Summary
Angela
will examine the interaction between pressure in the workplace
and performance, differentiating between ‘pressure’ and ‘stress’.
She will explore the benefits of promoting positive well-being
in terms of improved cognitive function and go on to explore
how negative emotional states, induced by stress, can impair
performance and health. She will present a model that illustrates
how individual vulnerability interacts with job characteristics
and describe a current research project that is seeking to
identify the characteristics of those who perform well in
situations of high demand (i.e. high pressure - low stress)
where productivity is at its highest.
Biography
Professor
Angela Clow is trained in neuropharmacology, physiology and
psychology and likes to work at the interface of these disciplines.
For her PhD (Institute of Psychiatry, London) she investigated
the function of brain dopamine receptors and during her post-doctoral
studies (Royal Postgraduate Medical School) she developed
an interest in the biochemistry of stress. In 1989 she joined
the University of Westminster where she became a founder member
of the interdisciplinary Psychophysiology and Stress Research
Group (PSRG). Professor Clow’s current research investigates
the physiological pathways by which stress and well-being
can affect health. In particular she studies daily patterns
of cortisol secretion, a hormone important in the regulation
of day-night cycles as well as stress responding. Professor
Clow has published over 86 full-length peer-reviewed papers,
2 books, and 24 book chapters or reviews.
