A UAE case

Stress is a condition that can be caused by external factors, personal perceptions, or individual attitudes. It is a leading cause of heart disease, which is the leading cause of death worldwide. In other circumstances, stress can cause decreased concentration, impatience, and poor judgment. According to research, 60% of all UAE workers experience occupational stress (Khan & Khurshid, 2017). Stress can be generated by a range of common reasons, according to studies that have been undertaken from time to time. They include a shortage of funds, debt accumulation, increased economic costs, and health concerns. Although stress is normal response to psychological and physical demands in life, excessive demands may require an individual to adopt coping mechanisms to overcome the adverse effects.

Causes of Stress

According to Al Mazrouei et al., (2015) stress seems to emanate from four common causes. First, the main cause of stress is the environmental factors such as crime, traffic, pollution, substandard housing and even the weather. The second cause is social stressor which may arise from the different roles that an individual plays in the society such as that of a sibling, parent, caregiver, spouse as well as employee. Social stressors include financial difficulties, deadlines, disagreements, job interviews, divorces, and loss of a loved one, demands for time and attention and presentations among others. The third stress causing factor is physiological situations and circumstances that may affect one's bodies such as illness, aging, menopause poor nutrition, giving birth and accidents. Lastly, thoughts are also a cause of stress as it is through the mind that an individual perceives and interprets those situations that are stressful and difficult.
Stress can either be categorized as positive or negative. On the one hand, positive stress is identified as that which motivates and focusses energy. Such stress is within individual capabilities occurs for a short period, and it leads to improved performance. Examples of positive stressors include promotion at the workplace, vacations, and holiday seasons. Harmful stress, on the other hand, leads to the development of anxiety and concern such stress is considered to be beyond an individual's coping mechanisms. The overall effect is that it will lead to unpleasant feelings and can lead to mental and physical problems and decreases the performance of an individual (Barhem, 2008). Some negative stressors include abuse or neglect, unemployment, disease, bankruptcy and job insecurity.
Stressors lead to feelings of anxiety which consequently results in manifestation through physical symptoms such as sweat, racing heart, flushed face and light-headedness (Barhem, 2008). The behavioral manifestation of anxiety includes avoidance of stressor situations and attempting to do things perfectly. Also, moods that depict anxiety due to stress include nervousness, irritability, and panic. Additionally, thoughts may also manifest stress in an individual through worries and catastrophic thoughts, underestimation of one's ability to cope, and overestimation of anger.
The effects of stress are paramount causing physical and mental illness as well as emotional problems. This calls for the need to elicit response to stress to manage stress. In UAE stress for the workers can be limited by control of the working environment such as controlling the lighting and noise levels. A relaxed quiet and convenient working environment contribute to benefits in the overall productivity of workers. Stress can be relieved through various techniques which require a considerable amount of change. The basis of stress management is the realization of one's thoughts, feelings and behaviors and how they impact on one's life (Al-Nasser & Behery, 2015). All individuals have their unique responses stress, and therefore there does not exist an approach that fits all in stress management.
One effective way of stress management is through limiting unnecessary stressors. Some the stressors cannot be ignored and therefore needs to be addressed. Individuals ought to learn how avoid taking up activities and tasks that are beyond one's capabilities (Khan & Khurshid, 2017). Also, there is the need to limit the time spent with the stressor factor. Also, there is the need for an individual to take control of the stressing situation. Another useful method of stress management is based on altering the stressor situation.
If the stressor situation cannot be limited the best alternative is to alter the situation such that the problem does not present itself in the future. For instance, in work-related scenarios, it is essential to identify the major causes of stress among the workers. This will play a significant role in the implementation of changes to counter the stressing situation. In this regard in UAE health and productivity programmes should be implemented to promote employees wellness (Al-Nasser & Behery, 2015). Most importantly, it is crucial to adapt to the stressor in case the situation is not changeable. For instance, if the situation cannot be altered an individual can alter their expectations and attitude by focussing on the positive, adjusting the expectations, focussing on the bigger picture and reframing the problem.
It is certain that stress negatively impacts the level of productivity of individuals as well as the long-term health status. This calls for the need to develop mechanisms for reducing stress. In UAE most of the workers suffer from stress: for this reason, it is recommended that human resource implements various stress management strategies that will improve the health of the workforce and businesses at large.

References

Al Mazrouei, A. M., Al Faisal, W., Hussein, H., El Sawaf, E., & Wasfy, A. (2015). Determinants of Workplace Stress Among Healthcare Professionals in Dubai, Physicians Experience. Advances in Applied Psychology, 1(1), 31-34.
Al-Nasser, A., & Behery, M. (2015). Examining the relationship between organizational coaching and workplace counterproductive behaviours in the United Arab Emirates. International Journal of Organizational Analysis, 23(3), 378-403.
Barhem, B. (2008). Are Global Managers Able to Deal with Work Stress. Journal of Accounting, Business & Management, 15(1).
Khan, N., & Khurshid, S. (2017). Workplace Stress and Employee Wellbeing: Case of Health Care Staff in UAE. European Scientific Journal, ESJ, 13(5).