Mitigating Occupational Stress Through Emotional Intelligence: A Study on Self-Efficacy in Manufacturing Sector

Abstract

Introduction: In the manufacturing industry, occupational stress is still a major problem that frequently affects workers' performance and well-being. In high-demand settings, emotional intelligence (EI) is becoming more widely acknowledged as a crucial component of stress management and self-efficacy enhancement.

Objective: The purpose of this study is to investigate how emotional intelligence functions as a mediator in the relationship between self-efficacy and occupational stress in workers in the manufacturing sector. It looks at how emotional intelligence might reduce stress and boost workers' confidence in their capacity to do their jobs well.

Methodology: The study used a descriptive, quantitative design. 230 employees' responses on a standardised Likert-scale questionnaire were gathered. Using SPSS, the study used multiple regression analysis and correlation to assess the connections between self-efficacy, emotional intelligence, and occupational stress.

Results: The findings indicate a significant positive correlation between emotional intelligence and self-efficacy (r = 0.682, p < 0.001) and a moderately negative correlation between emotional intelligence and occupational stress (r = 0.355, p < 0.001). However, occupational stress had a statistically insignificant effect on self-efficacy. The relationship between self-efficacy and stress was significantly influenced by emotional intelligence.

Discussion: The findings support previous research (e.g., Anand, 2019; Ariyaratne & Tennakoon, 2021), which indicates that emotional intelligence improves coping skills, lessens the negative impacts of stress at work, and boosts self-esteem. The idea that emotionally intelligent people are more robust and confident in high-stress situations is supported by this.

Conclusions: Emotional intelligence is essential for lowering work-related stress and raising self-efficacy in the manufacturing industry. Programmes for emotional intelligence (EI) development should be given top priority by organisations in order to increase employee performance, psychological well-being, and resilience. Longitudinal impacts of such therapies could be investigated in future studies. at most. There are no footnotes, bibliographic references, abbreviations, or references to the primary text.