Organizational Factors Affect Worker Responses to WTC Attacks

Newswise — For New York City office workers affected by the September 11 terrorist attacks, a negative organizational culture at work is linked to more lasting effects on health and productivity, reports a study in the February Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, official publication of the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (ACOEM).

Led by Dr. Omowunmi Osinubi of the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, the researchers sent follow-up questionnaires to 750 office workers at varying distances from the attacks on the World Trade Center (WTC). Two-thirds worked within 1½ miles of the WTC. About half were directly affected by the attacks—for example, they were in or near the WTC.

Two years later, workers in offices near the WTC were more likely to have severe headaches or migraine. Workers directly affected by the attacks also had a higher rate of headaches, as well as cough.

The workers' organizational culture influenced the long-term impact of the attacks. For two-thirds of workers, the office culture was classified as "defensive," requiring workers to "interact in defensive ways that will not threaten their own security." For the remaining one-third, the office culture was classified as "constructive."

Workers from defensive organizational cultures were more likely to have "high-strain" jobs—that is, high job demands but low levels of control or support. These workers had an increased rate of cough: 34 percent higher than workers from constructive cultures. Workers with high-strain jobs also had decreased productivity—scores for "presenteeism" (days employees are at work but performing at less than full capacity) were 15 percent higher.

Previous research has found increased rates of physical and psychological symptoms among New Yorkers indirectly affected by the WTC attacks. The new study is one of the first to look at the long-term health impact on workers who were near the WTC on September 11, and how organizational factors might modify workers' responses to the disaster.

The results add new evidence that organizational culture may modify the impact of traumatic effects in the workplace. Workers with higher exposure to WTC trauma have more symptoms two years after the attacks, while workers in negative or defensive organizational cultures have increased rates of cough. A defensive office culture is also linked to high job stress and reduced productivity.

More study is needed to clarify how organizational culture affects worker health and productivity after a traumatic event. For example, it is plausible that exposure to smoke and dust from the WTC site in the weeks and months after the attacks could lead to cough. The question is, Dr. Osinubi and colleagues write: "Does the perception of a negative work culture predispose to more health complaints even more so in the aftermath of disaster exposure?"

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