • OHW Awards
  • Jobs
  • Personnel Today