(image: Yonhap)
SEOUL, Nov. 30 (Korea Bizwire) — A recent study has revealed that more than half of ‘emotional laborers’ suffer from musculoskeletal pain in the neck and shoulder areas.
A research team led by Ryu Ji-young, a professor at Inje University Paik Hospital, released the results of an analysis conducted on the Korean Working Conditions Survey provided by the Occupational Safety and Health Research Institute on Thursday.
The research team focused on workers who are not typically exposed to musculoskeletal pain caused by inappropriate posture, repeated use of arms or hands, noise or vibration to carry out the assessment.
Out of 12,186 respondents, 30.6 percent said they had to hide their emotions due to the nature of their work.
Among emotional laborers, 50.4 percent of male workers and 56.5 percent of female workers said they were suffering from musculoskeletal pain.
Among non-emotional laborers, only 37.9 percent of male workers and 45.2 percent of female workers said they suffered from the same pain.
Musculoskeletal pains were 1.48 times more dangerous to emotional laborers than those who had other occupations.
“Having to hide one’s emotions for work can incur stress, adding tension to the muscles that can develop degenerative symptoms,” said Ryu.
“Negative emotions and other psychological states that result from hiding one’s emotions can influence how a person recognizes pain, making them hypersensitive towards irritation, which can lead to constant pain.”
Ashley Song (ashley@koreabizwire.com)
