Tronco Hernández Yessica Abigail, Parente Fabio, Faghy Mark A, Roscoe Clare M P, Maratos Frances A
School of Health Professions University of Plymouth Plymouth United Kingdom.
School of Psychology College of Health, Psychology and Social Care University of Derby Derby United Kingdom.
JMIRx Med. 2021 Dec 1;2(4):e30708. doi: 10.2196/30708. eCollection 2021 Oct-Dec.
Lockdowns imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic have impacted the living and working habits of millions of people, with potentially important implications for their physical, mental, and social well-being.
The primary objective of this study was to investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on remote workers who were not directly affected by COVID-19.
This was a correlational cross-sectional study (with an additional qualitative component) of 184 remote workers surveyed during the first COVID-19 lockdown in the United Kingdom. Standard measures of mental health (Kessler-6 Distress Scale), productivity (Brief Instrument to Assess Workers' Productivity During a Working Day), and physical activity (International Physical Activity Questionnaire) were used, and respondents were further surveyed on changes to their dietary, exercise, smoking, drinking, and socialization habits to produce a well-being change index.
The results revealed associations between sedentary behavior and poorer mental health ( =0.14) and between poorer mental health and low work productivity ( =-0.39). However, both positive and negative lifestyle changes were reported; a self-reported increase in well-being (with respect to diet, exercise, smoking, alcohol consumption, and socialization) since the start of the pandemic was associated with both better mental health ( =-0.14) and better work productivity ( =0.14). Of note, among respondents without a mental health diagnosis (137/184, 74.4%), we observed rates of moderate (76/137, 55.5%) and severe (17/137, 12.4%) psychological distress, which were markedly higher than those reported in large prepandemic studies; moreover, 70.1% (129/184) of our respondents reported more sedentary behavior, 41% (69/168) increased their alcohol consumption, and 38.6% (71/184) increased their overall food intake. However, 46% (75/163), 44.8% (39/87) and 51.8% (57/110) of respondents reported spending more time walking and engaging in more moderate and vigorous exercise, respectively. Qualitative analysis revealed many positive adaptations to lockdowns (eg, decreased commuting expenses, flexibility) but also a number of structural obstacles to remote working (eg, lack of support and high expectations from employers, childcare duties).
These findings may be of practical importance for policy makers and employers in a world in which work involves long-term remote or hybrid employment arrangements; strategies to promote more sustainable remote working are discussed.
2019年冠状病毒病（COVID-19）大流行期间实施的封锁措施影响了数百万人的生活和工作习惯，对他们的身心健康和社会福祉可能产生重大影响。
本研究的主要目的是调查COVID-19大流行对未直接受COVID-19影响的远程工作者的影响。
这是一项相关性横断面研究（另有定性部分），对英国首次COVID-19封锁期间接受调查的184名远程工作者进行了研究。使用了心理健康（凯斯勒6项心理困扰量表）、生产力（工作日评估员工生产力简表）和身体活动（国际身体活动问卷）的标准测量方法，并进一步调查了受访者饮食、锻炼、吸烟、饮酒和社交习惯的变化，以得出幸福感变化指数。
结果显示久坐行为与较差的心理健康之间存在关联（r=0.14），较差的心理健康与低工作生产力之间存在关联（r=-0.39）。然而，受访者报告了积极和消极的生活方式变化；自疫情开始以来自我报告的幸福感增加（在饮食、锻炼、吸烟、饮酒和社交方面）与更好的心理健康（r=-0.14）和更高的工作生产力（r=0.14）相关。值得注意的是，在没有心理健康诊断的受访者中（137/184，74.4%），我们观察到中度（76/137，55.5%）和重度（17/137，12.4%）心理困扰的发生率，明显高于疫情前大型研究报告的发生率；此外，70.1%（129/184）的受访者报告久坐行为增多，41%（69/168）的受访者饮酒量增加，38.6%（71/184）的受访者总体食物摄入量增加。然而，分别有46%（75/163）、44.8%（39/87）和51.8%（57/110）的受访者报告步行时间增加，进行中度和剧烈运动的时间增多。定性分析揭示了对封锁的许多积极适应（如通勤费用降低、灵活性提高），但也存在一些远程工作的结构性障碍（如缺乏支持、雇主期望过高、育儿职责）。
在工作涉及长期远程或混合就业安排的世界中，这些发现可能对政策制定者和雇主具有实际重要性；讨论了促进更可持续远程工作的策略。
