Staff stress in AIDS prevention and service organizations: implications for health education practice.

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1996. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

Staff stress in AIDS prevention and service organizations: implications for health education practice.

Health Educ Res. 1995 Jun;10(2):163-77. Unique Identifier : AIDSLINE HTA/96368394
Janz NK; Wren PA; Israel BA; Health Behavior and Health Education Department, School of Public; Health, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor 48109-2029, USA.

Abstract: The purpose of this study was to identify the frequency of staff stressors and their association with programmatic factors in 51 AIDS prevention and service projects funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The methodology included both quantitative (i.e. closed-ended survey questions) and qualitative (i.e. in-depth, open-ended interviews) data to identify the important sources of staff stress. The findings suggest that staff working in AIDS prevention and service projects perceive significant levels of stress regardless of project focus. The most frequently reported staff stresses were too much work, rapid organizational growth, burnout, and problems with staff retention and communication. Among the issues rarely reported as a source of staff stress were too little work, discomfort with the target population and personal health risk concerns. The programmatic factor most often associated with staff stress was obtaining additional funding. Health education interventions need to take a comprehensive approach that includes altering the psychosocial-environmental conditions that give rise to stressors and strengthening the individual and organizational factors that may modify the effects of stress on the AIDS workforce.

Keywords: Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome/*PREVENTION & CONTROL/ PSYCHOLOGY/TRANSMISSION Adolescence Adult Burnout, Professional/PREVENTION & CONTROL/*PSYCHOLOGY Child Curriculum Female *Health Education Human Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice Male Program Evaluation Stress, Psychological/COMPLICATIONS Support, Non-U.S. Gov't United States Workload/PSYCHOLOGY JOURNAL ARTICLE
961230
M96C1519

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