Job-Related Tension Index measure

Abstract

The Job-Related Tension Index measure, developed by Kahn, Wolfe, Quinn, and Snoek (1964), is a 15-item instrument designed to assess employee perceptions of job stress. It specifically targets the frequency of stressful occurrences and the perceived extent of role overload. The scale measures psychological symptoms associated with workplace demands, such as feeling overwhelmed by work volume, lacking necessary resources or materials for assignments, and a general inability to manage the total workload. While originally designed as a single measure of job tension, subsequent research (e.g., Jamal, 1990; Shirom & Mayer, 1993) has utilized subsets of the items to construct distinct subscales, typically focusing on role ambiguity, role overload, and resource inadequacy.

Keywords

Job stress, organizational stress, role conflict, role ambiguity, role overload, resource inadequacy, job satisfaction, organizational psychology, psychological symptoms

Authors

Kahn, R. L., Wolfe, D. M., Quinn, R. P., Snoek, J. D.

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Purpose

The primary purpose of the Job-Related Tension Index measure is to quantify the frequency with which employees experience specific psychological tensions and stressors related to their occupational roles and organizational environment. The scale provides a standardized method for assessing employee perceptions of work difficulty, role clarity, and sufficiency of resources.

It is used extensively in organizational behavior and occupational health psychology research to identify antecedent factors and outcomes associated with high levels of workplace tension and strain.

Construct

The scale measures Job-Related Tension, which is defined as an employee’s perceived psychological strain resulting from organizational demands and role pressures. This construct is recognized as multidimensional, encompassing several key facets of workplace strain:

• Role Overload: The feeling of having too heavy a workload or an inability to complete assignments within available time.
• Resource Inadequacy: The perception that the necessary means, materials, or information required to accomplish job tasks are lacking.
• Role Ambiguity/Conflict: Uncertainty regarding job scope, responsibilities, performance evaluation, or having to satisfy conflicting demands from different supervisors.

Validity

The validity of the Job-Related Tension Index has been established through its consistent pattern of correlations with numerous work-related and personal variables. Job tension consistently demonstrated positive correlations with problematic work factors, including control problems at work, high work involvement, elevated work expectations, perceived lack of psychosocial support (e.g., from a mentor), and conflicting family expectations (Abraham & Hansson, 1996; Duxbury & Higgins, 1991; Seibert, 1999).

Conversely, job tension showed significant negative correlations with positive outcomes, such as quality of work life, job satisfaction, goal attainment, organizational commitment, self-esteem at work, quality of family life, and overall life satisfaction. Furthermore, studies analyzing the subscales found that role ambiguity, role overload, and resource inadequacy were all positively correlated with psychosomatic problems (Jamal, 1990). All subscales, except for role overload, correlated negatively with job satisfaction. Role overload, specifically, was found to correlate positively with various interpersonal conflicts, including parent-teacher conflict, teacher-principal conflict, and work-home conflict (Shirom & Mayer, 1993).

Reliability

The internal consistency of the Job-Related Tension Index is generally strong across various organizational and occupational samples. Coefficient alpha values for the overall 15-item scale typically range from .80 to .89 (Abraham & Hansson, 1996; Bennett, Lehman, & Forst, 1999; Duxbury & Higgins, 1991; Iverson, 1997; Rush et al., 1985; Seibert, 1999). These high values suggest strong internal reliability for the composite measure of job tension.

When the items are separated into distinct subscales, the internal consistency remains acceptable. Specifically, coefficient alpha values were reported as .76 for the role ambiguity subscale and .74 for the resource inadequacy subscale. Reliability for the role overload subscale demonstrated a wider range, falling between .65 and .82 (Jamal, 1990; Shirom & Mayer, 1993).

Factor Analysis

Although the Job-Related Tension Index was initially presented as a single-factor measure of general job stress in the original 1964 publication, subsequent empirical applications have explored its underlying factor structure. Research utilizing confirmatory and exploratory factor analysis techniques, notably by Jamal (1990) and Shirom and Mayer (1993), suggests that the 15 items reliably load onto distinct latent factors, often categorized as role ambiguity, role overload, and resource inadequacy. This multifactorial interpretation allows researchers to analyze specific, distinguishable sources of tension rather than relying solely on the overall level of stress experienced by employees.

Instrument

Test Type: Self-report psychological scale

Format: 15 items utilizing a 5-point frequency scale

Language Available: English (Original)

Population Group: Employees/Working adults

Age Group: Adult (Generally 18+)

Population Details: Applicable to various organizational settings and job types, particularly those where role conflict and ambiguity are prevalent.

Test Methodology: Respondents rate the frequency with which they are bothered by specific job-related stressors. Response options are: 1 = never, 2 = rarely, 3 = sometimes, 4 = rather often, and 5 = nearly all the time. It is optional to use “doesn’t apply,” and this response is coded with a score of 0.

Keywords

Psychometrics, organizational stress, job tension, industrial psychology, role conflict, job demands, work-family conflict

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Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: N/A

Affiliation Email addresses: N/A

Correspondence Address: N/A (Refer to original publication: Kahn, R. L., Wolfe, D. M., Quinn, R. P., & Snoek, J. D. (1964). Organizational stress: Studies in role conflict and ambiguity. New York: John Wiley.)

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

The Job-Related Tension Index measure was developed and published in 1964. The items were taken from pages 424-425 of the source text and were reproduced with permission of the author. The scale is widely utilized in academic research, often without requiring fees. However, users intending to employ the scale for commercial purposes or extensive adaptation should consult the primary author (Kahn) or the publisher (John Wiley) to ensure compliance with copyright and usage permissions. The test year is 1964.

Reference’s

• Abraham, R., & Hansson, R. O. (1996). The role of job control and social support in job-related tension and job satisfaction. International Journal of Stress Management, 3(3), 195-207.
• Bennett, J. B., Lehman, W. E. K., & Forst, L. (1999). The relationship between job demands, social support, and job strain in a sample of urban public employees. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 41(12), 1046-1054.
• Duxbury, L. E., & Higgins, C. A. (1991). Gender differences in work-family conflict. Journal of Applied Psychology, 76(1), 60-74.
• Iverson, R. D. (1997). The relationship between job stress and job satisfaction in a sample of Australian nurses. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 70(4), 365-375.
• Jamal, M. (1990). Relationship of job stress and Type A behavior to employee job satisfaction, organizational commitment, psychosomatic problems, and burnout. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 11(5), 379-391.
• Kahn, R. L., Wolfe, D. M., Quinn, R. P., & Snoek, J. D. (with Rosenthal, R. A.). (1964). Organizational stress: Studies in role conflict and ambiguity. New York: John Wiley.
• Rush, M. C., Schoel, L. R., & Schoenfeld, L. F. (1985). Job stress, job performance, and Type A behavior: Implications for organizational change. Journal of Organizational Behavior Management, 7(3-4), 101-119.
• Seibert, S. E. (1999). The relationship between job characteristics, work involvement, and job tension in a sample of information technology workers. Journal of Applied Psychology, 84(4), 587-598.
• Shirom, A., & Mayer, A. (1993). The relationship between role conflict, role ambiguity, and job tension in a sample of Israeli teachers. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 66(1), 1-13.

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Items of the Job-Related Tension Index measure

Items and instructions:

All of us occasionally feel bothered by certain kinds of things in our work. How frequently do you feel bothered by each of these?

1. Feeling that you have too little authority to carry out the responsibilities assigned to you
2. Being unclear on just what the scope and responsibilities of your job are
3. Not knowing what opportunities for advancement or promotion exist for you
4. Feeling that you have too heavy a work load, one that you can’t possibly finish during an ordinary workday
5. Thinking that you’ll not be able to satisfy the conflicting demands of various people over you
6. Feeling that you’re not fully qualified to handle your job
7. Not knowing what your supervisor thinks of you, how he [she] evaluates your performance
8. The fact that you can’t get information needed to carry out your job
9. Having to decide things that affect the lives of individuals, people that you know
10. Feeling that you may not be liked and accepted by the people you work with
11. Feeling unable to influence your immediate supervisor’s decisions and actions that affect you
12. Not knowing just what the people you work with expect of you
13. Thinking that the amount of work you have to do may interfere with how well it gets done
14. Feeling that you have to do things on the job that are against your better judgment
15. Feeling that your job tends to interfere with your family life