{"entity": "researcher", "timestamp": "2026-09-23T21:35:54.066Z", "family": "Persson", "given": "Roger", "initials": "R", "orcid": "0000-0002-7208-2944", "affiliations": ["Department of Laboratory Medicine, Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Lund University, SE-22185, Lund, Sweden. roger.persson@psy.lu.se.", "Department of Psychology, Lund University, SE-22100, Lund, Sweden. roger.persson@psy.lu.se.", "Centre for Medicine and Technology for Working Life and Society (Metalund), Lund, Sweden. roger.persson@psy.lu.se."], "links": {"self": {"href": "https://publications-affiliated.scilifelab.se/researcher/9103ed7dd0eb4cc9b6447fdb8ee33489.json"}, "display": {"href": "https://publications-affiliated.scilifelab.se/researcher/9103ed7dd0eb4cc9b6447fdb8ee33489"}}, "publications": [{"entity": "publication", "iuid": "ad95ded0b57a4ff0aeb4d3e72c728865", "links": {"self": {"href": "https://publications-affiliated.scilifelab.se/publication/ad95ded0b57a4ff0aeb4d3e72c728865.json"}, "display": {"href": "https://publications-affiliated.scilifelab.se/publication/ad95ded0b57a4ff0aeb4d3e72c728865"}}, "title": "Supportive and demanding managerial circumstances and associations with excellent workability: a cross-sectional study of Swedish school principals.", "authors": [{"family": "Persson", "given": "Roger", "initials": "R", "orcid": "0000-0002-7208-2944", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications-affiliated.scilifelab.se/researcher/9103ed7dd0eb4cc9b6447fdb8ee33489.json"}}, {"family": "Leo", "given": "Ulf", "initials": "U", "orcid": "0000-0002-9897-7850", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications-affiliated.scilifelab.se/researcher/938216223c404a949084b71686b3f25f.json"}}, {"family": "Arvidsson", "given": "Inger", "initials": "I", "orcid": "0000-0002-8069-0819", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications-affiliated.scilifelab.se/researcher/f3c3fee2b0534e168a35212ade6210ff.json"}}, {"family": "Nilsson", "given": "Kerstin", "initials": "K", "orcid": "0000-0002-3193-205X", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications-affiliated.scilifelab.se/researcher/aed370aeac3d4763b61c9f38480cad86.json"}}, {"family": "\u00d6sterberg", "given": "Kai", "initials": "K", "orcid": "0000-0003-1907-8812", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications-affiliated.scilifelab.se/researcher/67b65ee7e1df418ba3ff8f21a3690125.json"}}, {"family": "H\u00e5kansson", "given": "Carita", "initials": "C", "orcid": "0000-0002-3660-3079", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications-affiliated.scilifelab.se/researcher/a3a6714269b3435195537354912e4be8.json"}}], "type": "journal article", "published": "2021-07-22", "journal": {"title": "BMC Psychol", "issn": "2050-7283", "volume": "9", "issue": "1", "pages": "109", "issn-l": null}, "abstract": "The leadership of principals is important for school, teacher and student related outcomes. To be capable of doing their work (i.e., having sufficient workability), school principals need proper organisational preconditions, motivation, and good health. It is therefore concerning that some studies suggest that principals have a work situation that risks taxing their health and reducing their workability. However, few studies have examined the psychosocial working conditions of principals and no study has gauged principals' workability. Accordingly, we decided to examine Swedish principals' workability and their perceptions of eight demanding and five supportive managerial circumstances as well as the associations between managerial circumstances and reports of excellent workability.\n\nThe participants comprised 2219 Swedish principals (78% women) who completed a cross-sectional web survey in 2018. A brief version of the Gothenburg Manager Stress Inventory (GMSI-Mini) gauged managerial circumstances. Workability was assessed with the workability score (0-10; WAS). Unadjusted and adjusted logistic regression analyses were used to examine associations between managerial circumstances and reports of excellent workability (WAS \u2265 9). Covariates were: length of work experience as a principal, school level, self-rated health, and general self-efficacy.\n\nThe results showed that circa 30% of the principals reported excellent workability. The GMSI-Mini results showed that role conflicts, resource deficits, and having to harbour co-workers' frustrations were the most frequently encountered managerial demands. Meanwhile, cooperating co-workers, supportive manager colleagues, and a supportive private life were the most supportive managerial circumstances. Adjusted logistic regression analyses showed that role conflicts and role demands were associated with an increased likelihood of reporting less than excellent workability. In contrast, supportive managerial colleagues, a supportive private life and supportive organisational structures were associated with an increased likelihood of reporting excellent workability.\n\nCirca 30% of the participating principals perceived their workability to be excellent. Reducing role demands, clarifying the principals' areas of responsibility and accountability in relation to other actors in the governing chain (role conflicts), striving for increased role clarity, and striving to find ways to separate work and private life, seem to be promising intervention areas if increasing principals' workability is desired.", "doi": "10.1186/s40359-021-00608-4", "pmid": "34294161", "labels": [], "xrefs": [{"db": "pmc", "key": "PMC8295455"}, {"db": "pii", "key": "10.1186/s40359-021-00608-4"}], "notes": [], "created": "2026-09-23T12:07:11.815Z", "modified": "2026-09-23T12:07:11.894Z"}, {"entity": "publication", "iuid": "00d535719367419da30d8e6eb7684f5e", "links": {"self": {"href": "https://publications-affiliated.scilifelab.se/publication/00d535719367419da30d8e6eb7684f5e.json"}, "display": {"href": "https://publications-affiliated.scilifelab.se/publication/00d535719367419da30d8e6eb7684f5e"}}, "title": "Prevalence of exhaustion symptoms and associations with school level, length of work experience and gender: a nationwide cross-sectional study of Swedish principals.", "authors": [{"family": "Persson", "given": "Roger", "initials": "R", "orcid": "0000-0002-7208-2944", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications-affiliated.scilifelab.se/researcher/9103ed7dd0eb4cc9b6447fdb8ee33489.json"}}, {"family": "Leo", "given": "Ulf", "initials": "U", "orcid": "0000-0002-9897-7850", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications-affiliated.scilifelab.se/researcher/938216223c404a949084b71686b3f25f.json"}}, {"family": "Arvidsson", "given": "Inger", "initials": "I", "orcid": "0000-0002-8069-0819", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications-affiliated.scilifelab.se/researcher/f3c3fee2b0534e168a35212ade6210ff.json"}}, {"family": "H\u00e5kansson", "given": "Carita", "initials": "C", "orcid": "0000-0002-3660-3079", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications-affiliated.scilifelab.se/researcher/a3a6714269b3435195537354912e4be8.json"}}, {"family": "Nilsson", "given": "Kerstin", "initials": "K", "orcid": "0000-0002-3193-205X", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications-affiliated.scilifelab.se/researcher/aed370aeac3d4763b61c9f38480cad86.json"}}, {"family": "\u00d6sterberg", "given": "Kai", "initials": "K", "orcid": "0000-0003-1907-8812", "researcher": {"href": "https://publications-affiliated.scilifelab.se/researcher/67b65ee7e1df418ba3ff8f21a3690125.json"}}], "type": "journal article", "published": "2021-02-10", "journal": {"title": "BMC Public Health", "issn": "1471-2458", "volume": "21", "issue": "1", "pages": "331", "issn-l": null}, "abstract": "While poor mental health and psychiatric disorders attributed to stressful work conditions are a public health concern in many countries, the health consequences of the occupational stress experienced by school principals is an understudied issue. Although current data is lacking, some research suggests that principals have a stressful work situation that eventually may lead to burnout and exhaustion disorder, thus negatively affecting the ability of principals to function as leaders. To gauge the situation in Sweden, and as a basis for future preventive actions, we examined to what extent principals displayed signs of exhaustion and whether the prevalence rates of exhaustion differed across school levels, length of work experience as a principal, and gender.\n\nPrincipals (N = 2219; mean age 49 years [SD 7 years]; 78% women) working at least 50% in pre-schools, compulsory schools, upper secondary schools or adult education completed a cross-sectional web survey entailing two validated inventories: The Karolinska Exhaustion Disorder Scale (KEDS) and the Lund University Checklist for Incipient Exhaustion (LUCIE). Data was analysed using traditional non-parametric methods. Gender stratification achieved covariate balance when analysing school level and length of work experience.\n\nAltogether, 29.0% of the principals met the exhaustion criteria in KEDS. The prevalence rates for the four LUCIE-steps of increasing signs of exhaustion were: no signs of stress, 48.8%; weak signs of stress, 25.6%; clear signs of stress but no exhaustion, 15.4%; possible exhaustion disorder, 10.2%. Compared with male principals, female principals reported more signs of possible exhaustion disorder in both LUCIE and KEDS. School level was not associated with reports of exhaustion symptoms in neither LUCIE nor KEDS. Among male principals, length of work experience was associated with exhaustion symptoms in KEDS.\n\nA large group of Swedish principals working in pre-schools, compulsory schools, upper secondary schools or adult education displayed a symptomatology of signs of exhaustion that if sustained might lead to poor health. This observation suggests that education authorities, or other relevant stakeholders, ought to take some form of preventive action. However, effective combinations of individual, group, organisational, and/or societal preventive activities remain to be identified and tested.", "doi": "10.1186/s12889-021-10317-7", "pmid": "33568106", "labels": [], "xrefs": [{"db": "pmc", "key": "PMC7874991"}, {"db": "pii", "key": "10.1186/s12889-021-10317-7"}], "notes": [], "created": "2026-09-23T08:43:55.167Z", "modified": "2026-09-23T08:43:55.532Z"}]}