The impact of work-life balance and motivation on stress perception

The number of workers sitting at home with burn-out has risen sharply in recent years. Is workplace stress the biggest culprit? Not per definition. Although just over half of working Belgians (52%) say they are fairly to very stressed by work, the majority do not necessarily see this stress as something negative. As many as three quarters (75.8%) say they can handle stress in a healthy way.

The downside? One in four working Belgians cannot and are at risk of chronic stress and health damage. A figure that, moreover, has not improved in recent years. This chronic stress means that these workers can suffer long-term breakdowns.

Resilience is the ability to cope with stress or setbacks. Men (77%) appear to be slightly more resilient in coping with stress than women (71%). Young people under 25 (81%) are, in general, also somewhat better at handling stress than older workers (74%). In addition, the position also plays a role. Blue-collar workers (77%) are slightly more resilient than white-collar workers (74%) or executives and managers (72%).

Yet neither gender, age, nor position are the most important factors when it comes to stress resistance and resilience. Julie Daenen: "Work-life balance and motivation are, according to Mensura's statistical model. If a person's work-life balance is well balanced, they will usually also be better able to cope with pressure and stress at work. Motivation is another factor that has a positive impact on resilience. High mental and emotional strain in the workplace or high workload, in turn, have a negative impact."

"In creating an optimal work context, managers have an important role to play. They can help their team cope well with workloads. For example, by promoting a deconnection culture, in which employees do not feel obliged to check emails or answer phones after working hours," says Julie Daenen.

"Managers also have a big impact on the atmosphere within the team. They can make employees feel motivated and valued. Or ensure that there is sufficient back-up when employees are absent so that the team can keep running. Those who feel supported and empowered by their managers are more likely to be able to go the 'extra mile' without negative mental consequences."

A final observation from the survey: work-life balance is fine for most, by the way. Seven in 10 workers (70%) say they have a good work-life balance.

"Companies are already making a lot of efforts in the workplace to reduce stress and workload. This year, the number of applications from companies wanting to better arm their employees against stress already rose by a fifth. But staying with one-off measures will not achieve sustainable success," Julie concludes. "By working at the level of organisation, teams and - where necessary - the individual, you can clamp down on stress and encourage resilience."