Powerlessness and Under-Participation:A Comparative Study

A joint consultation of employees and management in decision making, broadly known as employees' participation in management has recently been in trend for maintaining peace, increasing productivity, and growth of an organization. The present study is an attempt to assess the prevalence of under-participation and powerlessness in various organizations and how both these factors contribute to occupational stress and unnecessary conflicts at workplace. The present study includes 150 participants, 50 each from healthcare, teaching, and banking sector. Occupational Stress Index by Srivastava and Singh (1983) was used to assess the levels of under-participation and powerlessness at workplace. It was observed that even after taking significant steps in the direction of effective employees' participation in management;issues related to powerlessness and under-participation still prevail and contribute significantly to the development of occupational stress.