Negotiating Time and Space When Working From Home: Experiences During COVID-19

2021 ◽  
pp. 153944922110338
Author(s):  
Yoko E. Fukumura ◽  
Joseph M. Schott ◽  
Gale M. Lucas ◽  
Burcin Becerik-Gerber ◽  
Shawn C. Roll
Keyword(s):  
Time Use ◽  
Work Performance ◽  
Qualitative Content Analysis ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Work Life ◽  
Free Response ◽  
Home Life ◽  
Work From Home ◽  
Occupational Patterns ◽  
Home Space

Stay-at-home mandates following the COVID-19 pandemic increased work from home (WFH). While WFH offers many benefits, navigating work in nontraditional contexts can be a challenge. The objective of this study was to explore the benefits and challenges of WFH during COVID-19 to identify supports and resources necessary. Comments from two free-response questions on a survey regarding experiences of WFH ( N = 648, N = 366) were analyzed using inductive qualitative content analysis. Four themes emerged: time use, considerations of working in the home space, intersections between work-life and home-life, and temporality of WFH as situated within a pandemic. Across all themes were concerns related to participation in both work and home roles, work performance, and well-being. Findings highlight the importance of support during times of disruption of occupational patterns, roles, and routines. Despite challenges, many individuals hoped to continue WFH. Organizations should consider the complex intersections of work-life and home-life to develop supportive policies and resources.

British doctors’ work–life balance and home-life satisfaction: a cross-sectional study

2021 ◽  
pp. postgradmedj-2021-141338
Author(s):  
Swati Parida ◽  
Abdullah Aamir ◽  
Jahangir Alom ◽  
Tania A Rufai ◽  
Sohaib R Rufai
Keyword(s):  
Life Satisfaction ◽  
Thematic Analysis ◽  
Significant Proportion ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Work Life ◽  
Work Life Balance ◽  
Free Text ◽  
Full Time ◽  
Life Balance ◽  
Home Life

PurposeTo assess British doctors’ work–life balance, home-life satisfaction and associated barriers.Study designWe designed an online survey using Google Forms and distributed this via a closed social media group with 7031 members, exclusively run for British doctors. No identifiable data were collected and all respondents provided consent for their responses to be used anonymously. The questions covered demographic data followed by exploration of work–life balance and home-life satisfaction across a broad range of domains, including barriers thereto. Thematic analysis was performed for free-text responses.Results417 doctors completed the survey (response rate: 6%, typical for online surveys). Only 26% reported a satisfactory work–life balance; 70% of all respondents reported their work negatively affected their relationships and 87% reported their work negatively affected their hobbies. A significant proportion of respondents reported delaying major life events due to their working patterns: 52% delaying buying a home, 40% delaying marriage and 64% delaying having children. Female doctors were most likely to enter less-than-full-time working or leave their specialty. Thematic analysis revealed seven key themes from free-text responses: unsocial working, rota issues, training issues, less-than-full-time working, location, leave and childcare.ConclusionsThis study highlights the barriers to work–life balance and home-life satisfaction among British doctors, including strains on relationships and hobbies, leading to many doctors delaying certain milestones or opting to leave their training position altogether. It is imperative to address these issues to improve the well-being of British doctors and improve retention of the current workforce.

scholarly journals A Study of Work from Home Motivation among Employees

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (8) ◽  
pp. 388-398
Author(s):  
Nur Fadzilah Muhamad Zamani ◽  
Madaha Hanafi @ Mohd Ghani ◽  
Siti Fatimah Mohamad Radzi ◽  
Noor Hanim Rahmat ◽  
Nur Syafiqah Abdul Kadar ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Work Performance ◽  
Work Life ◽  
Physical Contact ◽  
Work Life Balance ◽  
Negative Consequences ◽  
Life Balance ◽  
Demographic Profile ◽  
Work From Home ◽  
Working From Home ◽  
Motivational Influence

Many sectors are implementing work from home policy as it is one of the effective ways to avoid physical contact among workers and to control the spread of COVID-19. Amidst the stressful pandemic, working from home poses a different kind of stress among both the employers and employees. Numerous studies have found positive and negative consequences of working from home. With or without the pandemic, working from home has become a new way to work. Some industries cannot function well with their employees working from home. Many are finding ways to make work from home a success. This study explores work from home motivation among 53 employees of different industries. The instrument used is a survey. The survey has 4 sections. Section A has 4 items on demographic profile. Section B has 10 items about availability via flexibility. Section C has 10 items on safety through work-life balance and section D has 10 items on meaningfulness through work performance. Findings reveal interesting motivational influence for employees who work from home.

scholarly journals Flexible friends? Flexible working time arrangements, blurred work-life boundaries and friendship

2012 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 464-480 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vivi Bach Pedersen ◽  
Suzan Lewis
Keyword(s):  
Time Use ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Work Life ◽  
Working Time ◽  
Flexible Working ◽  
Time Structures

The changing nature and demands of work raise concerns about how workers can find time for activities such as friendship and leisure, which are important for well-being. This article brings friendship into the work-life debate by exploring how individuals do friendship in a period characterized by time dilemmas, blurred work-life boundaries and increased employer- and employee-led flexible working. Interviews with employees selected according to their working time structures were supplemented by time use diaries. Findings indicate that despite various constraints, participants found strategies for making time for friendship by blurring boundaries between friends and family and between friends and work. However, the impacts of flexible working time structures were complex and double-edged.

Work time and well-being for workers at home: evidence from the American Time Use Survey

2019 ◽  
Vol 41 (2) ◽  
pp. 184-206 ◽  
Author(s):  
José Ignacio Giménez-Nadal ◽  
José Alberto Molina ◽  
Jorge Velilla
Keyword(s):  
Time Use ◽  
Time Allocation ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Content Type ◽  
American Time Use Survey ◽  
Work From Home ◽  
Time Use Survey ◽  
Using Data ◽  
Negative Feelings ◽  
Allocation Decisions

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyze the time-allocation decisions of individuals who work from home (i.e. teleworkers), and compare them with their commuter counterparts. Design/methodology/approach Using data from the American Time Use Survey for the years 2003–2015, the authors analyze the time spent working, and the timing of work, of both commuters and teleworkers. Findings Results show that teleworkers devote 40 percent less time to market work activities than do commuters, and less than 60 percent of teleworkers work at “regular hours,” vs around 80 percent of their commuter counterparts. Using information from the Well-being Module for the years 2012 and 2013, the authors find that male teleworkers experience lower levels of negative feelings while working than do commuters. Originality/value This paper addresses the timing of work of workers working from home; and the instant well-being experienced, exploiting information at diary level.

scholarly journals Learning from work-from-home issues during the COVID-19 pandemic: Balance speaks louder than words

PLoS ONE ◽  
2022 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. e0261969
Author(s):  
Amanda M. Y. Chu ◽  
Thomas W. C. Chan ◽  
Mike K. P. So
Keyword(s):  
Structural Equation ◽  
Working Hours ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Work Life ◽  
Work Life Balance ◽  
Life Balance ◽  
Psychological Well Being ◽  
Work Related ◽  
Work From Home ◽  
Working From Home

During the 2019 novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, many employees have switched to working from home. Despite the findings of previous research that working from home can improve productivity, the scale, nature, and purpose of those studies are not the same as in the current situation with the COVID-19 pandemic. We studied the effects that three stress relievers of the work-from-home environment–company support, supervisor’s trust in the subordinate, and work-life balance–had on employees’ psychological well-being (stress and happiness), which in turn influenced productivity and engagement in non-work-related activities during working hours. In order to collect honest responses on sensitive questions or negative forms of behavior including stress and non-work-related activities, we adopted the randomized response technique in the survey design to minimize response bias. We collected a total of 500 valid responses and analyzed the results with structural equation modelling. We found that among the three stress relievers, work-life balance was the only significant construct that affected psychological well-being. Stress when working from home promoted non-work-related activities during working hours, whereas happiness improved productivity. Interestingly, non-work-related activities had no significant effect on productivity. The research findings provide evidence that management’s maintenance of a healthy work-life balance for colleagues when they are working from home is important for supporting their psychosocial well-being and in turn upholding their work productivity.

How Work From Home Has Affected the Occupant's Well-Being in the Residential Built Environment: An International Survey Amid the COVID-19 Pandemic

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-41
Author(s):  
Zhihong Pang ◽  
Burcin Becerik-Gerber ◽  
Simi Hoque ◽  
Zheng O'Neill ◽  
Giulia Pedrielli ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Built Environment ◽  
Indoor Air ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Indoor Environmental Quality ◽  
International Survey ◽  
Home Life ◽  
Work From Home ◽  
Quality Health ◽  
Indoor Lighting ◽  
Acoustic Conditions

Abstract This paper presents the results from an international survey that investigated the impacts of the built environment on occupant well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic when most professionals were forced to work from home (WFH). The survey was comprised of 81 questions focusing on the respondent's profiles, residences, home indoor environmental quality, health, and home working experiences. A total of 1,460 responses were collected from 35 countries, and 1,137 of them were considered complete for the analysis. The results suggest that home spatial layout has a significant impact on occupant well-being during WFH since home-life distractions and noises due to the lack of a personal workspace are likely to prevent productive work. Lack of scenic views, inadequate daylighting, and poor acoustics were also reported to be detrimental to occupant productivity and the general WFH experience. It is also revealed from this survey that temperature, relative humidity, and indoor air quality generally have higher satisfaction ratios compared with the indoor lighting and acoustic conditions, and the home layout. Hence, home design for lighting, acoustics, and layout should also receive greater attention in the future

scholarly journals Strengthening of work-life balance while working remotely in the context of COVID-19 pandemic

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-15
Author(s):  
Živilė Stankevičiūtė ◽  
Svetlana Kunskaja
Keyword(s):  
Well Being ◽  
Work And Family ◽  
Work Life ◽  
Private Life ◽  
Work Life Balance ◽  
Remote Work ◽  
Life Balance ◽  
Work From Home ◽  
Manager Support ◽  
Family Demands

BACKGROUND: Recently, quite a number of employees have been asked to choose remote work or even have been forced into it as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Notwithstanding the benefits suggested by remote working, e.g. saving on commuting time and expenses working from home generates numerous challenges for employees, including the blurred line between the roles of working and private life. While, previous studies have demonstrated that work-life balance, which refers to the ability of every individual to coordinate work and family obligations successfully, has a significant impact on employee well-being and organisational performance, ways for maintaining the balance under crisis remain underexplored. OBJECTIVE: Trying to narrow the gap, the paper aims at revealing the antecedents of work-life balance while working remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: A quantitative survey has been conducted in Lithuania (pilot study). The data have been collected from the employees working only remotely. RESULTS: The results provided evidence that employees struggled with work-home balance while working remotely. In line with the results, work and family demands served as detrimental factors for work-home balance, while manager support, co-workers support, job autonomy, and job control increased work-home balance. CONCLUSIONS: Thus, the research results expand the knowledge on the antecedents of work-life balance in a crisis situation. Moreover, the findings have significant implications for employers demonstrating that organisations need to carefully plan and implement new strategies and practices for work-home balance improvement for the employees who work from home.

scholarly journals Negative effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on nurses can be buffered by a sense of humor and appreciation

BMC Nursing ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marek Bartzik ◽  
Fabienne Aust ◽  
Corinna Peifer
Keyword(s):  
Protective Factors ◽  
Psychological Health ◽  
Work Performance ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Work Life ◽  
Sense Of Humor ◽  
Related Stress ◽  
Flow Experiences ◽  
Life Work

Abstract Background The first analyses of the various consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic show that the risk to nurses’ psychological well-being is particularly high. As the pandemic and the demands imposed on nurses are not yet fully understood, there is a need to seek buffering factors to protect nurses’ psychological health. In line with the earliest evidence, we hypothesize pandemic-related increases in perceived stress and decreases in the frequency of flow experiences, likewise in satisfaction with work, life, work performance, and well-being. As protective factors while dealing with pandemic-related stress, we suggest an individual’s sense of humor and perceived appreciation. Methods In June/July 2020 – during the first lockdown in Germany – participants completed an online-survey in which they were asked to rate their situation before the pandemic (retrospectively) and during the pandemic. Our sample consisted of 174 registered nurses (161 females, 13 males, Mage = 40.52), of whom 85 worked as public health nurses and 89 as geriatric nurses. Results During the pandemic, nurses felt more stressed, had fewer flow experiences, and were less satisfied with their work, life, work-performance, and well-being than before the pandemic. In addition, nurses felt more appreciation from society but less from their patients. Sense of humor and the perceived appreciation of society and patients were confirmed as buffers of negative pandemic-related effects. Conclusion Our study contributes to the so far scarce knowledge on nurses’ pandemic-related stress and well-being in combination with their resources. Moreover, we were able to identify sense of humor and appreciation as protective factors.

Work-life and safety support among construction workers: Effects on health and well-being

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leslie Hammer ◽  
Donald Truxillo ◽  
Todd Bodner ◽  
Mariah Kraner
Keyword(s):  
Well Being ◽  
Work Life ◽  
Construction Workers ◽  
Health And Well Being
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