Professor of Occupational Health Psychology and Director of the University’s Research Centre for Applied Psychology Gail Kinman spoke at the Under Pressure: Making Sense of Stress lecture at the Physiological Society in London.

Along with Prof Stafford Lightman, an expert on biological aspects of stress from the University of Bristol, Prof Kinman discussed how stress impacts on the body, the cost of stress, the jobs that are most stressful and why this is the case.

Prof Kinman discussed the ways that stress can impact on people’s health and the implications for business, communities and society in general, as well as for individuals and their families.  

She said: “Work-related stress accounts for 45% of all sickness absence with just under 12 million working days lost per year.”

She pointed out that workers in the public sector, such as nurses, teachers and social workers, are more vulnerable to stress as they are struggling with increasing demands and diminishing resources and are very much in the public eye.

“The effects of stress can be very serious. Over time, stress can impact on mental and physical health and contribute to breakdown of relationships with family and friends. There are also major implications for organisations, as stress is linked to high turnover of staff, poor job performance and low motivation, as well as sickness absence,” said Prof Kinman.

“The burden of stress for society in general is also high in terms of early retirement and healthcare costs. For a healthy society, it is vital to reduce the sources of stress and introduce interventions that help organisations and employees manage stress more effectively.”