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Common Mental Health Problems

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Handbook on Management and Employment Practices

Part of the book series: Handbook Series in Occupational Health Sciences ((HDBSOHS))

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Abstract

Common mental health problems (CMPs) have been recognized as one of the most common causes of sickness absence in developed countries. Despite the effectiveness of interventions or workplace strategies for people sick-listed with CMP, the incidence of work disability due to CMP, days lost to work as a result, and the cost to the economy have shown little or no significant decrease over the years. At the same time, some studies suggest that preventive workplace-based interventions are effective in reducing the prevalence of CMPs. Other studies imply that the failure to take account of the personal and social factors of sick-listed employees when managing or implementing workplace strategies may be contributing to the insignificant reductions in CMPs. However, a summary of up-to-date reviews identifies two main findings for effective workplace management of CMPs:

  1. 1.

    Proactive interventions taking account of employee’s personal and social factors are likely to impact health outcomes or work functionality for people sick-listed with CMPs leading to return to work after a period of absence.

  2. 2.

    Employment outcomes such as job retention for these sick-listed individuals hinge on organizational factors. Hence, one’s ability to remain at work despite ill health due to CMPs is contingent on management practices within the workplace. This book chapter, therefore, aims to highlight the main types and causes of CMPs and their broader impacts. It also aims to identify best CMP management strategies in the workplace to date based on intervention studies and guidelines and other areas for future research that might be useful in reducing sickness absence rates due to CMPs.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Allied Professions, Sport and Exercise, University of Huddersfield, Huddersfield, UK

    Abasiama Etuknwa

  2. Norwich Business School, Norwich Research Park, University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK

    Mariya Mathai

Authors
  1. Abasiama Etuknwa
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  2. Mariya Mathai
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Correspondence to Abasiama Etuknwa .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. School of Applied Psychology, Griffith University, Mt Gravatt, QLD, Australia

    Paula Brough

  2. School of Applied Psychology, Griffith University, Mt Gravatt, Australia

    Elliroma Gardiner

  3. University of East Anglia, Norwich Business School, Norwich, UK

    Kevin Daniels

Section Editor information

  1. Norwich Business School, University of East Anglia, Norwich, United Kingdom

    Kevin Daniels

  2. School of Management, QUT Business School, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

    Elliroma Gardiner

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Etuknwa, A., Mathai, M. (2021). Common Mental Health Problems. In: Brough, P., Gardiner, E., Daniels, K. (eds) Handbook on Management and Employment Practices. Handbook Series in Occupational Health Sciences. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-24936-6_24-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-24936-6_24-1

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  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-24936-6

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