Institute of Occupational Medicine, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt Universität zu Berlin, Augustenburger Platz 1, 13353 Berlin, Germany.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022 Jan 20;19(3):1122. doi: 10.3390/ijerph19031122.
In addition to its catastrophic health effects, the COVID-19 pandemic also acts as a catalyst for new forms of work. Working from home (WFH) has become commonplace for many people worldwide. But under what circumstances is WFH beneficial and when does it increase harms to health? The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of specific characteristics of WFH for health (work ability, stress-related physical and psychological symptoms) and job satisfaction among German employees. The study is based on data from a Germany-wide panel survey with employees from different industries ( = 519). Using multiple regressions, it was found that the functionality of the technical equipment at home has positive effects on the health of employees (i.e., ability to work, stress-related symptoms) and job satisfaction. The percentual weekly amount of WFH influences stress-related symptoms, i.e., a higher amount of weekly working time WFH, was associated with more stress-related symptoms. Furthermore, it negatively influences job satisfaction. The feeling of increased autonomy leads to positive effects on employees' job satisfaction. The results provide starting points for interventions and indicate the need for legal regulations for WFH. Further theoretical and practical implications are discussed.
除了对健康造成灾难性影响外，COVID-19 大流行还加速了新形式的工作方式的出现。居家办公（WFH）已成为全球许多人的常态。但在哪些情况下 WFH 有益，而在哪些情况下会增加对健康的危害？本研究旨在探讨 WFH 对健康（工作能力、与压力相关的身心症状）和德国员工工作满意度的具体影响。该研究基于一项针对不同行业员工的全德面板调查的数据（=519）。研究采用多元回归分析发现，家庭技术设备的功能对员工的健康（即工作能力、与压力相关的症状）和工作满意度有积极影响。每周在家工作的比例会影响与压力相关的症状，即每周在家工作时间越长，与更多与压力相关的症状相关。此外，它还会对工作满意度产生负面影响。增加自主权的感觉会对员工的工作满意度产生积极影响。研究结果为干预措施提供了起点，并表明需要对 WFH 进行法律规定。进一步讨论了理论和实际意义。
