Essay Sample on Workaholism in College: How to Avoid its Lasting Effects

Introduction

When most people hear about college, they usually develop a perception of a place where rules are never followed. That is mainly because of the many incidences in which college students have continued to be caught up in shenanigans. Whether the students are obsessed with perfection, the impulsive work usually follows such students until they get to their professional years. People need to correct some of the most significant workaholism effects before they result in permanent stains in a person's life. While understanding the various aspects that may result in workaholism, it is important to consider some of its most significant effects: increased job stress and health complaints, development of an issue of self-acceptance and obsession with perfection, loss of empathy, and life dissatisfaction and decreased job performance.

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Increase in Job Stress and Health Complaints

There is a perception of the college students dreading mostly during the final weeks. It takes them to spend countless hours trying to cram all the materials they had learned throughout the semester. After such an accomplishment, most of the students may leave the library having burnt out and limping because of spending more hours at the same place. Many studies have also been developed, linking workaholism with poor physical health. The results of such studies prove that there is a direct relationship between excessive working hours with an increase in stress and physical complaints (Di Stefano et al., 863). That is directly associated with college students, where increased working hours result in decreased enjoyment.

Development of an Issue of Self-Acceptance and Obsession with Perfection

Issues of self-acceptance and obsession with perfection are mostly developed when an individual tries to do something that is not only considered difficult but nearly impossible. That mostly contributes to the feeling of disappointment, having not accomplished the mission. Workaholics tend to set some impossible standards on themselves, eventually leaving them with negative perceptions of themselves once they realize they cannot satisfy their accomplishments. The jobs that workaholics engage themselves intend to overcome their personal life hence developing the behavior of making work their whole life (Zhang et al., 36). Since workaholics rely on work most of the time, failure in a project they are working on may have a negative sense of their identity. It is important to understand the consequences of such life because of the role that a workaholic plays in shaping an individual's perception and sense.

Loss of Empathy

Based on studies conducted by various researchers, most of the students whose parents are more workaholic tend to have lower scores in their self-acceptance, accompanied by lower scores in their psychological well-being. Since workaholism is considered to be an addiction just like any other addiction, it has the capability of negatively affecting the mental and physical health of an individual. Workaholics have a higher likelihood of having either a spouse or a child with a destroyed relationship, leading to detrimental mental health effects. It is important to consider such negative effects once an individual struggles with workaholism.

Life Dissatisfaction and Decreased Job Performance

Being a workaholic cannot receive the same perception as being engaged to work. Such concepts are completely different and lead to diversified results considering both the mental and physical health of individuals. Workaholism is directly associated with psychological distress and increases physical complaints (Li et al., 23). The source of motivation for being a workaholic is different from that of work engagement hence showing a decrease in job performance accompanied by life dissatisfaction.

Conclusion

While maintaining a balance in life, individuals need to live a healthy and happy life. That makes it important to consider some of the most significant effects of being a workaholic, including increased job stress and health complaints, development of self-acceptance and obsession with perfection, loss of empathy, and life dissatisfaction, and decreased job performance. While it is important for one to spend more time working, it is important to find some time to do what makes them happy, including physical exercises.

Works Cited

Di Stefano, Giovanni, and Maria Gaudiino. "Differential effects of workaholism and work engagement on the interference between life and work domains." Europe's Journal of Psychology 14.4 (2018): 863.

Li, Yue, Wei Xie, and Liang 'an Huo. "How can work addiction buffer the influence of work intensification on workplace well-being? The mediating role of job crafting." International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 17.13 (2020): 4658.

Zhang, Jun, Chen Song, and Yuxuan Lan. "Workaholism and Subjective Well-being: Examining a Mediation Model." Journal of Human Resource Management 8.1 (2020): 32-38.