Survey study, 1997
Does PMS cause women to miss work or do their jobs worse?
No clear difference in work performance, sick days, or stress between women at different cycle phases or compared to men. Women with self-reported PMS showed no problems specifically during their premenstrual phase; instead, they reported high stress and health problems across their entire cycle.
What they did
438 employees completed a survey about the past week's stress, health, and work experiences. Researchers compared responses based on where women were in their menstrual cycle and compared women to men.
What they found
No differences in illness, health, work performance, absenteeism, or stress between women at different cycle phases or between women and men. Women with self-reported PMS did not show worse problems during the premenstrual phase but instead reported consistently high stress, poor health, and work problems throughout their cycle.
What it means for you
Employers don't need to worry that PMS reduces productivity or causes absences. Women who say they have PMS may need year-round support for broader health and stress issues, not just help around their period. The main limitation is that PMS was self-diagnosed and the survey only asked about one past week.
438
employees surveyed
4
menstrual cycle groups compared
2
occupational levels analyzed
About the study
- Original title
- PMS in the workplace: Dispelling the myth of cyclic dysfunction
- Authors
- Elizabeth A. Hardie
- Journal
- Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology
- Year
- 1997
- Study design
- Survey study
- Participants
- 438
- What was tested
- No intervention; survey of work experiences across menstrual cycle phases
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1111/j.2044-8325.1997.tb00633.x
Topics
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