Job stressors and coping strategies among Japanese workers during the COVID-19 pandemic

Workplace changes, such as remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic, have caused serious psychological distress for workers. The aim of this study was to examine job stressors and coping strategies among Japanese workers during the pandemic. The study was a qualitative methods approach using a web-based survey for Japanese workers in May 2020. We asked about job stressors and coping strategies with free text comments. We performed context analysis and categorized job stressors and coping strategies. Of the participants, 59.2 % suffered psychological stress from workplace changes during the pandemic. We identified 11 categories of job stressors including “work-life balance,” “lack of communication,” “overwork,” and “diminishing work role.” We also identified 16 categories of coping strategies including “distraction,” “dealing with work tasks,” “looking for ways to communicate,” “environmental coordination of work-at-home,” “online chatting,” and “psychological disengagement.” This study shows that Japanese workers tried many ways to manage their job stressors under the burden of the state of emergency. In the future, we should examine the association between coping strategies and psychological distress during the COVID-19 pandemic.