A Descriptive Study of the Perception of the Employees of China Bank Corporation Paranaque-Sucat Branch Regarding the Use of Humor as a Personal Coping Mechanism for Stress in the Workplace

Abstract

Stress is an inevitable part of a person’s life. It is something that greatly affects the individuals in an organization. But then, the stress management programs offered in organizations may not always be enough to relieve stress and the employees are forced to turn to their personal coping mechanisms to reduce stress. One of these coping mechanisms that may be used is humor. The study then seeks to find out, what is the perception of the employees of China Bank Corporation Parahaque-Sucat Branch on the use of humor as a personal coping mechanism for stress in the workplace? The main objective of the study to assess the perception of the employees of China Bank Corporation Parafiaque-Sucat Branch on the use of humor as a personal coping mechanism for stress in the workplace. It also aims to identify the common manifestations of stress in the organization; assess the level of use of humor by the respondents in terms of frequency of use and number of those who actually use it; assess the type of humor prevalent in the workplace that is used as a coping mechanism; and find out the perceived effectiveness of humor as a personal coping mechanism for stress in the workplace. The study was descriptive in nature. The data needed in the study was gathered through interview and survey questionnaire. The study found out that the employees of China Banking Corporation Paranaque-Sucat Branch had a Positive attitude towards the use of humor as a personal coping mechanism for stress in the workplace. They also perceived it as effective in reducing stress. The common manifestations of stress are employee irritability and bad mood, something that will greatly affect overall employee performance. The respondents frequently utilized humor to reduce stress in the workplace. The most common humor type used is stories and anecdotes, and jokes. Based on the findings and the attitude of the respondents towards humor, the researcher concludes that humor is an effective personal coping mechanism for stress in the workplace. It is also concluded that stress greatly affects the organization and is therefore something that must be addressed. The results of the study correspond with the popular view that humor is a great way of coping. The study proved that humor applies not only in a medical or school setting as previous studies claimed, but also in a serious organizational setting such as banks.