ABSTRACT
Knowledge work jobs, in which the primary task is the acquisition, creation and application of knowledge, can be motivating and rewarding. However, they can also be experienced as stressful (Grönlund, 2007; McClenahan, Giles, & Mallett, 2007). Preventing stress in knowledge work jobs is important, as they constitute a significant proportion of jobs in many developed economies (Brinkley, Fauth, Mahdon, & Theodoropoulou, 2010; Davenport, 2005) and may constitute up to 25% of jobs in Denmark, where this study was conducted (Rugulies, Martin, Garde, Persson, & Albertsen, 2012). One means of alleviating stress in knowledge work jobs is an
LONGITUDINAL RESEARCH IN OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH PSYCHOLOGY
organizational-level occupational health (OL-OH) intervention that seeks to change the contextual antecedents of stress, e.g. job and social characteristics (Semmer, 2006). The very few published studies of OL-OH interventions in knowledge work jobs have produced inconsistent findings (Bond & Bunce, 2001; Landsbergis & Vivona-Vaughan, 1995). The failure to find consistent evidence of beneficial effects may be a result of the difficulties associated with finding better alternatives to organizing knowledge work jobs, or it may be a result of issues arising during the implementation of such changes, e.g. lack of process support from senior management (Nielsen, Taris, & Cox, 2010).
