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Abstract

There is limited research on occupational stress and its relation to health from developing countries such as India. This study was done to evaluate work conditions of professionals in two highly productive sectors: the information technology (IT) sector, also known as software development, and Information Technology Enabled Services (ITES), also known as call centers. The study employed thirty-two in-depth interviews. The results indicate the presence of nine stress domains: job control, autonomy, time pressure, length of experience in industry, night shifts, income, appreciation of work, physical environment, work-environment and affective or emotional factors. Global drivers of demand, and local supply of a skilled workforce and the work force regulatory environment in India determine the work culture in Indian IT companies. Apart from affecting health of the professionals, these determinants influence workforce policies, priorities, goals and management practices.

Keywords

Work Culture, Job Stress, Information Technology (IT), Information Technology Enabled Services (ITES), Qualitative Research

Author Bio(s)

Giridhar R Babu. MBBS, MPH, PhD. Associate Professor. Correspondence regarding this article can be addressed directly to Giridhar R. Babu at Email: giridhar@iiphh.org; Address: Public Health Foundation of India, IIPH-H, Bangalore campus, SIHFW premises, beside leprosy hospital, 1st cross, Magadi road. Bangalore-560023.

Sathyanarayana T. N.MBBS, MPH, PhD Scholar. Correspondence regarding this article can also be addressed directly to Email: drsathya1@gmail.com; Address: Public Health Foundation of India, IIPH-H, Bangalore campus, SIHFW premises, beside leprosy hospital, 1st cross, Magadi road. Bangalore-560023.

Asha Ketharam, Scientist ‘C’, ICMR Complex, Kannamangala PO, Poojanahalli Road, Devanahalli Taluk, Bengaluru-562110, Karnataka, INDIA.

Snehendu. B. Kar, Dr.P.H, MPH, M.Sc., Fulbright-Nehru Distinguished Chair, Professor Emeritus of Public Health & Asian American Studies, Fielding School of Public Health, University of California at Los Angeles, California- 90095.

Roger Detels, MD MS, Professor of Epidemiology and Infectious Diseases, Correspondence regarding this article can also be addressed directly to Roger Detels at Address: UCLA Schools of Public Health and Medicine, UCLA Pub Hlth-Epid, BOX 951772, 71-267 CHS, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1772; Email: detels@ucla.edu

Publication Date

3-1-2015

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 4.0 International License.

DOI

10.46743/2160-3715/2015.2274

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