This model shows that high pressure plus low control contribute to strain, particularly when combined with home stress and the absence of social support.

Strain can be expressed in a number of ways:

as injury
as infectious disease
as cardiovascular disease or events
as anxiety, depression or hostility
as dependence on alcohol, tobacco and/or certain prescription and over-the-counter drugs

Effort/Reward Imbalance Model: Working Definitions

Effort:

mental or physical energy expended to
achieve an organizational goal.

Reward:

compensation for or acknowledgement of
effort in terms of bestowed status, financial
gain or career advancement.

This model shows (at this stage of its development) that high effort/low reward conditions are associated with a variety of adverse health outcomes prominent among which are cardiovascular disease and mental health problems such as anxiety and depression.

General Note: there is increasing evidence that the Demand/Control Model and the Effort/Reward Imbalance Model are related in that high demand/low control and high effort/low reward conditions may be found in the same organizations at the same time.

General Model of Influences on Wellness in the Workplace: Explanation

This is a condensed and simplified version of the model.

Main Points

Home stress and job stress in this model refer to accumulated stresses from many sources -- it is the additive effect of all of them that concerns us here.
Job stress in this model contains elements of both demand/control and effort/reward imbalance-type stressors.
Home stress and job stress "feed off" and reinforce each other, the one making the other worse.
Home stress and job stress affect wellness (which means self-reported health status) by two related mechanisms:
- By defeating employees' sense of control over their work and their health which in turn reduces motivation to pursue positive health practices.
- By making it difficult for employees to maintain a healthy lifestyle and pursue positive health practices.
Personal health practices in this model refer to:
- exercising
- eating
- smoking
- sleeping
- drinking alcohol
We know that wellness (self-perceived health status) is a good predictor of many specific health outcomes including:
- susceptibility to infection
- depression and anxiety
- tendency to overuse mood-altering, pain-relieving and sleep-inducing medications