Bullying and lack of psychological support from managers top the list of workplace factors that can lead to serious mental health problems, according to a new investigation of work-related anxiety in four countries.
The study shows that 11.2 per cent of people in Norway have reduced capacity for work due to work-related anxiety.
"Work-related anxiety is not just stress. Anxiety is the worry that follows you home, steals your sleep, and meets you again the next day at work," said Leon De Beer, an associate professor at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology's (NTNU) Department of Psychology.
"If your job feels like an alarm you cannot turn off, that's not stress or a hectic tempo, but anxiety," said Leoni Van der Vaart, a postdoc in the same department.
"Anxiety involves feeling threatened and trapped in an intolerable situation at work," said Renzo Bianchi, an associate professor also at the Department of Psychology.
All three are experts in organizational psychology and, in collaboration with other researchers, have recently investigated the prevalence of work-related anxiety in four countries:
- England fared best with the lowest proportion at 3.6 per cent.
- Norway had the second lowest proportion at 4.2 per cent.
- The United States had 5.7 per cent.
- South Africa had the highest proportion at 9.4 per cent.
Memory loss
The researchers used a new tool they have developed themselves to identify work-related anxiety, which is now available to companies and public health decision-makers.
"Work-related anxiety hasn't received enough attention. There has been a lot of focus on burnout, which is the more depressive form of overwhelming stress, while anxiety has tended to go under the radar in many countries – including Norway," said Bianchi.
According to a study conducted by Statistics Norway in September this year, there are almost three million employed people in Norway.
The NTNU study suggests that over 120,000 Norwegians may struggle with anxiety in the form of disrupted sleep, muscle pain, memory loss, or concentration problems due to work. Some people also develop physical illnesses as a result of their anxiety.
The study found that work-related anxiety is associated with many factors, including absence due to illness, previous anxiety disorders, use of anxiety medications, poor general health and reduced capacity for work.
"There are more people with reduced capacity for work due to work-related anxiety than the number who meet the criteria for an anxiety diagnosis. This shows that work-related anxiety can impair work capacity even when people experience moderate symptoms, and not a severe disorder," said Bianchi.
Traumatic events
"Work-related anxiety may be due to a person being naturally anxious, and therefore anxious in all areas of life, including at work. But there are also many cases where anxiety occurs for the first time at work. This can be due to a manager who bullies, sexual harassment, traumatic events that have put their life at risk, or a major failure related to a work task," explained Bianchi.
The top five workplace factors associated with work-related anxiety in Norway:
- Bullying and a culture characterized by disrespect
- Conflict between working life and private life
- Lack of autonomy in relation to carrying out tasks
- Lack of psychological support from managers
- Uncertainty about future standard of living because the employment situation feels insecure
"It is extremely important that there is a supportive culture at work. Psychological support from managers and colleagues, as well as job security, play a major role," said Bianchi.
Some people go on sick leave due to work-related anxiety. Others continue to go to work despite their anxiety, but are impacted by it.
Turning down promotion
"The problem with anxiety is that you start becoming anxious about being anxious. It is a vicious circle that is hard to break. If you feel threatened at work, you are less likely to take responsibility. You may start avoiding situations that make you anxious – like turning down a promotion because it involves speaking in public or leading meetings," explained Bianchi.
He believes that anxiety can also lead to people remaining in a job simply because they feel safe, rather than seeking new opportunities that could involve a more exciting career and higher pay. Bianchi highlights that managers have a responsibility to create a sense of security in the workplace.
"The first thing to do is to put a stop to bullying in the workplace. It is a managerial responsibility to create a culture where derogatory comments among colleagues are not tolerated. A lot of knowledge exists on how to create psychological safety in the workplace, and managers must put this into practice," said Bianchi.
He also encourages people to seek help.
Important not to trivialize
"It is often very difficult to cope with anxiety alone. Psychotherapy may be necessary to get your life back on track. Some people think that it takes many years of therapy, but results can be achieved relatively quickly with intensive work. Generally speaking, people are motivated to work hard when in therapy because they really want to get rid of their debilitating symptoms and just feel good again," said Bianchi.
He adds that in order to overcome anxiety, the person must regain a sense of control over situations that they perceive as threatening.
"Basically, it is about learning to stop being afraid of what makes you anxious. Anxiety conditions you into believing that your surroundings are threatening, but therapy helps you learn a form of control over this environment, and that you don't need to be afraid anymore because you know what to do. And this can be achieved in just a few months with good results," explained Bianchi.
He warns against managers and employers who trivialize work-related anxiety.
"Being employed is often described as a driver of good mental health, but it turns out that this picture is more nuanced. For many people, it may be the workplace itself that leads to debilitating mental disorders. It is very important that we talk more about this so that people know they are not alone," concluded Bianchi.
Source:
Bianchi, R., De Beer, L. T., Engelbrecht, G. J., van der Vaart, L., & Schonfeld, I. S. (2025). The occupational anxiety inventory: A new measure of job-related distress. International Journal of Stress Management. Advance online publication, 21. aug 2025 https://doi.org/10.1037/str0000371
