Heart Rate Variability and Occupational Stress: Future Directions

Statistics across industrialised societies show that occupational stress results in social and financial costs for individuals, organisations, and economies. Occupational stress is prevalent in many different forms, for example, work intensification, dissatisfaction with current work schedules, feelings of job insecurity, more work being done at odd hours, the spread of new information and communication technologies, and long hours becoming more common [1]. With this work intensity comes increasing physiological and psychological strain on employees. Indeed, it has long been established that prolonged exposure to stressors incurred at work is linked to a vast array of negative attitudinal, health and, in particular, cardiovascular outcomes for employees [2].