Prevalence and exposure-outcome evidence of psychosocial risks at work: A Review with systematic literature search

Psychosocial risk factors are widely associated with occupational stress and burnout, but evidence on prevalence according to specific exposures remains limited and fragmented. A PRISMA 2020-guided systematic search was conducted using a PEOS framework (Population: workers aged 18 years or older; Exposure: PSRs; Outcome: stress and/or burnout; Setting: workplace). Peer-reviewed articles published between 2016 and November 2025 were retrieved from Scopus, Web of Science, PubMed, and Springer. Thirty-three empirical studies met the inclusion criteria. Data were extracted and synthesized to address three research questions: (1) prevalence of stress and burnout by PSR exposure, (2) conceptualization and analytical positioning of these constructs, and (3) established and emerging PSR-outcome associations. Of the 33 included studies, 28 examined exposure–outcome associations and 5 reported explicit prevalence estimates. Cross-sectional designs predominated ( n = 27); longitudinal or intervention designs were less common ( n = 6). Evidence was predominantly from Europe and Asia, with limited data from Africa and the Global South. Studies consistently reported significant associations between PSRs, including high job demands, low job control, effort–reward imbalance, poor social support, job insecurity, and organizational injustice, and elevated stress or burnout. Occupational stress prevalence ranged from 30% to 77.7% across contexts, varying markedly by occupational sector, measurement instrument, and exposure category. Psychosocial risks strongly contribute to occupational stress and burnout. However, heterogeneous methods limit comparability across studies. More standardized, longitudinal, intervention-based, and geographically diverse research is required to strengthen evidence and prevention strategies.