Amir Safaeian/ R10228003
Professor: Anny Fong
Human Resources Management
Individual Assignment: Research Essay
Research Topic: Mental health in the workplace
Following the rules of mental health prevents conflicts and mental discomforts such as
anxiety and depression, and fosters a person's adaptability, sense of security, contentment, and
overall mental health and self-actualization. The capacity for logical, fair, and acceptable dispute
resolution as well as the ability to adjust and modify one's personal and social surroundings are
all indicators of mental health. Therefore, individual attitudes and beliefs, as well as the
characteristics of the environment surrounding people, are effective in benefiting from optimal
mental health. The mental health of the work environment also means resistance to the
occurrence of mental distress and behavioural disorders in the organization's employees and a
healthy work environment. In fact, the goal of mental health in the workplace is to create
conditions that do not lead to mental disorders in the employees, the employees of the
organization are able to create favourable relationships with the work environment and the
factors present in it, the employees feel satisfied and are interested in continuing to work in that
organization. And every employee should have a positive feeling towards himself, his bosses, his
colleagues and his place in the organization.
Many human needs are dependent on social relationships, and the mental health of a
person is somewhat dependent on the quality of his relationships with others. In the workplace,
communication problems cause job loss, lack of motivation, disappointment, absenteeism, lack
of work, lack of cooperation to perform tasks, carelessness, mood instability, etc. In fact, the way
of communication and the personality and goals of the person in the work environment plays an
important role in the mental health of the person and his level of satisfaction with the work
environment (Academic.oup.Com). Anxiety, depression, boredom and fatigue caused by work
have a negative effect on the level of attention and accuracy of employees. Employee anxiety can
reduce their attention and intellectual concentration, disrupt their memory and increase the
number of accidents and incidents at work. For this reason, a knowledgeable manager in order to
improve the mental health of the workplace provides reasons so that the work environment is not
anxiety-provoking for his employees, they feel a sense of job security and avoid any conflict and
unnecessary anger in the work environment. Another principle of mental health is to be aware of
one's own and others' limitations and to accept them. Human's lack of adaptation to his
limitations, whether material, physical or mental, can lead to diseases. Therefore, a person who is
looking for mental health should have goals in accordance with his abilities. Unrealistic goals
lead to failure, and as a result, internal conflict and inconsistency will follow. Job satisfaction is
one of the indicators of mental health in the workplace. Job satisfaction improves productivity,
lowers absenteeism, lowers workplace mishaps, etc. According to research, job dissatisfaction
and work performance are directly related. Employees who are unhappy at work are more
susceptible to physical, psychological, or absence syndromes (WWW.Taylorfrancis.Com). Those
who have low self-esteem are not confident in their talents and do not value themselves very
much. A person with high self-esteem takes a lot of risks in his work and looks for high-level
jobs in the work hierarchy or searches for jobs that require a lot of competition. High self-esteem
has the effect that a person is not too sensitive to the criticism of others, sets high goals for
himself and works hard to achieve those goals.
Both physical and human factors have a positive and negative impact on mental health in
the workplace. Discrimination violation of others' rights, breaking the rules, labelling, physical
hazards, type of work, extremes in work, how well a person fits into the workplace, and the
conflict between family and work, for instance, sometimes employees cannot have enough time
to spend with their family, sometimes even they don't go back home for a couple of days in a
row because they have to work for the company which they would be paid more or some
companies send their employees to business trips for few days so they can go to a business
meeting or participate in a seminar (Link.Springer.Com). Also, the fear of losing a job, not
having a job promotion, not participating in teamwork and being ridiculed by colleagues can
cause serious damage to a person's mental health. High mental pressure and inability to adapt to
the work environment can cause inefficiency and unfavourable performance in order to achieve
goals and cause symptoms of anxiety and depression in a person, For example, the low level of
job duties compared to personal abilities causes unfulfilled expectations and unhappiness due to
not achieving valuable personal goals, the high workload can stress a person and cause
behavioural changes which may cause the employee to ignore secondary aspects in order to
focus on the main task. Mental health in the workplace means resisting the emergence of mental
distress and behavioural disorders in employees, that is, improving the psychological
environment of the work, so that none of the employees will suffer from mental disorders due to
the factors present in the workplace, each of the employees from the activity and their place of
work feel satisfied and interested in that place, all employees are able to create favourable
relationships with the work environment and the factors present in it, and each of the employees
towards themselves, bosses, colleagues and in general towards the environment have a positive
feeling about their work and especially about their position in that company or organization.
The mental health of employees in any organization and company is one of the important
issues that must be paid attention to, and managers must pay attention to human resources and
the provision of welfare facilities, their wishes and needs as a factor to increase efficiency and
productivity. Managers of an organization are more exposed to stressful events than others due to
the responsibility they have in their jobs, and for this reason, they should be more careful about
their nervous and mental states. Therefore, managers and employees should be aware of the level
of tolerance for their level of stress and apply practical solutions to increase their individual
tolerance and pressure and move in the direction of a healthy environment and promotion of
organizational mental health, so that the energies that are unintentionally spent on stress
workplaces can be used to improve the quantity and quality and achieve the goals of the relevant
organization (Link.Springer.Com). Compliance with the principles of mental health in the
workplace can prevent tension to a large extent. Identifying, evaluating and controlling harmful
factors in the work environment, creating an atmosphere of intimacy, empathy, honesty,
cooperation and mutual respect among employees, avoiding the use of methods based on force
and coercion in the work environment, identifying the potential talents of employees and
providing conditions for The actualization and growth and flourishing of these talents to the
extent of the capacity and possibilities of the work environment, the correct use of the thoughts
and opinions of employees in making decisions, informing about the performance report and
future plans of the organization, avoiding superficial judgments based on prejudice in The case
of work and the basis of employees' behavior, identifying the real reasons for underwork and
absenteeism, boredom and disinterest in work, lack of attention and carelessness of employees
by the manager or boss, attention to personal and family problems and issues of employees,
familiarizing employees with The reality of the work environment, providing the conditions for
scientific and practical improvement in the activity they are engaged in, explaining the goals and
policies of the organization and removing those criteria and organizational factors that are not
considered correct in terms of moral, human and organizational culture, lack of Discrimination in
the workplace, not issuing conflicting orders, taking into account the opinion of employees
When transferring or changing positions, getting advice in case of problems, not being
embarrassed to use encouragement on time, having sufficient knowledge of the type of work of
each employee and their level of skill and expertise, coordinating work and responsibilities and
avoiding taking administrative tasks to others. Home, timely use of leave especially after the
peak of work pressure, giving necessary rest to employees when they are tired, access and
referral to the organization's consultant or psychologist if needed, etc. can create a pleasant and
stimulating work environment.
In conclusion, the ability to adapt, feel secure, and be content are all benefits of adhering
to the norms of mental health. They also promote a person's overall mental health and selfactualization. Mental health can be determined by one's potential for rational, equitable, and
acceptable conflict resolution as well as by their power to transform their social and personal
environments. As a result, both personal attitudes and beliefs as well as the features of one's
environment can contribute to having excellent mental health. A healthy workplace and
resistance to the onset of mental discomfort and behavioural problems in the organization's
employees are also indicators of the mental health of the work environment. The objective of
workplace mental health is to foster environments where employees do not experience mental
disorders, where staff members are able to form positive relationships with coworkers and
external factors, and where staff members feel satisfied and motivated to stay with the company.
Additionally, each employee should feel good about himself, his superiors, his coworkers, and
his position within the company.
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