Survey: Women More Stressed than Men at Workplace

It’s not difficult to imagine that women, who are paid less than men for doing the same work, are more stressed than men. It’s nearly impossible to embrace a situation with open arms and peace of mind when you know you’re being discriminated against. And that’s just the beginning. Despite the Mr. Mom phenomenon, the role of men in corporate society has remained relatively unchanged, while the role for women is constantly evolving as equality at the workplace remains a fundamental human issue. Who wouldn’t be stressed when tasked with advancing one’s career and changing an entire culture simultaneously?

This article explains the statistics: “According to new research from Polaris Marketing, women are significantly more stressed than men. All 1,206 respondents were asked to rate themselves on a 10-point ‘stress scale,’ where 10 was ‘very stressed,’ and 1 was ‘not at all stressed.’ Women respondents’ mean stress rating was 5.34, while male respondents’ mean stress rating was 4.82.”

We all have different reasons for being stressed, but let’s face it: the economy throughout the past few years hasn’t done anybody any favors. As our professional stresses become a greater part of our personal stress and financial struggles weigh on our families and relationships, everyone is feeling the pinch. Men feel a diminished sense of manhood as their ability to provide for their family wans, and women internalized the worries and frustrations of everyone as they’re being asked to do more by both their families and bosses.

Yet, we move forward—men and women—knowing that things could always be worse and that it’s about time things got better. We try to hide our stresses until life improves, but the healthiest approach is to acknowledge your stress by identifying its causes and employing an exercise, diet and lifestyle routine that will reduce and help manage stress. Start now if you haven’t already.

Photo courtesy of Eric Bégin.