“There Just Wasn’t Time for a Discussion”: Czech Employees’ Experiences with Work-Related Stress during the COVID-19 Pandemic
“There Just Wasn’t Time for a Discussion”: Czech Employees’ Experiences with Work-Related Stress during the COVID-19 Pandemic
Author(s): Martina Kolářová VeverkováSubject(s): Economy, Psychology, Human Rights and Humanitarian Law, Organizational Psychology, Methodology and research technology, Management and complex organizations, Health and medicine and law, Economic development, Socio-Economic Research, Labour and Social Security Law
Published by: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Śląskiego
Keywords: sociology of work; work stress; stress process theory; qualitative research; in-depth interviews; COVID-19; pandemic
Summary/Abstract: Research on work stress during the COVID-19 pandemic has primarily focused on organizational psychology perspectives, often neglecting the role of broader social structures and meanings attached to this complex social crisis. This paper aims to provide an alternative approach, building on L. I. Pearlin’s stress process theory. The study draws on 29 in-depth interviews with Czech employees, capturing complexity of pandemic experiences and their perception. Pandemic-specific mechanisms of work stress were identified, with managerial approaches and workplace power dynamics emerging as central factors. The analysis reveals three distinct types of stress experiences, named: “Stress Mediated by Sense of Purpose,” “Disempowered Strain,” and “Behind the Shield.”
Journal: Górnośląskie Studia Socjologiczne. Seria Nowa
- Issue Year: 2025
- Issue No: 16
- Page Range: 1-30
- Page Count: 30
- Language: English
