|
The Age, July 4 2002 Half the academics working in Australia's universities are at risk of psychological illness due to unhealthy stress levels, a new study has found. A survey of more than 8000 Australian academics found they suffered higher than average levels of stress-related medical conditions such as migraines, hypertension and coronary heart disease. The study, Occupational Stress in Australian Universities, revealed academics were more likely than average Australians to report stress-related symptoms such as sleeping difficulties and headaches. According to lead researcher Professor Tony Winefield, of the University of South Australia, 50 per cent of staff who took part in the study were at risk of psychological illness compared with 19 per cent of the population overall. Professor Winefield said the study, jointly sponsored by the National Tertiary Education Union and the Australian Research Council, showed the highest stress levels were among junior academics, those employed in the newer universities and those working in the humanities and social sciences. Job satisfaction among academics was lower than most other occupations. One of the main causes of stress was excessive working hours, with almost one-third of academics claiming they worked more than 55 hours a week. "Many of the things that made academic work popular in the past - job security and academic freedom - no longer exist," Professor Winefield said. "There are higher levels of psychological strain caused by worsening student-staff ratios, higher levels of casual staff." Figures released last month by the Australian Vice-Chancellors' Committee showed that student-staff ratios had deteriorated from close to 13:1 in 1990 to almost 20:1 last year. National Tertiary Education Union president Carolyn Allport said the survey was graphic evidence of the human cost of the funding crisis afflicting Australian universities. "This situation is bad for the individuals and their families, bad for universities and bad for the wider economy due to increased absenteeism, staff turnover, stress-related injuries and student dissatisfaction, all of which reduce the productivity of the tertiary education sector," Dr Allport said. The president of the Council of Australian Postgraduate Associations, Leisa Ridges, said many young postgraduates were put off academic careers by the increasing demands on junior lecturers. "Often they're at a point in life where they have family responsibilities. They also have to deal with the pressure of tight deadlines and writing constant grant applications to fund their research," she said. Opposition education spokeswoman Jenny Macklin said the study should not be a surprise to anyone, given the numbers of students academic staff were required to teach. "Many academics are leaving universities and trying to get jobs overseas. We urgently need a decent investment in our universities but Education Minister Brendan Nelson says there won't be greater public investment. If that's the case, things will only get worse." A spokesman for Education Minister Nelson said he had not seen the study and was not able to comment. Report:
close
window
Copyright © 2002 Macquarie Institute, Australia
|