Occupational Stress and Mental Health: Findings of a Cross-Sectional Study on a Large Sample of Employees of Isfahan Steel Company Using Quantile Regression, Iran

Occupational stress is a condition in which a person is faced with a demand that is more than his ability to perform it. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between three dimensions of occupational stress (effort, reward, and commitment) and mental health among the employees of Isfahan steel company, Iran. 3063 employees of Isfahan steel company were surveyed in a cross sectional study in 2014. The questionnaire of Effort-Reward Imbalance (ERI) and General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12) were used to collect data. The relationship between variables was analyzed using quantile regression method by Stata software. Findings: 91.5% (2800 people) of the participants were men and their mean age was 36.47 ± 7.31 years. All three dimensions of occupational stress (effort, reward, and commitment) were significantly related to mental health (P < 0.05). High levels of effort and commitment and low levels of reward occurred at low levels of mental health. People at different levels of mental health are differently affected by occupational stress. Hence, industry managers must take steps to reduce its effects.