Croatians do not know how to cope with stress and almost a third feel a high level of stress, mostly those aged 18-49 who are the most productive and should have the biggest effect on society, a survey reveals.

The survey was conducted by Dr Branka Novosel, the chief executive of the Littera firm, on a sample of 1,000 employees and was presented earlier this week.

It found that as many as 90 percent of respondents felt they were under moderate or high stress, while nearly a third experienced a high level of stress, which ranks Croatia somewhere in the middle compared with other countries.

Last year’s Gallup survey revealed that Greece was the most stressed nation in the world as 59 percent of its citizens said they experienced a high level of stress, ahead of Albanians and Americans (both 55 percent).

Novosel said she had used tested scientific methods, but noted that the stress level was subjective.

“The greatest source of stress is not outside, but inside us. It’s our thoughts and the way in which we experience and interpret events and people around us. The results of the survey conducted in Croatia reflect the state of the nation. In particular, we should be concerned about the fact that generations X and Y are under the greatest stress, and those are people aged 18 to 49 who are now the most productive and who should have the greatest effect on society,” Novosel said.

She said that stress has many negative effects – it affects health, reduces productivity at work, hinders decision making and adversely affects interpersonal relations. Among the main stress factors she cited a lot of overtime work, the little possibility for personal and business growth and development, unclear expectations and instructions from superiors, poor relations in the workplace, low pay and unchallenging work.

“The digital work environment has erased the once clear line between private and work life. We should look to companies that have a Chief Happiness Officer and create so-called happy companies to promote employee satisfaction and reduce stress levels,” Novosel said.

In recent years, Novosel has been helping Croatian companies in introducing human resources management techniques used by the biggest global companies.