The purpose of this pilot study was to compare the psychosocial distress of Japanese auto workers with that of the American employees working in a Japanese managed plant, to describe mediating factors related to their distress, and recommend interventions. Japanese and American workers and spouses responded to five questionnaires and two open ended questions about changes in health, function, and time, and needs, problems, and recommendations for stress reduction. Japanese men had higher General Health Questionnaire scores than American workers. Psychosocial distress was related to work self confidence and individual responsibility for Japanese men, with social support for Japanese women, and with individual responsibility for American men and women. Stress was related to communication problems and misunderstanding about the management practices and cultural norms. Culturally appropriate worksite and community interventions are discussed.
References
1.
AntonucciT.GillettN., & HoyerF.W. (1989) Values and self esteem in three generations of men and women. Journal of Gerontology, 34(3), 415–122.
2.
ArakiS. (1985). The factors affecting gastric and duodenal ulcers in Japanese factory workers: A case-control study. Sangyo Igaku, 27(4), 242–247.
3.
BanduraA. (1977). Self-efficacy: Toward a unifying theory of behavior change. Psychological Review, 83, 191–215.
4.
BreitmayerB.AyersL., & KnaflK. (1993). Triangulation in qualitative research: Evaluation of completeness and confirmation purposes. Image, 25(3), 237–243.
5.
CasselJ. (1976). The contribution of the social environment to host resistance. American Journal of Epidemiology, 104(2), 107–123.
6.
ChangN.KawaiS., & OkadaR. (1989). Autopsy statistics on the relative frequency of acute myocardial infarction in the Japanese metal workers and the unemployed during the two oil crises periods. Sangyo Ika Daigaku Zasshi, 22(Suppl), 106–119.
7.
CohenS., & SymeS.L. (eds.). (1985). Social support and health. New York: Academic Press.
8.
DenzinN. (1970). Sociological methods: A sourcebook. Chicago: Aldine Press.
9.
DohrenwendB., & DohrenwendB. (1984). Stressful life events: Their nature and effects. New York: John Wiley.
10.
GageL., & LeidyN. (1991). Screening for psychosocial distress: Implications for prevention and health promotion. Public Health Nursing, 8(4), 267–275.
11.
GageL.SchultzeS., & BarnardR. (1984). The relationship of health and mental health status in a primary health care practice. Proceedings of the 5th Work Group of European Nurse Researchers (pp. 163–170). Uppsala, Sweden: Swedish Nurses Association.
12.
GilchristL.D., & SchinkerS.P. (1983). Coping with contraception: Cognitive behavioral methods with adolescents. Cognitive Theory and Research, 7, 379–388.
13.
GoldbergD. (1978). Manual for the general health questionnaire. Windsor, England.
14.
GoldbergD., & HillierV. (1979). A scaled version of the general health questionnaire. Psychological Medicine, 9, 139–145.
15.
GoldbergD., & WilliamsP. (1988). A user's guide to the general health questionnaire. Windsor. England: Nfer-Nelson.
16.
GonzalezV.GoeppingerJ., & LorigK. (1990). Four psychosocial theories. Arthritis Care Research, 3(3), 132–143.
17.
HamaguchiE. (1978). Soshiki saikaihatsu no nihon-teki tokushitsu ni kansuru kisoteki kenkyu (Basic study on the Japanese characteristics of organizational redevelopment, pp. 1–2). Osaka University Department of Social Psychology.
18.
HamaguchiE. (1992). The human basis of Japanese systems. Japanese systems: An alternative civilization? (pp. 8–16). Yokohama, Japan: Sekotac, Ltd.
19.
IwataN.OkuyamaY.KawakamiY., & SaitoK. (1988). Psychiatric symptoms and related factors in a sample of Japanese workers. Psychological Medicine, 18(3), 659–666.
20.
IwataN.OkuyamaY.KawakamiY., & SaitoK. (1989). Prevalence of depressive symptoms in a Japanese occupational setting: A preliminary study. American Journal of Public Health, 79(1), 1486–1489.
21.
IwataN., & SaitoK. (1992). The factor structure of the 28 item General Health Questionnaire when used in Japanese early adolescents and adult employees: Age and cross-cultural comparisons. European Archives of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience, 242, 172–178.
22.
JenkinsR. (1985). Minor psychiatric morbidity and labour turnover. British Journal of Industrial Medicine, 42, 534–539.
23.
KarakiM. (1991). Work and stress in workers in Tokyo—Its actual state and anti-stress countermeasures taken by employers. Journal of Human Ergology, 20(2), 127–145.
24.
KasaharaY.FujitaO., & SakaiK. (1987). Industrialization and mental health in Japan—Mental health of larger enterprise employees in their 40s and 50s. Japanese Journal of Psychiatric Neurology, 41(2), 179–185.
25.
KawakamiN.ArakiS., & KawashimaM. (1990). Effects of job stress on occurence of major depression in Japanese industry: A case control study nested in a cohort study. Journal of Occupational Medicine, 32(8), 722–725.
26.
KawakamiN.HarataniT., & ArakiS. (1992). Effects of perceived job stress on depressive symptoms in blue-collar workers of an electrical factory in Japan. Scandinavian Journal of Work Environmental Health, 18(3), 195–200.
27.
KawakamiN.HarataniT.KanekoT., & ArakiS. (1989). Perceived stress and blood pressure increase among Japanese blue collar workers: One year follow up study. Industrial Health, 27(2), 71–81.
28.
KeitaG., & SauterS. (eds.) (1992). Work and well-being: Agenda for the 1990s. Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association.
29.
LazarusR., & FolkmanS. (1984). Stress, appraisal, and coping. New York: Springer.
LiptonR., & WorthingtonE. (1984). The measurement of generalized self-efficacy: A study of construct validity. Journal of Personality Assessment, 40, 545–548.
32.
LongK.ChastainR.UngE.ShoorS., & HolmanH. (1986). Development and evaluation of a scale to measure perceived self-efficacy in people with arthritis. Arthritis and Rheumatism, 32(1), 37–44.
33.
LorigK.LubeckD.KrainesR.SeleznickM., & HolmanH. (1985). Outcomes of self-help education for patients with arthritis. Arthritis and Rheumatism, 25(6), 680–685.
MarmotM.G., & SymeS.L. (1976). Acculturation and coronary heart disease in Japanese-Americans. American Journal of Epidemiology, 104(3), 225–247.
36.
MatsumotoY.S. (1970). Social stress and coronary heart disease in Japan: A hypothesis. The Milbank Memorial Fund Quarterly, 43(1), 87–101.
37.
McGinniesE.NordholmL.WardC., & BhanthumnavinD. (1974). Sex and cultural differences in perceived locus of control among students in five countries. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 42(3), 451–455.
38.
MonatA., & LazarusR. (eds.). (1991). Stress and coping, 3rd ed.New York: Columbia University Press.
39.
NakagawaY., & OboI. (1985). The manual of the general health questionnaire (Japanese Version). Ichikawa City, Japan: Nihon Bunka Kagakusha Co., Ltd.
40.
ParsonsO., & SchneiderJ. (1974). Locus of control in university students from Eastern and Western societies. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 49(3), 456–461.
41.
QuickJ.MurphyL., & HurrellJ., (Eds.), (1992). Stress and well-being at work. Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association.
42.
SarasonI.G. (1983). Assessing social support: The social support questionnaire. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 44(1), 127–139.
43.
UehataT. (1991). Long working hours and occupational stress-related cardiovascular attacks among middle-aged workers in Japan. Journal of Human Ergology, 20(2), 147–153.
44.
ViewegB., & HedlundJ. (1983). The General Health Questionnaire (GHQ): A comprehensive review. Journal of Operational Psychiatry, 14, 74–81.
45.
WallstonK.A.WallstonB.S., & DeVellisR. (1978). Development of the multidimensional health locus of control (MHLC) scale. Health Education Monograph, 6(2), 160–170.
46.
ZwingmanC., & GunnA. (1983). Uprooting and health: Psychosocial problems of students from abroad. Geneva. Switzerland: World Health Organization.
