Linguistics

Engineering

Philosophy

Transport engineering

Grinding

Stress (linguistics)

Social psychology

Literature

Narrative

Grind

Mechanical engineering

Psychology

Applied psychology

Sociology

Traffic congestion

Journal of Constructivist Psychology

Robust literature on commuter stress has shown the multiple impact of daily commuting in people's lives. Framed within a rhizomatic approach to narratives, we analyzed stories of 11 working and 9 student Filipino commuters by looking at the ways they act on or reconstruct themselves to manage stress. In urban Metro Manila, our findings showed three narrative "stress entryways": getting caught by the wave, seating privileges, and stuck in transit. Theoretical and practical implications of findings on commuter well-being (e.g., keeping emotions in, releasing tensions), technologies of the "fit" commuter, and enriching conversations in traffic psychology and urban living are discussed.

The Daily Grind: A Rhizomatic Approach to Narratives of Managing Commuter Stress During Traffic Congestion in Metro Manila