People develop a wide variety of illnesses during their working lives, manifested in time lost from work, disability, physical incapacity, psychological distress and ultimately morbidity and mortality. How these manifestations are connected to work is a critically important issue for those in the health professions, public health, psychology and business management.
In this course, physical and psychological health outcomes are explored in the context of the newly emerging discipline of occupational cardiology which focuses on the role of psychosocial factors in the workplace. These factors arise from the nature of the work activity or how it is organized, e.g., output demands placed on the employee, number of work hours, individuals' control over work tasks, schedules and security, etc. Theoretical models are presented, while empirical evidence is examined and balanced with practical exercises for measuring and assessing psychosocial factors. We will also discuss how contextual factors, such as gender, race/ethnicity and social class, lead to or interact with working conditions to create ill health, and explore how work stressors can be ameliorated by reorganizing work processes or the health effects of work stressors possibly reduced through individual behavioral programs.
CLASS 1; JANUARY 13, 2004: INTRODUCTION TO WORK & HEALTH; A social epidemiologic approach to the workplace and cardiovascular disease
CLASS 2; JANUARY 20, 2004: CONCEPTUAL AND THEORETICAL MODELS: Operationalization, measurement, and assessment of psychosocial factors
Class 3; JANUARY 27, 2004: THE OCCUPATIONAL STRESS INDEX (OSI): An approach informed by insights from cognitive ergonomics and brain research
Class 4; FEBRUARY 3, 2004: PHYSIOLOGICAL MECHANISMS LEADING TO ADVERSE PHYSICAL AND MENTAL HEALTH OUTCOMES
Class 5; FEBRUARY 10, 2004: ASSESSING HEALTH OUTCOMES WITH A FOCUS ON AMBULATORY BLOOD PRESSURE MEASUREMENTS
Class 6; FEBRUARY 17, 2004: CONTEXTUAL FACTORS MEDIATING OUTCOMES
Class 7; FEBRUARY 24, 2004: INTERNATIONAL AND CROSS-CULTURAL COMPARISONS; Economic costs of workplace psychosocial factors
Class 8; MARCH 2, 2004: PRIMARY INTERVENTION: Work organization redesign
Class 9; MARCH 9, 2004: SECONDARY INTERVENTION: Individual programs
Class 10; MARCH 16, 2004: PROGRAMS AND POLICIES FOR REGULATION OF WORKPLACE STRESSORS; Course wrap-up and conclusion