The relationship between psychosocial risks and occupational functioning among miners

• Published in: International journal of occupational medicine and environmental health Vol. 32; no. 1; pp. 87 - 98
• Main Authors: Mościcka-Teske, Agnieszka, Sadłowska-Wrzesińska, Joanna, Najder, Anna, Butlewski, Marcin
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Poland Nofer Institute of Occupational Medicine 01-01-2019
• Subjects: Adult; Analysis; Coal mining; Comparative analysis; Diagnostic software; Diagnostic systems; Employee turnover; Employees; Female; Health; Health aspects; Health risk assessment; Humans; Job Satisfaction; Job stress; Male; Metal industries; Middle Aged; Miners; Miners - psychology; Mines; Mining industry; Occupational Injuries - epidemiology; Occupational safety; Occupational safety and health; Occupational Stress; Organic chemistry; Poland; Psychological aspects; Psychology; psychosocial risk factors; Reliability analysis; Risk; Safety management; Social aspects; Social Environment; Stress (Psychology); Stress analysis; Stress, Psychological - epidemiology; Trends; turnover; Work Engagement; Workers; Working conditions; Workplace - psychology; Poland; work engagement; occupational stress; turnover; psychosocial risk factors; job satisfaction; miners
• ISSN: 1232-1087; 1896-494X
• DOI: 10.13075/ijomeh.1896.01162

This paper presents the results of research on the scale of psychosocial risks among miners. A comparative analysis was made, comparing the research results with the data obtained from workers in the following industries: metal, energy, chemical and construction - along with an indication of the relationship between stressful working conditions and the occupational functioning of the respondents.
The study involved 483 adults employed in mines in Poland. The study on psychosocial risks in the workplace was performed using
, developed by the Department of Health and Work Psychology of the Nofer Institute of Occupational Medicine, Łódź, Poland.
is the scientifically validated diagnostic tool and is characterized by high reliability and validity of coefficients.
The analysis of differences in occupational functioning between miners and other workers in heavy industry provides that miners are in general more healthy, less stressed, more positive emotionally and normatively committed to work, more satisfied with work, and more stable in the employment (as opposite to turnover intention) than the other workers. The results suggest that miners with a lower level of stress functioned at work better - they evaluated their health and ability to work better than miners with a higher level of stress. Their intention to change a job was lower than among those experiencing more stress. The most pronounced effect was observed for the influence on this dimension of functioning by job context risks (the higher level of probability, and the higher t-test value).
Occupational functioning of miners in Poland is better than the other employees in heavy industry. The analysis of differences in occupational functioning dimensions provides that a lower level of psychosocial risk in a workplace is connected with a higher level of job satisfaction, positive affective and normative work commitment and a lower level of turnover intension. Int J Occup Med Environ Health. 2019;32(1):87-98.