Psychological health problems calling?
Call centre jobs have been characterised by some as a `dead-end' with low status, poor pay and few career prospects. Others have emphasised the variability of call centre work and job satisfactions arising from interaction with customers. Moreover, the majority of research has shown that much of the work is closely monitored, tightly controlled and highly routinised (Taylor and Bain, 1999; Callagan and Thompson, 2001).
Call centre workers are also held accountable for their emotions (Hochschild, 1983) and are often forced to express emotions they do not feel (such as being friendly or happy) or suppress emotions that they genuinely do feel (such as anger or frustration). This can lead to feelings of emotional dissonance and result in anxiety and burnout. Other studies, however, present quite a different image of call centre work.
Frenkel et al. (1998), point to a greater diversity in call centre work revealing environments where jobs provide challenge and interest and where the skills of front-line workers are acknowledged and valued. This study attempts to conduct a preliminary and exploratory investigation into call centre work in India, attempting to identify which of these models of call centre work seem to most apply in the Indian context. Additionally, it will be necessary to take into account specific factors of the Indian call centre environment.
Anomalies
Firstly, one of the job requirements within a lot of Indian call centres is the compulsion to adopt a Western pseudonym. Secondly, most of the call centre work takes place during night, which might be seen to exacerbate the problems. The present study was aimed to explore the nature and experience of work in Indian call centres and identify the psychological implications of such work.
The findings from the present study seem to suggest that the workers undergo a considerable amount of pressure and stress during a normal day at work, experience various health symptoms and are dissatisfied with their work. The present research also found a high correlation between stress and the ergonomic aspects of the job, highlighting the importance of work environment on the health and well being of call centre workers.
However, since the current study was undertaken as a pilot study it is difficult to generalise the findings to all call centres. The research takes initial steps towards understanding the work environment in Indian call centres.
RASHMI REDDY POONDLA
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