Journal of Epidemiology
Online ISSN : 1349-9092
Print ISSN : 0917-5040
ISSN-L : 0917-5040
Original Article
Measuring Effort–Reward Imbalance in School Settings: A Novel Approach and Its Association With Self-Rated Health
Jian LiLi ShangTao WangJohannes Siegrist
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JOURNAL FREE ACCESS

2010 Volume 20 Issue 2 Pages 111-118

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Abstract

Background: We attempted to apply the model of effort–reward imbalance (ERI) to school settings in order to measure students’ psychosocial stress and analyze its association with self-rated health in adolescents.
Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted in Kunming, China among 1004 Chinese students (468 boys and 536 girls) in grades 7 through 12, using a 19-item effort–reward imbalance questionnaire.
Results: Satisfactory internal consistencies for the scales for effort and reward were obtained; the value for the scale for overcommitment was acceptable. Factor analysis replicated the theoretical structure of the ERI construct in this sample of Chinese students. All 3 scales were associated with an elevated odds ratio for diminished self-rated health, and the effect was strongest for the effort–reward ratio, as predicted by the theory. Sex and grade differences were also observed.
Conclusions: The ERI questionnaire is a valid instrument for identifying sources of stressful experience, in terms of effort–reward imbalance, among adolescents in school settings.

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© 2009 by the Japan Epidemiological Association
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