Causes and alleviation of occupational stress in child care work

Occupational stress in not a new phenomenon in the working population. However, in the helping professions it has only recently attracted attention. The survey reported here was carried out in order to assess the extent of occupational stress, identify its causes, and suggest ways in which occupational stress can be alleviated. Field social workers working in family and child care services took part in this study. The questionnaire devised for this survey included the General Health questionnaire. The findings showed that social workers experience more stress than would be expected in the general population. Consistent with a Demand–Control–Support model, this was mainly caused by high workloads, high staff turnover, and insufficient leadership and support.