Workaholism: a forgotten reality
The subject of the psychosocial risks is a thematic more and more present inside companies. However people focus mostly on burnout. But it would be a mistake to believe that burnout is the only psychosocial risk that employees can face at work. For instance we can speak about bore-out, brown-out, karoshi and so on.
This is why the aim of this article is to present a specific psychosocial risk that is less mentioned than burnout : workaholism (also known as « work addiction »).
1. Work, an addiction ?
Traditionally, when we talk about addiction, we refer to psychoactive substances (tobacco, alcohol) or activities (gambling). For instance, in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders V (DSM-V), it is written that “addictions include tobacco (nicotine), alcohol, cannabis, opiates (heroin, morphine), cocaine, amphetamines and synthetic derivatives. Among non-substance addictions, only pathological gambling is clinically recognized as a behavioral addiction in international diagnostic classifications”. Thus, at first sight, work and addiction do not seem to match. However, it does.
Introduced by Oates in 1968, the term “workaholism” is an Anglicism composed of the English words “work” and “alcoholism”. A study (Griffiths, 2011) has shown that workaholism meets six criteria relevant to addiction:
- Obsessive behaviors concerning work (constantly thinking about work etc.).
- Mood alteration (ups and downs).
- Addiction (the person has regularly the need to increase her working dose).
- Presence of withdrawal symptoms (for instance when the person is on vacation, she may experience physical or psychological symptoms such as tremors or irritability).
- Presence of aggressive behaviors towards colleagues and/or those around them (friends, family).
- Possibility of relapse.
Although mainly individual, the workaholism inducing factors also come from companies (efficiency bonus, paid overtime, etc.). According to the literature, there are three dimensions to workaholism: involvement in work, compulsion and satisfaction with work when is completed (Spence and Robbins, 1992). With these three dimensions, three types of workaholic workers have been highlighted: non-enthusiastic workaholics (high involvement and compulsion, low enjoyment), enthusiastic workaholics (high involvement, compulsion and achievement), and enthusiastic workers (high involvement and achievement, no compulsion).
2. The consequences of workaholism
Individual consequences
There is a fairly strong relationship between work addiction and stress, with all the consequences that this can have for the person concerned. The complaints are both psychological (anxiety, irritability, sleep disturbance, depression, etc.) and physical (fatigue, headaches, high blood pressure etc.). The most dramatic consequences concern, on the one hand, the burnout syndrome, and on the other hand, the occurrence of an acute coronary syndrome.
Family consequences
The professional over-investment of the “workaholic” person leads to a progressive disinterest in family life. In addition, the dependent person tends to impose her own standards of perfectionism on her own family life.
This can create anxiety, anguish and revolt. It is therefore not surprising that work addiction can lead to marital conflicts and create family dysfunction. Spouses feel more estranged from each other in their relationship and have fewer positive feelings about their partner, which can lead to divorce. As for the children, they feel neglected or under intolerable pressure (in terms of academic success), which increases the risk of anxiety and depression. Later, in adolescence, they can adopt, through mimicry (cf Bandura’s theory on learning), compulsive behaviours and also develop a dependency on work.
Professionnal consequences
While one might think that a person with a work addiction is benefit to the company, this is not necessarily the case. At the installation stage (hard worker), the overall result is positive. However, as the disorder worsens, the person with the disorder experiences less work hardiness, fears failure and becomes less effective. In addition, people with a work addiction often come into conflict with their colleagues, tend to work alone, are unable to delegate, and are unable to function properly within a team. Individuals with work addiction tend to become inefficient workers because they end up focusing on being busy rather than productive.
3. How to treat workaholism ?
The first step is that the person concerned becomes aware of her behavioural disorder and agrees to be take in charge.
The different approaches proposed in the management of work addiction are stress management, psychotherapy, family therapies and self-help groups. The main treatment for work addiction is based on a psychotherapeutic approach of cognitive-behavioral type. Thus, after a careful evaluation of work behaviours and an identification of the various factors that promote them, the therapy aims to learn how to resist compulsion by adopting behavioural strategies that promote the resumption of a normal life, i.e. with a balanced distribution between work activities and moments of relaxation. Once the person is cured of her addiction, it has been shown that she recovers better productivity, while devoting much less time to her professional activity.
Bibliography:
Griffiths M.D, (2011). « Workaholism : a 21st-Century Addiction », the psychologist. Bulletin of the British Psychological Society, n°24.
Oates W.E., (1968). « On Being a « Workaholic » (a serious Jest) », Pastoral Psychology,n°19.
Spence J.T, Robbins A.S (1992).i « Workaholism : Definition, Measurement, and Preliminary Results », Journal of personlity assessment, n°58
Rahim, M. S. (2019). « WORKAHOLISM » : la dépendance au travail, une autre forme d’addiction. French Journal of Psychiatry, 1, S90.