Stress is a universal biologically based phenomenon that places adaptive demands on the changes in the environment. It is a set of non-specific mental, physiologic and behavioural responses of a human being to the impact of environmental stimuli. The effect of many of these environmental stimuli in Bulgaria has been intensified by the recent drastic changes (political, social, professional, and in the labour market). The severity and manifestation of stress changed as a result. To assess and measure these changes we conducted a nationwide study applying original methodological approach and using original quantitation parameters.
Aim of the study: To determine the type, duration and level (intensity) of stress; we attempted to determine the factors causing stress in seven major professions in the public and real sectors of economy.
Material and methods: We studied stress and the factors causing it in a nationwide representative study which included 4892 employees and workers practicing seven different professions (physicians, teachers, office workers, miners, public transport drivers, metal workers, and train drivers). A battery of survey methods and original statistical and mathematical methods (including the method of weighted mean intensity of action and manifestation) were employed in the study to determine the type, manifestations, intensity and duration of stress and the stressogenic factors causing it.
Results: We found that 70.7% of the workers and employees exhibited symptoms of affective stress and 25.7%--of depressive stress. Affective stress was the most common type of stress in office workers (76.9%) and drivers (73.5%), and the least common--in physicians (65.9%) and teachers (63.3%). The level of stress was high and very high for 25.3% of the study contingent. Affective stress had the highest intensity in miners (0.5226) and drivers (0.4654), and the lowest - in physicians (0.3072). Affective stress was a permanent state in 24.12% of the people working in the public sector and 16.37% of those in the real sectors. Psychoemotional stress was transitory for 58% of the professions in the public sector and 31% of those in the real sector. The profession-related factors were assessed as the most stressful (0.6339), followed by those of social and economic nature (0.5982); the family-related factors and the factors associated with the organisation of the working process were the least stressful (0.5251 and 0.5730, respectively), There were statistically significant differences in the characteristics and intensity of psychoemotional stress between the different professions in both sectors of economy.in bth sctosofeconmy.
Conclusion: The basic professions in Bulgarian economy are highly stressful, which comes as a corollary of the changed stressogenic situation in Bulgaria.