A potential of the wellness concept on occupational stress management in contemporary SHRM

Abstract

This article sheds light on the problem of occupational stress at work. The latter is discussed in the context of the culturally diverse working environment, which results from distinctions in ethnic and social mind-sets of culturally different employees, who encounter daily communications and participate in knowledge transfers. The relevance of the topic is high, considering the scarcity of the relevant knowledge on the interconnection between occupational stress and coping strategies, able to mitigate the negative implications of work-related stress, such as reduced health condition and overall organisational efficiency. To research the agenda, the article draws attention to strategic management and strategic Human Resource Management (SHRM) works of literature and the wellness concept as critical components of the healthy working environment. The paper starts with the outline of the current state of research in the area of work-related stress and explanations of major limitations of the existing studies. It continues with a proposition of the new model of occupational stress. It finishes with specifications of research directions, necessary for testing the model and verifying its applicability to various research settings.