Association Between Time Spent With Family and Loneliness Among Japanese Workers During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study

Background: The current coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has had large impacts on society, including people practicing social distancing. This behavioral response has increased loneliness. Loneliness not only increases the risk of psychiatric disorders, but also affects occupational mental health. To avoid the negative effects of isolation, it is important to have social contact with other people, especially family members. Employment and economic instability caused by COVID-19 may have also affected family relationships. It is important to understand the association between family relationships and loneliness in workers under the pandemic.Methods: We collected usable data from 27,036 Japanese workers who completed an online survey during the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants were asked how long they spend with members of their family during mealtimes or at home, and if they experienced loneliness; the latter was assessed by a single question. Other questions included whether participants lived with their spouse, or with someone in need of care. To estimate the odds ratios (ORs) of time with family associated with loneliness we used a multilevel logistic model nested in the prefecture of residence, with adjustments for age, sex, marital status, presence of a cohabitant requiring care, equivalent income, educational level, number of employees in the workplace, frequency of remote work, availability of someone for casual chat, smoking, drinking, time for leisure interests, and cumulative rates of COVID-19 in the prefecture.Results: Ten percent (2,750) of the 27,036 participants reported loneliness. The survey showed a significant negative correlation between time spent with family and loneliness (p < ‘0.001): participants who spent more time with family were less likely to feel loneliness. In addition, not living with a spouse and living with someone in need of care were associated with loneliness (not living with a spouse: p < 0.001; living with someone in need of care: p < 0.001).Conclusion: Loneliness under COVID-19 pandemic conditions was negatively associated with time spent with family members, with the converse result found for participants cohabiting with someone in need of care. These associations suggest the potential value of changes to working practices and interventions to combat loneliness.

Association of alcohol consumption and frequency with loneliness: A cross-sectional study among Japanese workers during the COVID-19 pandemic

Background There are increasing concerns that prevention measures against coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) such as social distancing and telework are leading to loneliness and poor lifestyle habits like increased alcohol consumption. The purpose of this study was to assess whether loneliness reported among workers during the COVID-19 pandemic is associated with changes in alcohol consumption. Methods The study comprised a cross-sectional, online survey of 27,036 workers between December 22 and 26, 2020. A questionnaire was used to assess loneliness, usual alcohol consumption and whether that consumption had changed. The odds ratios (ORs) were estimated by logistic regression analysis. Results A total of 2831 (10.5%) workers indicated they had increased alcohol consumption during the pandemic. Increased alcohol consumption was significantly associated with loneliness (OR=1.94, 95%CI 1.70-2.21). This association held true for those who indicated they were drinking two or more days per week (OR=1.98 95%CI 1.71-2.30) and those who drank less than one day per week (OR=1.51 95%CI 0.71-3.25). In contrast, there was no association between increased drinking and loneliness among those who indicated they hardly ever drank (OR=1.22 95%CI 0.55-2.72). Conclusions Among those with a drinking habit, increased alcohol consumption is associated with loneliness.

Association between teleworking frequency and work functioning impairment: a nationwide cross-sectional study of Japanese full-time employees

Objective: We examined the impact of teleworking frequency, including influencing factors and work functioning impairment. Methods: This online cross-sectional study was conducted using a self-administered questionnaire among 27,036 full-time Japanese workers. We used the Work Functioning Impairment Scale to measure work functioning impairment and performed multilevel logistic regression analysis. Results: We observed higher odds for work functioning impairment among employees who teleworked 4 or more days a week compared with those almost never teleworked: odds ratio (OR) 1.18, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.07-1.3. After adjusting for influencing factors (teleworking preference, changes in working time, and commuting time), there was no significant association between teleworking frequency and work functioning impairment (OR 0.93, 95% CI 0.82-1.05). Conclusions: Frequent telework may cause work functioning impairment; this can be explained by the impact of influencing factors.