Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health

The Korean Society for Preventive Medicine (대한예방의학회)
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Reliability of a Newly Developed Tool to Assess and Classify Work-related Stress (TAWS-16) for Indian Workforce

  • Gautham Melur Sukumar (Department of Epidemiology, National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS)) ;
  • Runalika Roy (Department of Epidemiology, National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS)) ;
  • Mariamma Philip (Department of Biostatistics, National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS)) ;
  • Gururaj Gopalkrishna (Department of Epidemiology, National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS))
  • Received : 2023.05.08
  • Accepted : 2023.06.30
  • Published : 2023.09.30
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Abstract

Objectives: Work stress is associated with non-communicable diseases, increased healthcare costs, and decreased work productivity among employees in the information technology sector. There is a need for regular work-stress screening among employees using valid and reliable tools. The Tool to Assess and Classify Work Stress (TAWS-16) was developed to overcome limitations in existing stress assessment tools in India. This study aimed to test the reliability of TAWS-16 in a sample of managerial-supervisory employees. Methods: This observational reliability study included data from 62 employees. Test-retest and inter-method reliability were investigated using a TAWS-16 web application and interview by telephone, respectively. Kappa values and intra-class correlation coefficients were calculated. Internal consistency was assessed through Cronbach's alpha. Results: For both test-retest and inter-method reliability, the agreement for both work-related factors and symptoms suggestive of work stress exceeded 80%, and all kappa values were 0.40 or higher. Cronbach's alpha for test-retest and inter-method reliability was 0.983 and 0.941, respectively. Conclusions: TAWS-16 demonstrated acceptable reliability. It measured stressors, coping abilities, and psychosomatic symptoms associated with work stress. We recommend using TAWS-16 to holistically identify work stress among employees during periodical health check-ups in India.

Keywords

Acknowledgement

The authors would like to express their sincere gratitude to the AKA Labs team for their support and development of the TAWS-16 web application. Most significantly, our sincere thanks to the domain experts and IT professionals for their cooperation and participation in the study.

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