Occupational Stress and Mental and Musculoskeletal Health Among University Teachers

Objectives: The aim of the present study was to investigate potential relationships between occupational stress and mental and musculoskeletal health among university teachers in Pakistan, a developing country, and in Finland, a modern Western democracy. Methods: A total of 610 university teachers, 329 from Pakistan and 281 from Finland, participated in the study. Of the respondents, 262 were female and 348 were male. Occupational stress was measured with the Work Stress Symptom Scale, mental health was assessed using the 12-item General Health Questionnaire, and musculoskeletal health was evaluated with the Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire. Results: According to a multivariate analysis of variance, differences between males and females were found on all 3 variables. Female university teachers experienced more stress and health issues than males. Pakistani university teachers scored considerably higher on all of the scales than their Finnish counterparts. Interaction effects existed at the multivariate level, but could not be identified at univariate levels. Conclusion: A clear relationship between occupational stress and both mental and musculoskeletal health was found in both countries. Thus, occupational stress appears to be a risk factor for mental and musculoskeletal health, regardless of the level of development of the country in question.