RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Work-related stress indicator surveys in UK Ministry of Defence
JF Journal of the Royal Army Medical Corps
JO J R Army Med Corps
FD British Medical Journal Publishing Group
SP 128
OP 132
DO 10.1136/jramc-2018-001042
VO 165
IS 2
A1 Sarah C Wattie
A1 R S Bridger
YR 2019
UL http://militaryhealth.bmj.com/content/165/2/128.abstract
AB Introduction UK Ministry of Defence (MOD) policy and strategy recommend the use of a ‘Defence MODified’ version of the Health and Safety Executive Management Standards Indicator Tool to help managers identify risks of work-related stress among Defence personnel. The Defence MODified Tool (‘Stress Indicator Survey’) asks personnel to rate their perceptions of eight working conditions known to be significantly associated with work-related stress. MOD psychologists are developing a Defence norm group against which future survey scores can be compared. This article describes the use of the Stress Indicator Survey in MOD and gives an overview of findings from 2016 to 2018.Method MOD psychologists conducted 27 Stress Indicator Surveys in 2016–2018. Data were collated from 6227 personnel for the Defence norm group and comparisons were conducted between Service personnel and MOD civil servants, and between Services (Royal Navy/Royal Marines (RN/RM), Army and Royal Air Force (RAF)).Results Service personnel had significantly more favourable perceptions than MOD civil servants of most working conditions. The RN/RM had significantly more favourable perceptions than either the Army or the RAF of all working conditions. These findings indicate differential risks of work-related stress in different groups of personnel.Discussion Possible explanations for the observed differences in risk of work-related stress are discussed, including the nature of military life and planned changes to Defence civilian headcount. Examples of managerial actions to improve working conditions based on individual survey findings are given.