STRESS AS A RISK FACTOR IN OCCUPATION-RELATED CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASES

In this paper we aim to investigate the role of occupation-related cardiovascular diseases and stress. We focus on three main variables: perceived stress, stress adjustment and coping strategies. We investigated two groups, each including sixty individuals, one with occupation-related cardiovascular diseases and one without any occupation-related medical conditions. The results show that people with occupation-related cardiovascular diseases tend to show higher levels of perceived stress and lower levels of stress adjustment. Also, they focus on passive coping strategies such as denial, emotional support, mental and behavioural disengagement and venting of emotions, while people without occupation-related diseases focus on active strategies such as direct action, suppression of competing activities, positive reinterpretation and social support. Furthermore, we reckon that occupation-related cardiovascular diseases are factors making people vulnerable to high levels of perceived stress and low levels of stress adjustment.