Organizational exit pressures and role stress: Impact on mental health

Hypotheses regarding role stress, chronic burden and two forms of vulnerability to mental health symptoms are tested in a longitudinal sample of 590 caregivers working in group homes for the mentally ill. In addition, an organizational exit pressure hypothesis is offered. Measures of exit pressure are identified and incorporated into predictive models of stress and mental health. Exit pressures affect somatization directly and interact with role ambiguity to affect subsequent levels of anxiety and somatization. The results suggest that selection pressures in and out of social settings should be conceptualized as part of models of stress and mental health.