Although the WHS laws explain the concepts of psychosocial hazards and risks in general terms, they don’t really help a PCBU in a SME understand exactly what they have to do.
The Psychosocial Series –
The Risks
The contents of this guide are for information purposes only and should not be treated as being legal advice.
This guide is a summary of information obtained from research¹ and describes the three different most popular models that explain how features in the workplace can affect a person’s mental health both positively and negatively.
Once a PCBU understands how a mental illness can be caused by workplace-related factors then it can turn its mind to how it can eliminate or minimise the risk of harm.
¹https://swhelper.org/2013/07/16/the-biopsychosocial-perspective-to-mental-health-and-illness/ accessed on 1 Nov 2022, https://www.mentalhelp.net/depression/biopsychosocial-model/ accessed 1 Nov 2022, Butterworth P, Leach LS & Kiely KM (2013). The relationship between work characteristics, wellbeing, depression and workplace bullying: technical findings from a survey of 32-36 year old workers in Canberra and Queanbeyan,2013. Canberra: Safe Work Australia, Magee, Christopher, Gordon, Ross, Caputi, Peter, Oades, Lindsay, Reis, Samantha, & Robinson, Laura (2014) Final Report: Workplace Bullying in Australia. beyondblue, Australia, BULLYING & HARASSMENT IN AUSTRALIAN WORKPLACES: RESULTS FROM THE AUSTRALIAN WORKPLACE BAROMETER PROJECT 2014/2015 (NOV 2016) Rachael E Potter, Maureen F Dollard & Michelle R Tuckey, report dated Nov 2016, Engel GL. The need for a new medical model: a challenge for biomedicine. Science, 1977 Apr 8; 196(4286):129-36.doi:10.1126/science.847480.PMID: 847460; Mentally Healthy Workplaces in NSW Discussion Paper, 26 September 2017, Catalogue No. SW08615, © Copyright SafeWork NSW 0917.
Model #1 – The Biopsychosocial Model
What it is
To understand the risks involved in psychosocial hazards, you need to understand that the term ‘psychosocial’ is taken from a model that was developed in 1977 to explain how mental illness is caused.
This model (called the ‘biopsychosocial’ model) replaced another that was being used at the time. It was replaced because the other model only focused on physiological and biological aspects of an individual.
The new model:
adopted the biological factors – such as:
genetics,
infections,
physical trauma,
nutrition,
hormone, and
toxins, and
added other individual-specific factors, being attributes relating to their:
personality, and
social world.
The cause of stress
A PCBU needs to be aware that:
Some of these factors can interact – For example, a stressful social event can serve as a trigger and turn genes on and off, causing a change in the brain’s functioning.
A person’s mental health is always in a state of flux – It is not fixed. So, although someone can be mentally healthy at one point in time in their life, they can still experience mental illness if, at another point in time, their biopsychosocial balance is disturbed.
Some of these factors are fixed while others are ‘modifiable’.
The work environment is included in a person’s social world.
The theory behind the model
The underlying theory to this model is that each one of these factors is not sufficient to create health or mental illness, but it is how they interact as a group of factors, which makes a difference (either in a positive or in a negative way).
It is the risk of psychological injury caused by modifiable factors attributable to a workplace that a PCBU should be managing.
The strategy to be adopted by a PCBU when deciding on control measures should be to:
lessen the adverse impact, and/or
increase the favourable impact,
of modifiable factors so it can reduce the overall risk of psychological harm caused by the workplace
Model #2 - The Demands-Control Model
What it is
This is another model which relates to the biopsychosocial model but focusses on conditions in the workplace.
Those conditions (or ‘dimensions’) are:
Psychological demands – being the level of workload and responsibility placed on an individual, and
‘Decision latitude’ – which relates to a person’s:
control over the way they work – the content and timing of work (known as ‘decision authority’), and
control over their experiences and/or opportunities – this includes experiencing a variety of work and having the opportunity to use and develop new skills (‘skill discretion’).
The model explains the cause of harm through its classification of job types.
The theory behind this model
This model explains that the cause of workplace stress can be due to a combination of high job demands and low levels of control or autonomy.
The cause of stress
The job types that are associated with harm
High strain jobs – high job demands accompanied by a low level of control over how these demands are managed.
This model is most strongly associated with adverse (both psychological and physical) health outcomes where support from managers and colleagues is a key control measure.
Passive jobs – which is where there are low levels of demand and low levels of control.
This combination is thought to be de-motivating and associated with adverse health effects through a ‘learned helplessness’. Again, support from managers and colleagues is a key control measure.
The job types that are seen to be protective of health
Active jobs – Jobs with high demands but the worker has:
Adequate control over how work is done, and
The skills to do the work.
This combination is thought to be associated with increased motivation and satisfaction.
Low strain jobs – where there is a low level of demand accompanied by a high level of control.
This combination is thought to be protective of health.
Model #3 - The Effort-Reward Imbalance Model
What it is
This is yet another model which draws on the underlying principles of the biopsychosocial model.
However, instead of focusing on job types, it looks at a worker’s internal ‘cost-benefit’ analysis in terms of whether their ‘rewards’ at work are greater or less than the ‘effort’ they are putting into their job.
The situation where effort outweighs reward may cause harm.
The theory behind this model
A key control measure for managing the risk of harm is support from managers and colleagues.
The cause of stress
Under this model, stress is a function of high job demands which is not balanced by commensurate levels of:
financial rewards,
job security, and
other benefits associated with work.
Therefore, the ‘harm’ is caused by the stress caused by the worker’s perception that their efforts (the costs) outweigh their rewards (the benefits).
It should be remembered that benefits relating to work are not confined to financial security, but include:
a sense of purpose and identity,
a way to structure time, and
a context for social interaction.
Conclusion
These models can help a PCBU understand how behaviours in the workplace result in stress and may lead to harm.
By ‘behaviours’, we:
are not just referring to poor interpersonal behaviours between individuals, and
are including poor organisational behaviour.
The next guide in this series will explain those control measures that, according to research, may help a PCBU better manage its psychosocial hazards.
