The Role of Emotional Support in Mitigating Stress Among Factory Workers: A Cross-Sectional Study
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.11113/sh.v17n2.2173Keywords:
Work stress mitigation, emotional support, factory worker, IndonesiaAbstract
While extensive research has explored the relationship between social support and stress, there remains limited understanding of how different types of social support specifically mitigate stress among factory workers in Indonesia. Additionally, existing studies provide contradictory findings on the effectiveness of emotional versus instrumental support in workplace stress management. This study aims to address these gaps by examining the predictive role of various social support constructs in stress reduction within this specific occupational context, while analyzing various demographic backgrounds that may influence either social support or stress. This cross-sectional survey was conducted among 86 randomly selected factory workers at PT Anugrah Tanjung Medan, Indonesia. Two standardized scales were utilized to measure stress symptoms and social support in this sample. Results suggest that higher levels of emotional support are linked to lower overall stress levels. No significant gender-based differences were observed in stress levels or social support. However, middle-aged respondents reported slightly higher social support than their early adult counterparts, with both age groups experiencing similar stress levels. Further analysis indicates that emotional support emerges as a pivotal predictor of stress reduction. This highlights the unique and crucial role of emotional support in mitigating stress levels among factory workers.
References
Abunyewah, M., Okyere, S. A., Mensah, S. O., Erdiaw-Kwasie, M., Gajendran, T., & Byrne, M. K. (2024). Drought impact on peri-urban farmers’ mental health in semi-arid Ghana: The moderating role of personal social capital. Environmental Development, 49, 100960. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envdev.2024.100960
Aisyah, T. S. (2022). Hubungan antara dukungan sosial dengan stres kerja pada pegawai Dinas Tenaga Kerja KAB. Siak [Master’s thesis, Universitas Islam Riau]. Repository Universitas Islam Riau. https://repository.uir.ac.id/18253/
Bialowolski, P., Lee, M. T., Weziak-Bialowolska, D., Chen, Y., Cowden, R. G., McNeely, E., & VanderWeele, T. J. (2023). Differences in multi-dimensional well-being among factory workers: Evidence from six countries. Applied Research in Quality of Life, 18(5), 2159–2180. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11482-023-10181-0
Caesaria, D. W. (2010). Hubungan antara dukungan sosial dengan stres kerja karyawan bagian produksi PT. Industri Karet Nusantara PRTRA (Pabrik Rubber Thread and Rubber Articles) [Skripsi, Sanata Dharma University]. Sanata Dharma Repository. http://repository.usd.ac.id/id/eprint/28737
Cahyani, W., & Frianto, A. (2019). Peran dukungan sosial terhadap stres kerja sebagai peningkatan kinerja karyawan. Jurnal Ilmu Manajemen, 7(3), 868–876. https://ejournal.unesa.ac.id/index.php/jim/article/view/29331
Choi, Y. (2020). A study of the influence of workplace ostracism on employees’ performance: moderating effect of perceived organizational support. European Journal of Management and Business Economics, 29(3), 333–345. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/ejmbe-09-2019-0159
Colpizzi, I., Berti, C., Sica, C., Alfei, V., & Caudek, C. (2024). Individual differences in risk and protective factors: The role of self-compassion components among emergency responders. Behavioral Sciences, 14(3), 178. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/bs14030178
Damai, P., Rofiaty, & Sudjatno. (2023). Job satisfaction and employee performance factors in palm oil plantations. Jurnal Aplikasi Manajemen, 21(1), 143–152. DOI: https://doi.org/10.21776/ub.jam.2023.021.1.10
Deasy Lastya Sari, Sinaga, R. I. P., Helen Storyna, Fergyanto E. Gunawan, Muhammad Asrol, & A.A.N. Perwira Redi. (2021). The relationship between job stress and employee performance in manufacturing industry in Indonesia. JARES (Journal of Academic Research and Sciences), 6(2), 26–38. https://doi.org/10.35457/jares.v6i2.1640
Devi, R. (2020). The importance of healthy working environments in business. International Journal for Research in Applied Science & Engineering Technology, 8(1), 262–264. DOI: http://doi.org/10.22214/ijraset.2020.1048
Du, J., Li, N. N., & Luo, Y. J. (2020). Authoritarian leadership in organizational change and employees’ active reactions: have-to and willing-to perspectives. Frontiers in Psychology, 10. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.03076
Ersoy, A., Mahmood, Z., Sharif, S., Ersoy, N., & Ehtiyar, R. (2023). Exploring the associations between social support, perceived uncertainty, job stress, and emotional exhaustion during the COVID-19 crisis. Sustainability, 15(3), 2150. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/su15032150
Farah Shazlin Johari. (2020). Work-related stress and coping strategies: A systematic literature review. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Science, 7(5), 1016–1032. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.6007/IJARBSS/v10-i6/7469
Fitri Rahmadia, Rini Sarianti, & Yuki Fitria. (2019). Pengaruh lingkungan kerja fisik dan dukungan sosial terhadap stres kerja pada perawat rumah sakit Islam (RSI) Ibnu Sina Payakumbuh. Jurnal Ecogen, 2(2), 110–117. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.24036/jmpe.v2i2.6145
Garmendia, P., Fernández-Salinero, S., Holgueras González, A. I., & Topa, G. (2023). Social support and its impact on job satisfaction and emotional exhaustion. European Journal of Investigation in Health, Psychology and Education, 13(12), 2827-2840. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/ejihpe13120195
Hughes, I. M., & Freier, L. M. (2024). The other side of emotional support: The moderating role of personality in the relations between emotionally-valenced support elicitation experiences and strain. Applied Psychology, 73(2), 851–862. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/apps.12463
Jackman, P. C., Henderson, H., Clay, G., & Coussens, A. H. (2020). The relationship between psychological wellbeing, social support, and personality in an English police force. International Journal of Police Science & Management, 22(2), 183–193. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1461355720907620
Jamil, M. A. W., Setiawan, M., & Juwita, H. A. J. (2022). Investigating factors predicting employees’ turnover intention: An empirical study on the Islamic banking industry. Organizational Culture, Leadership and Human Resources Management, 11(5). DOI: https://doi.org/10.20525/ijrbs.v11i5.1873
Javaid, M. U., Rehman, N., Mirza, M. Z., & Ibrahim, A. M. (2023). Rampart of health-specific leadership and social support of colleagues to overcome burnout in emotionally demanding situations: The mediating role of stress. Journal of Healthcare Leadership, 15, 121–129. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2147/JHL.S420584
Krejcie, R. V., & Morgan, D. W. (1970). Determining sample size for research activities. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 30(3), 607–610. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/001316447003000308
Lanzl, J. (2023). Social Support as Technostress Inhibitor. Business & Information Systems Engineering, 65, 329–343 https://doi.org/10.1007/s12599-023-00799-7
Mitravinda, K. M., Nair, D. S., & Srinivasa, G. (2023). Mental health in tech: Analysis of workplace risk factors and impact of COVID-19. SN Computer Science, 4, 197. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s42979-022-01613-z
Muhammad Yasir Imran, Natasha Saman Elahi, Ghulam Abid, Fouzia Ashfaq, & Sehrish Ilyas. (2020). Impact of perceived organizational support on work engagement: Mediating mechanism of thriving and flourishing. Journal of Open Innovation: Technology, Market and Complexity, 6(3), 1–18. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/joitmc6030082
Newman, B. M., & Newman, P. R. (2023). Theories of human development (3rd ed.). Routledge Taylor & Francis Group.
Noor, N. A. M., E-Vahdati, S., Yew, M. P., & Chuah, F. (2024). The Influence of Job Stress on Organizational Commitment Among Workers in the Palm Oil Industry: Does Job Satisfaction Matter? Global Business Review, 0(0). https://doi.org/10.1177/09721509241252499
Padmanabhanunni, A., Pretorius, T. B., & Isaacs, S. A. (2023). Satisfied with life? The protective function of life satisfaction in the relationship between perceived stress and negative mental health outcomes. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 20(18), 6777. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20186777
Peeters, M. C., Buunk, B. P., & Schaufeli, W. B. (1995). Social interactions, stressful events and negative affect at work: A micro-analytic approach. European Journal of Social Psychology, 25(4), 391–401.
Pfeffer, J. (2020). Solving the workplace health crisis. Retrieved August 22, 2024, from https://www.ihrim.org/2020/06/solving-the-workplace-health-crisis/
Rahmadani, V. G., Schaufeli, W. B., Fauzia, R., & Nazriani, D. (2022). The moderating effect of employee growth climate on the relationship between work engagement and job outcomes among plantation workers in North Sumatra, Indonesia. Frontiers in Psychology, 13. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.968572
Saefudin, W., Sriwiyanti, S., & Mohamad Yusoff, S. H. (2021). Role of social support toward student academic self-efficacy in online learning during pandemic. Jurnal Tatsqif, 19(2), 133–154. DOI: https://doi.org/10.20414/jtq.v19i2.4221
Sari, D. L., Storyna, H., Intan, R., Sinaga, P., Gunawan, F. E., Asrol, M., & Redi, A. A. N. P. (2021). The effect of job stress on employee performance: Case study of the manufacturing industry in Indonesia. IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, 794, 012085. https://doi.org/10.1088/1755-1315/794/1/012085
Servat, F., Mahmoodabad, S. S. M., Shavazi, M. A., & Dehghani, A. (2020). Social support or organizational support: Which one is more predictive of job burnout in workers? Journal of Community Health Research, 9(4), 265–272. DOI: https://doi.org/10.18502/jchr.v9i4.4979
Sri Idaiani, Raharni, & Siti Isfandari. (2020). The mental emotional disorder pattern: Study of national basic health research 2007, 2013 and 2018. Advances in Health Sciences Research, 22, 522–525. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2991/ahsr.k.200215.100
Sznajder, K.K., Harlow, S.D., Wang, J. et al. Factors associated with symptoms of poor mental health among women factory workers in China’s supply chain. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00420-021-01820-w
Tucker, M. K., Jimmieson, N. L., & Bordia, P. (2020). Employees' perceptions of their own and their supervisor's emotion recognition skills moderate emotional demands on psychological strain. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/smi.2919
Ulvia Muallivasari, Nukman, & Nurul Ulfah Mutthalib. (2021). Faktor yang berhubungan dengan stres kerja di PT. Maruki Internasional Indonesia Makassar. Window of Public Health Journal, 2(4), 757–764. DOI: https://doi.org/10.33096/woph.v2i4.242
Wang, L., Lu, L., Wu, W., & Luo, Z. (2023). Workplace ostracism and employee wellbeing: A conservation of resource perspective. Frontiers in Public Health, 10. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2022.1075682
World Health Organization. (2020). Occupational health: Stress at the workplace. Retrieved September 9, 2024, from https://www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/occupational-health-stress-at-the-workplace
World Health Organization. (2022). Mental health at work. Retrieved August 22, 2024, from https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/mental-health-at-work
Yousaf, S., Rasheed, M. I., Hameed, Z., & Luqman, A. (2020). Occupational stress and its outcomes: The role of work-social support in the hospitality industry. Personnel Review, 49(3), 755–773. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/PR-11-2018-0478
Zheng, S., Masuda, T., Matsunaga, M., Noguchi, Y., Ohtsubo, Y., Yamasue, H., & Ishii, K. (2021). Cultural differences in social support seeking: The mediating role Zulkefli, F., Syahlan, S., Bakar, M. A., Khalid, M. F., & Rakibe, I. (2020). Factors Influencing Labour Productivity in Oil Palm Estate. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 10(4), 119–131. http://dx.doi.org/10.6007/IJARBSS/v10-i4/711
