A Bad Boss Can Increase Your Risk for Heart Disease

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If you’re looking for yet another reason to leave your awful job, there’s new research indicating that having a bad boss can affect your family life, your morale, your physical health, and even increase your risk for heart disease.

On The Atlantic, Alice G. Walton of The Doctor Will See You Now writes that our health and happiness are inextricably linked with the work we do, how we feel doing it, and who is in charge of us. A study at the Université Francois Rabelais, published in the Journal of Business and Psychology, reveals that the more negative a boss’s management style, the less happy the worker.

The study surveyed more than 1,000 employees at companies of various sizes, finding that workers rarely found that they were motivated or happier when made to feel guilty or incompetent. When employees felt they were valued and that their work was meaningful and important, however, it led to better overall well-being.

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A Swedish study found a correlation between incompetent bosses and workers’ risk for heart attacks, heart disease, and angina and death from heart-related causes, The Doctor Will See You Now reports. So much of a work environment is established by managers; they are a crucial key in encouraging positive behaviors, open communication, and more motivated employees.

It hardly seems like a revelation, but it’s important to remember: while fear may work when you’re establishing authority and power over an employee, it doesn’t mean you’ll be getting the best out of them. Likewise, if you’re a disgruntled worker living in fear or just plain annoyance every day at work, maybe it’s time to change jobs — if not for your happiness, then at least for your health.

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