1 * With change going on all around us at an ever increasing pace, organizations need managers who can successfully implement organizational change and manage the stress associated with organizational change. Chapter 18, our final chapter in this course, talk about both topics. I will talk about Stress.

2 * Stress is defined as a behavioral, physical, or psychological response to stressors; and stressors are environmental factors that produce stress.

Many researchers have studied the impact of stress on individual and organizational health. Hans Selye noted that stress can be caused by both positive and negative events in one’s life and both types of events can have the same physical and psychological impact. For example, having a new baby, starting a new job, or buying a new house are positive events but can significantly increase one’s stress at the same levels as the loss of a loved one, difficulties at work, or financial problems.

The stress that is good or produces a positive outcome is referred to as eustress.
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The four major types of stressors are
•Individual, those directly associated with job duties, such as role ambiguity or overload, eye strain from computers, or freezing from being a snow plow operator in sub-zero temperatures.
•Group, which are caused by group dynamics or managerial behavior.
•Organizational, which are caused by factors associated with, for example, the organizational culture; and
•Extra-organizational, those factors outside the organization such as work/family balance issues or socioeconomic status.
Stress is inevitable; therefore, the goal is to minimize the negative impact of stress on our physical and mental health. Developing coping strategies will be discussed on the next slide.

4 * Cognitive appraisal of stressors reflect an individual’s overall perception or evaluation of a stressor. The