The psychological state of mind of every worker is vital to the productivity of organisations.
Neglecting the psychological mindset of workers can be detrimental to productivity and social life, says Organizational Psychologist, Dr. Collins Badu Agyemang.
According to him, “when the psychological state of a worker is disturbed, various aspects of working and social life may be deeply affected with irreparable damage.”
In an interaction with ADR Daily, Dr. Agyemang therefore urged management of organisations to be mindful of how to manage the mindset of workers to avoid psychological stress that could lead to low productivity.
He particularly cited the current disturbances and uncertainty in the banking industry, especially the ongoing lay-offs, adding that such situations negatively impact the mindset and productivity of workers.
He explained that that “the psychological framework is a fragile aspect of the mind, which deals with the mental and emotional state of a person,” adding that employees have to be protected against mental stress.
Dr. Agyemang, who is also the National Vice President of the Ghana Psychological Association, noted that various actions of management that create tension and poor labour-management relations, result in low productivity because of the effect such actions have on the mental state of workers.
For instance, Dr. Agyemang, expressed worry about the way downsizing exercises are conducted in Ghana, adding that the way it is communicated and implemented creates psychological problems for workers.
After the downsizing exercise, he said apart from those who are laid off, the remaining workers take a long time to recover from the mental stress and anxiety suffered during the process.
Citing the situation in the banking industry, he feared that many of the affected workers who were laid off after the recent collapse of the seven banks, would suffer some depression.
“And these symptoms can cause irreversible damage to the work life of the worker and can even spread to the family life and disrupt social interactions,” he added.
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He recommended that corporate organisations should have in-house psychologists to cater to the psychological needs of each worker, as well as conduct regular counseling sessions for workers.
“This is because even the best workers can suffer a psychological break down and in a day can go from being the most productive to the most unproductive worker in the company,” he said.
By Fred Gadese-Mensah/adrdaily.com
