1.1 Introduction
Family is the collection of people who are related by marriage, blood, or adoption. Family typically consists of single houses that interact and communicate with one another while fulfilling their individual social duties to create a common culture. One or more children and two adults of different sexes make up a family (Panasenko, 2013). People deal with stress in practically every part of their lives, and it is a common factor in all types of jobs. Over time, stress has been described in a variety of ways. The family structure predates human existence on Earth.
Families are social groups defined by shared housing, economic cooperation, and procreation, according to Jacobs and Gerson (2004). All adults, regardless of gender, who have one or more children that they either own or adopt, and at least two adults who engage in socially acceptable sexual relationships are included. In this study's setting, a family is defined as a husband and wife or wives who are joined in marriage. In order to raise, care for, and prepare their offspring to become tomorrow's members of society, they either coexist as biological or social aspects.
As a prelude to other parts of this study, this chapter will discuss the background upon which this study was initiated, the statement of problems that led to this study, the Aim and Objectives of the study. Others are Significance of the study, Scope of work, Research hypothesis and questions, Limitation of the study and Definition of terms.
1.2 Background of Study
Married working women are steadily advancing into non-traditional fields like engineering and construction, as well as professions like law and medicine, and elected and appointed political roles, according to O'Farrell (2009). Working women who are married now hold a wider variety of paid positions. Working women who are married to males who are employed for pay are their partners in marriage. According to O'Farrell (2009), married women who work are those who engage in labor in order to receive compensation. Over one-third of the global labor force is made up of women, the majority of whom are married, according to Obi (2003). For the sake of this study, married working women are defined as married partners who work in a variety of occupations to provide for their families financially. More women are finding employment across a range of industries as nations get more industrialized.
Family has evolved to include both social and biological elements. The social component of it stems from the family's distinct behavioral pattern that regulates relationships between its members; these relationships are those that the relevant society has recognized as appropriate. The biological component of it is attributed to genetics and blood ties (Nigerian Educational Research and Development Council (NERDC), 2006). According to NERDC, there are two types of families: nuclear and extended.
Two adults and their children make up the nuclear family. A nuclear family is defined by Boss (2002) as a pair of parents and their offspring; aunts, uncles, grandparents, and extended relatives are not included. The parents and their kids make up the nuclear family in this study. A mother, a father, and their kids make up this social unit. Conversely, an extended family is made up of parents, siblings, and other family members. In addition to parents and kids, families also include grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and occasionally even further-off relatives (Panasenko, 2013).
One of the primary functions of the family is to provide a framework for an individual's biological or social reproduction. Because it is a social institution found in all civilizations, the family is universal. It usually functions as the cornerstone of society since it is the most important social institution. Every society uses this designated institution to replace its aging members. For this one reason alone, it prevents the civilization from going extinct. The family institution, which maintains the continuity of society, is primarily responsible for reproduction and the education of the next generation of society members (Brown and Iyengar, 2008).
Men and women have diverse roles to play in the family. Men in the family have roles to play as protectors, teachers, leaders, and providers, according to DeFrain and Asay (2007). An income source for the family is provided by the man. Together with defending his family from harm, he also helps to ensure their physical, mental, spiritual, and emotional well-being. Men that are responsible and involved fathers serve their wives and kids in a variety of ways, according to Hawley and DeHann (2006). More opportunities are created for their kids to gain healthy social skills, which will help them as they grow to be emotionally and psychologically well.
According to Hawley and DeHann (2006), women's roles in family development are defined by the conventional gender division of labor, which has mostly given women access to low-value jobs. The social construct of gender delineates the roles that men and women play. According to Ainley, Hillman, and Hidi (2002), gender is not the same as sex; rather, it describes the many roles that men and women have played in society and the relative power that they hold. The writers claim that whereas "gender" refers to characteristics shaped by social influences or the significance that a society places on biological distinctions, "sex" refers to the biological characteristics of men and women (chromosomes, hormones). According to Gyllensten (2005), whether they are single, married, or working as a married couple, women in many societies perform all aspects of child care, shopping, farming, and cooking.
Stress is unavoidable in human existence. According to Alzono (2000) stress is referred to as a bodily state rather than an event in the environment otherwise known as stressor or stress trigger. Stress is what one feels when one has to handle more than a problem. Stress according to Oboegbulem (2007), refers to a feeling which occurs when an individual’s working or living condition make demands beyond the individuals capacity to handle physically or emotionally. Stress is a mental, emotional, or physical strain caused by anxiety or overwork. Blonna (2005) describes stress as a state of discomfort, tension or emotional pain which arises when an individual is faced with situation which presents a demand that is important for the individual to meet but for.
Stress has been defined in different ways over the years. It is a condition in which any human is confronted with an opportunity or demand related to what they desire and for which the outcome is perceived to be both uncertain and important. There are number of studies and surveys have been conducted by the researchers throughout the world for suggesting improved techniques to manage stress. Some of the reasons of work stress may be: Interpersonal causes, role demand, task demand, structure of the organization, style of leadership, organizational work culture etc. Interpersonal causes are due to interpersonal relationship at work place, when employees found unsupportive environment or any personal remark from others at work place.
Therefore, in Nigeria where the research was carried out, the activities that was conducted is to know the Family Stress, Health and Job Performance of Married Working Women.
1.3 Statement of Problems
Investigation revealed that Companies need to review their procedures because of the tumultuous work environment that certain employees are now in. Higher education is an incredibly stressful field to work in, with long hours, high workloads, challenging students, and competing demands. Higher education personnel are more susceptible to high levels of stress due to their physical and psychological demands.
Stress has been linked to a rise in memoranda errors, expensive medical expenses, tardiness, low productivity, and a rise in sick days. There are no real steps taken to treat these stress-related conditions that have a detrimental impact on productivity, despite the fact that occupational stress has severely detrimental consequences on the human body and work performance.
Furthermore, there hasn't been a deliberate attempt to demonstrate a connection between workplace stress among married working women and its detrimental effects on output. In view of these issues, the purpose of this study is to highlight the impact of occupational stress on an institution's overall performance.
1.4 Aim and Objectives of Study
The aim of the study is to examine the Family Stress, Health and Job Performance of Married Working Women. In achieving this aim, the following specific objectives were laid out as follows:
- To investigate the effect of stress on the job performance of married working women;
- To examine the impact of family stress on married working women’s performance;
- To identify the consequences of stress on the health of married working women;
- To determine the causes of stress of married working women; and
- To examine the stress reduction strategies to help married working women cope with stressful situation.
1.5 Research Questions
The study came up with research questions so as to be able to ascertain the above stated objectives. The specific research questions for the study are stated below as follows:
- What is the effect of stress on the job performance of married working women?
- What is the impact of family stress on married working women’s performance?
- What are the consequences of stress on the health of married working women?
- What are the causes of stress of married working women?
- What are the stress reduction strategies to help married working women cope with stressful situation?
1.6 Research Hypothesis
In order to pursue the objective of this study, the following generalized statements have been designed to guide and aids in obtaining the result for the experiment to be conducted. For this work, the null hypothesis will be represented with H0 while the alternative hypothesis will be represented with hypothesis H1.
Hypothesis One
- H0: There is no impact of stress on married working women’s performance.
- H1: There is an impact of stress on married working women’s performance
Hypothesis Two
- H0: There are no different methods which can be used to reduce stress that affects married working women.
- H1: There are different methods which can be used to reduce stress that affects married working women
1.7 Significance of Study
The findings of this research would assist the employees of labour, to manage stress and undergone by their workers. It would also serve as an avenue and foundation for future and further study. Stress Management is important to healthy functioning of organizations as it seeks to increase productivity since one can clearly focus on tasks, better memory, improved immune system and better blood pressure.
This study will be of immense benefit to other researchers who intend to know more on this study and can also be used by non-researchers to build more on their research work. This study contributes to knowledge and could serve as a guide for other study.
1.8 Scope of Study
The scope of the research is focused on the Family Stress, Health and Job Performance of Married Working Women. The Enugu Education Zone of Enugu State in Nigeria is selected as the study area in the course of this research.
1.9 Limitations of the Study
During the course of this study, there were some problems encountered which stood as limitations to the research work. Some of the limitations include:
- Time Constraint: The time frame given to accomplish this project was very short due to school academic calendar and it was carried out under pressure which made the researcher not to implement some necessary features.
- Research Material: availability of research material is a major setback to the scope of the study.
- Financial Constraint: Insufficient fund tends to impede the efficiency of the researcher in sourcing for the relevant materials, literature or information and in the process of data collection (internet, questionnaire and interview).
- Initial Cooperation Delay from Respondents: A particular limitation of this work came as a result of the respondent refusal to offer their cooperation at the initial time they were contacted. This contributed in making the success of this research study difficult.
1.10 Definition of Terms
Stress:
Stress is your body’s way of responding to any kind of demand or threat. When you sense danger whether it’s real or imagined the body’s defenses kick into high gear in a rapid, automatic process known as the “fight-or-flight” reaction or the “stress response”.
Workers Performance:
The job related activities expected of a worker and how well those activities were executed. Many business personnel directors assess the employee performance of each staff member on an annual or quarterly basis in order to help them identify suggested areas for improvement.
