Charene is a product development manager for Unique Automotive Accessories. When she was first hired, she proved herself to be one of the most productive new employees. Lately, Charene’s supervisor, Ivan, has noticed that her productivity is slipping from its previous high point. Whenever Ivan stays late at the office, he sees that Charene is always at her desk, eating fast food, and she is always the first to arrive in the morning. He also observes that her email replies are often time-stamped on the weekend. Ivan decides to hire Charene an assistant to ease her workload and improve her work–life balance.
Ivan’s approach to alleviating Charene’s stressors is an example of

Question

BlackTom AI · Accepted Answer

Instrumental support refers to providing tangible, practical help to reduce a person’s workload or solve a concrete problem. In occupational health and social support theory, instrumental support is one of several types of social support (others include emotional support and informational/cognitive support). It directly alters the external stressors by supplying resources, assistance, or services.

1) Relevant knowledge points and concepts
- Instrumental (or tangible) support: concrete assistance such as help with tasks, services, or resources.
- Emotional support: empathy, reassurance, or encouragement.
- Cognitive/informational coping: reframing, advice, or problem-solving guidance.
- Burnout: a state of emotional exhaustion and reduced efficacy caused by chronic workplace stress.
- Organizational cohesion: the degree of social integration and shared commitment within a group.

2) Step-by-step reasoning
- Observations: Charene is overworking (early arrival, late emails, eating at desk), suggesting excessive workload and poor work–life balance.
- Ivan’s action: hiring an assistant to ease her workload is a concrete, practical intervention that directly reduces task burden.
- Mapping the action to support types: providing an assistant is assistance in the form of labor/resources—this is the textbook definition of instrumental support.

3) Calculations/intermediate steps
- (No numerical calculations are required; reasoning is conceptual and categorical.)

4) Why the correct answer is correct
- The assistant is a tangible resource that changes Charene’s external conditions (fewer tasks, redistributed workload). That direct provision of help is precisely what defines instrumental support.

5) Why the other options are incorrect
- Burnout: a condition Charene may be approaching, not the type of intervention Ivan used.
- Cognitive coping: involves advice or reframing thoughts, not providing personnel to do work.
- Emotional support: would be empathy or encouragement, not hiring someone to perform tasks.
- Organizational cohesion: refers to group unity and social ties, not an individual-level practical intervention.

Conclusion: The action Ivan takes is best characterized as instrumental support. This confirms the provided answer: instrumental support.

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