Work-related stress risk assessment among the construction professionals in Afghanistan

Abstract

This study was carried out to assess the stress risk among the construction professionals of Afghanistan. Stress risk is major problem not only in Afghanistan but all over the world. It has become a growing concern in many sectors, not to mention the construction sector. It is important to ensure that workers can perform best, considering the highly competitive demands and competition of the construction industry. Stress risk has been identified as an important factor influencing an organization's success as it negatively affects the organization's productivity, professional's health and safety and efficiency as well as costs. The issue of the work-related stress risk assessment in construction sector of Afghanistan is not commonly discussed. Stress risk among construction professional should be address with proper assessment method in order to understand the magnitude of the stress and hence control measures could be proposed. The objectives of this study are to identify the sources and causes as well as the prevalence of job stressor or job hazards and the risk level at work place. Finally, the possible control measure based on the assessment of level of risk will be proposed. The methodology of this study includes literature reviews, data collection, and data analysis. Data was collected using questionnaire survey in Afghanistan through email from the construction industry professional such as project manager, site supervisor, project engineer, quantity surveyor, and architect. The data was analyzed using frequency analysis, the average index and the stress risk assessment method. To visualize the result, tables and figures like bar and pie charts were used to clarify the results. The research revealed that the physical environment, the job itself, and the organization is the key factor for the stress risk at construction industry of Afghanistan. For causes of work related stress risk the main issues were the lack of management and control over work, increasing the employee's expectation using the standard of safety. The prevalence of job stressors appeared in all six-factors such as, demand, control, support, relationship, change, and role. Based on the response, the deadline, time pressure and the problematic colleagues and inappropriate training were serious issues. Changes without consultation and no encourages policy among the construction professional were also a risk. Based on the analysis of likelihood and severity thirty-four factors were in the very high and high stress risk category for the factors such as workload, work pattern, and work environment. A possible control was proposed based on the high and very high classification to mitigate the stress risk such as the company should give the workers a safe environment and adequate time to complete tasks. A job description, time pressure all-round suitability dependent on recruitment, should be simple within the capability of the construction profession of Afghanistan were among the proposed measures.