Effets des changements organisationnels et technologiques sur la sante mentale de machinistes (French text)

The incidence of mental health problems in the workplace has risen sharply in recent years and currently counts as one of the leading causes of worker absenteeism. Among the different external factors that influence mental health, the review of the literature pinpoints that work organization and the use of technology are important ones. The aim of this thesis is to understand the links between work and mental health in relation to work organization and technology.; Three objectives have oriented this research. The first was to understand the possible relationship between the work organization introduced in a factory in the aviation sector and the present or potential mental health problems of the operators. The second one was to specify if the particular model of high quality products may have an effect on the mental health of workers. The last one was to understand the impact of technology on the professional identity of workers.; To realize those objectives, two methods were used. First, an inquiry based on the psychodynamic of work was carried out among machine operators in a factory in the aviation sector. Secondly, a systematic content analysis was conducted. Important management and technological transformations were recently introduced in the factory where the research was conducted. Problems such as absenteeism, burn-out, drug and alcoholism were severe enough to justify a psychodynamic of work inquiry conducted by a group of researchers. The author of this thesis was among them. 33 machine operators participated in the study. After the inquiry, certain questions needed to be examined thoroughly and a systematic content analysis was done.; The results show that the implantation of the high quality management model was not done in an accurate manner. This gave rise to a work organization that places a double bind situation. This phenomenon also had a major impact on the professional identity. Left with a destructed professional identity, the operators are put in a deadlock situation that creates fear and anxiety. They are obliged to turn to defensive psychological strategies such as individualism and cheating. This study enlightens the inner mechanisms that are at play when a high quality model of management is not correctly implanted and how it can affect the mental health of the workers. The results may serve as a base for future research on evaluation tools regarding the factors of work organization that put mental heath at risk.