Association between Psychosocial Risk Factors and Quality of Work Life in Air Traffic Controllers at an Ecuador Airport

Abstract

The aim of this research was to determine the association between psychosocial factors and Quality of Work Life (QWL) in air traffic controllers at an Ecuador airport. A transversal study was developed. The sample included 47 air traffic controllers of one airport in Quito, Ecuador. The participants answered an adapted version of the surveys “Factores Psicosociales en el Trabajo” (Psychosocial factors at work) and the “Calidad de vida en el trabajo” (Quality of work life) CVT-GOHISALO. The data analysis included descriptive statistics, Z scores and, association tests with chi-square and Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient. The mean age was 40 years old, and most of the participants were males. For the psychosocial work factors, the higher mean score was for the dimension Work demands (22.94), followed by Workplace conditions (13.47). For the QWL the dimension Wellbeing accomplished through work (36.43) scored higher, followed by Institutional support for work (34.11). The findings indicated several positive associations between the study variables through the Spearman’s Coefficient, observing that the psychosocial factor content and characteristic of the task presented the higher number of associations with QWL dimensions, such as Institutional support for work ( p < 0.05), Work safety ( p < 0.05), I ntegration to the work position ( p < 0.05) and to Wellbeing accomplished through work ( p < 0.05). The air traffic controllers develop a professional activity under work conditions that involve psychosocial factors that could represent an important risk for the health, satisfaction and QWL.