title: The Relationships between Workaholism and Symptoms of Psychiatric Disorders: A Large-Scale Cross-Sectional Study.
abstract: Despite the many number of studies examining workaholism, large-scale studies have been lacking. The present study utilized an open web-based cross-sectional survey assessing symptoms of psychiatric disorders and workaholism among 16,426 workers (Mage = 37.3 years, SD = 11.4, range = 16-75 years). Participants were administered the Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale, the Obsession-Compulsive Inventory-Revised, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, and the Bergen Work Addiction Scale, along with additional questions examining demographic and work-related variables. Correlations between workaholism and all psychiatric disorder symptoms were positive and significant. Workaholism comprised the dependent variable in a three-step linear multiple hierarchical regression analysis. Basic demographics (age, gender, relationship status, and education) explained 1.2% of the variance in workaholism, whereas work demographics (work status, position, sector, and annual income) explained an additional 5.4% of the variance. Age (inversely) and managerial positions (positively) were of most importance. The psychiatric symptoms (ADHD, OCD, anxiety, and depression) explained 17.0% of the variance. ADHD and anxiety contributed considerably. The prevalence rate of workaholism status was 7.8% of the present sample. In an adjusted logistic regression analysis, all psychiatric symptoms were positively associated with being a workaholic. The independent variables explained between 6.1% and 14.4% in total of the variance in workaholism cases. Although most effect sizes were relatively small, the study's findings expand our understanding of possible psychiatric predictors of workaholism, and particularly shed new insight into the reality of adult ADHD in work life. The study's implications, strengths, and shortcomings are also discussed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychosocial Science, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway.|Centre of Competence, Bergen Clinics Foundation, Bergen, Norway.
authors.forename: Cecilie Schou
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: Andreassen
authors.affiliation: Psychology Division, Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Mark D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Griffiths
authors.affiliation: Yale Stress Center, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, United States of America.
authors.forename: Rajita
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Sinha
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychosocial Science, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway.
authors.forename: Jørn
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hetland
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychosocial Science, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway.
authors.forename: Ståle
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Pallesen
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D016739:Behavior, Addictive / Q000523:psychology*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000523:psychology*; D016526:Workload; D055815:Young Adult