The purpose of this study was to clarify the effects that self and others were said to have as buffer againststress and protector of the person's health.Health Locus of Control (HLC) was the variable on the self side,emotional support on the side of others, and they were measured with a questionnaire. Employees of a machinery manufacturing company received the questionnaire, and 219 returned a completed form. Results were as follows: Those with internal HLC were found to be healthier than the external. Of those who chose 'healthy body' among their health priorities in the questionnaire, the external were healthier, while the opposite was true for those who did not. Emotional support was only partially effective in health promotion,as a direct or buffer factor. These results indicated that one's health was more strongly related to factors on the side of sell than those provided by others, and suggested that in addition to strengthening employee hardiness in the workplace, securing of personnel always available for emotional support would be increasingly desirable in the future.
Key words: stress, health, Health Locus of Control (HLC), social and emotional support, workers