Occupational stress among some Nigerian graduate employees: The impact of work experience and education

Abstract

This study investigated perceived occupational stress among some graduate employees in Nigeria as consequence of work experience and educational qualification. The study uses the positivist explanatory cross-sectional (survey) research design, and a structured and validated questionnaire to systematically sample opinions of 1,532 male and female graduate employees across the various sectors of the nation’s economy. Moreover, hypotheses were stated and tested using T-test of Independent Groups and One-way Analysis of Variance. The results of the statistical analysis showed that graduate employees with more work experience expressed a significant higher level of occupational stress than their counterparts with less work experience (t = 4.43, df (1530) p < .05. This is evident in the mean (Formula presented.) scores of participants across the three groups of educational qualification—B.Sc ((Formula presented.)  = 24.53); HND ((Formula presented.)  = 23.72); and Postgraduate ((Formula presented.)  = 24.66). The study recommended that human resource managers should constantly organise stress management programmes as some strategies to reduce the amount of stress in the workforce.