Psychosocial Aspects of Work Questionnaire (PAW)

The reality: 

Globally, an average of 12 billion working days are lost each year due to workplace stress and anxiety. This accounts for over 50% of all work-related ill health and absenteeism, costing approximately $1 trillion annually in lost productivity. 

In the UK, the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 requires employers to assess and manage workplace risks, including stress. Employers must take measures to prevent or mitigate undue stress in the workplace. The Employer Duty of Care imposes a legal obligation on employers to take reasonable steps to ensure the health, safety, and well-being of their employees, including addressing mental health concerns. 

Mental illness accounts for 21% of the disease burden in England. More than half of all reported working days lost to ill health are due to psychosocial issues, including work-related stress, depression, and anxiety.  The  PAW, developed at the University of Huddersfield in the UK, was designed to assess and measure work-related psychosocial factors. It helps identify psychosocial risks and potential for improvements in employee well-being and productivity. 
 

A simple-to-use scoring system is utilised throughout. There are three sub-scales; each is calculated by summing the appropriate item scores. 

All items are assessed on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (Completely Disagree) to 5 (Completely Agree). The scores are arranged so that higher values indicate more positive attitudes and beliefs. 

Additional written guidance on scoring and administration is provided upon obtaining a license to use the PAW. 

The development of the Psychosocial Aspects of Work (PAW) instrument was carried out on a working population of 603 persons (120 industrial workers and 483 nurses). The pilot questionnaire contained 25 items, but Principal Component Analysis resulted in a reduction to 15 items across the following subscales: Job Satisfaction, Social Support and Mental Stress. Internal consistency reliability, as assessed by Cronbach’s α statistic, was 0.88, 0.77 and 0.76 respectively.

Further information on the development and validation (internal consistency and reliability) of the PAW can be found in the publication listed under ‘Key reference’ on the right-hand side of this page. 

The  PAW was designed to assess work-related psychosocial factors. It can be used as a stand-alone instrument or as part of a multimethod protocol. 

The PAW was developed, tested, and validated in a study (conducted in an industry setting at a biscuit factory in northern England and with nurses) to assess workers’ attitudes towards lower back trouble (LBT). The findings indicated that addressing negative beliefs about LBT could reduce absenteeism and enhance employee well-being and productivity. This study underscored the importance of psychosocial factors in managing LBT and offered valuable insights into interventions to improve workplace health and reduce associated costs. 

The PAW has been applied to assess work-related psychosocial factors, often referred to as “Blue Flags,” which can impact an individual’s ability to return to work or perform their job effectively. These psychosocial factors include elements like job satisfaction, work stress, and social support at work. The primary goal of the PAW is to identify these factors so that interventions can be designed to address them, ultimately helping individuals return to work more effectively and improving their overall well-being while also minimising employee absenteeism and reducing associated costs. 

• Paper and pen completion
• Digital (eCOA) completion, upon request. 

For furthter information on eCOA vendors authorsied to deploy the BBQ, or platforms the BBQ is available on, please email us at enquiries@inspiredoutcomes.co.uk.

• Scoring and administration instructions
• Concept Elaboration Document (to assist in translating the PAW)

The Psychosocial Aspects of Work (PAW) © Copyright, The University of Huddersfield 1996. All Rights Reserved. The authors have asserted their moral rights.

All users must seek a licence to use the PAW prior to use. Licences can be requested here -  Licence Request Form.

Licences to use the copyright in the PAW are at no cost for most academic research and other non-commercial purposes. For other uses, we will advise on any licensing costs (prior to granting a licence) based on the details you provide in the Licence Request Form.