Based on the Psychodynamics of Work and Social Representation Theory, the creation and verification of the psychometric quality of the instrument is presented, Inventory for Evaluation of Penosity (IAP). Hanna Arendt s Concept of Active Vita is articulated with a discussion of the world of work, emphasizing that it is necessary to emphasize psychological aspects as much as aspects of the body at work. The general objective of this research is to construct and validate an instrument for the diagnosis of psychological suffering related to work and to investigate the social representations of such feeling. The purpose of the instrument is to identify the difficulties encountered in the performance of the function that may lead to psychological distress such as: lack of familiarity of the professional with the techniques and knowledge related to their work; their perception of autonomy at work; the limits concerning the adversities of their professional occupation. Specific objectives are: to define measurable indicators of painfulness based on the dimensions described in the Psychodynamics of Work and at the levels of representations proposed in the Societal Approach of Representations; verify the psychometric quality of the instrument; and to investigate the social representations of psychic suffering in relation to work. The design was based on an exploratory-descriptive study with a qualitative-quantitative approach. The research was carried out in the emergency of a public hospital, in the city of Rio de Janeiro, with interviews with 249 employees. It is concluded that the perception of psychic suffering is related to the autonomy in the accomplishment of the work and how much, how and until when the subject can endure this type of suffering.