Harnessing stress effectively can help boost an individual’s productivity or motivation levels, with a new Griffith University study allaying fears the technique could negatively affect feelings of empathy or willingness to support others.
Dr Jacob Keech is an expert in stress management and has been researching stress mindset — the way people perceive and believe stress affects them — since 2014, with the aim of improving people’s wellbeing and performance when faced with stress.
While stress has long been viewed in a negative light, recent research has suggested reframing it as a potential motivator can lead to better outcomes, including improved problem-solving skills and personal growth.
With this in mind, Dr Keech developed a stress mindset intervention — a 15-minute, online program where participants are first educated about the positive and negative aspects of stress, then taken through a series of imagery-based exercises where they visualise the positive consequences of stress in their own lives.
“Stress mindset interventions have shown promise in helping individuals manage their own stress more effectively,” Dr Keech said.
“There are likely to be benefits of viewing stress in a more balanced way, considering both the positives and the negatives, as opposed to strictly negative.”
Since starting his research however, questions have been raised as to whether there could be negative consequences to viewing stress as a productivity booster, in particular regard to managers putting undue pressure on their staff.
“The idea that fostering a more positive stress mindset could lead people to downplay the struggles of others or be less supportive is an important concern,” Dr Keech said.
“Our findings suggest this is not the case though.”
Participants who underwent the stress mindset intervention were asked to evaluate the distress levels of a close friend and a colleague in hypothetical scenarios and indicate their likelihood of providing support.
The results showed participants in the intervention group were equally receptive to others’ stress and just as likely to offer assistance.
“While it may be beneficial to embrace stress as a motivational tool for personal growth, we must always be cautious not to overload others with stress, especially in managerial roles,” Dr Keech said.
“Our study showed we can promote a healthier mindset towards stress without creating negative consequences for the social or emotional wellbeing of those around us.”
The results of the study were recently published in the International Journal of Stress Management, contributing to the growing evidence supporting the use of stress mindset interventions to improve individual wellbeing and performance, while alleviating concerns of negative impacts on interpersonal relationships.
