Stress and Individual Work Performance among Interns in a Malaysian Technical University

Abstract

This study revolves around the issue of stress at the workplace and individual work performance of the internship students in a Malaysian technical university. Stress can be defined as the organism’s non-specific response to any demand made (Selye 1973). Stress among medical interns (Al-Ghafri et al., 2013) and hospitality interns (Wang, Chiang, & Lee, 2014) had been studied in some countries. However, stress among business interns particularly in the Malaysian context had been neglected. Therefore, the objective of the study is to determine the relationship between stress or stressor (work relationship, work-life balance, overload, job security, control, resources and communication, aspects of the job, and pay and benefits) and individual job performance of internship students. Stress level was measured using An Organizational Stress Screening Tool (ASSET)(Cartwright & Cooper, 2002) instrument meanwhile, individual work performance were measured through task performance, contextual performance, and counterproductive behavior (Koopmans, Bernaards, Hildebrandt, Van Buuren, Van Der Beek,& De Vet, 2012). Internship student in this study is referred to as final year business students undergoing a three-month stint of internship with a company. The study was conducted in a Malaysian technical university based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 250 students were selected to participate in the survey and a 100% response rate was achieved. Results showed that stress affects individual work performance of the interns in the Malaysian technical university. Theoretical and practical implications were discussed.

Keywords: stress, stressor, ASSET, individual work performance, internship student, Malaysian technical university

Australian Academy of Business and Economics Review, vol 1, issue 2, October 2015, pp 101-119