ABSTRACT
What makes work stressful? Why is work a source of distress for some people but not for others? In an effort to address these questions, organizational researchers have identified several types of work stressors—conditions or events within one’s work environment that have the potential to undermine a worker’s psychological and physical well-being. The current chapter focuses on one type of work stressor: organizational constraints. The organizational constraints construct subsumes the many factors within one’s workplace that disrupt effective job performance, such as having to deal with frequent interruptions from supervisors or coworkers and not having access to the supplies, equipment, or training needed to successfully perform one’s job. I begin by reviewing the existing literature, which has generally treated organizational constraints as a global construct. Although this global approach has led to considerable scientific progress, I argue that further progress may be made by applying a facet approach to the study of organizational constraints. Measuring separate constraint facets, for instance, may aid in understanding of the fundamental nature of the constraint construct. Furthermore, information about which facets 2an organization—or a department within an organization—scores high on can be used as a basis for developing tailored interventions.
