Centre for Ergonomics and Human Factors, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Centre for Ergonomics and Human Factors, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
BMJ Open. 2022 Apr 4;12(4):e052733. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2021-052733.
To investigate the impacts, on mental and physical health, of a mandatory shift to working from home during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Cross sectional, online survey.
Online survey was conducted from September 2020 to November 2020 in the general population.
Australian residents working from home for at least 2 days a week at some time in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Demographics, caring responsibilities, working from home arrangements, work-related technology, work-family interface, psychosocial and physical working conditions, and reported stress and musculoskeletal pain.
924 Australians responded to the online questionnaire. Respondents were mostly women (75.5%) based in Victoria (83.7%) and employed in the education and training and healthcare sectors. Approximately 70% of respondents worked five or more days from home, with only 60% having a dedicated workstation in an uninterrupted space. Over 70% of all respondents reported experiencing musculoskeletal pain or discomfort. Gendered differences were observed; men reported higher levels of family to work conflict (3.16±1.52 to 2.94±1.59, p=0.031), and lower levels of recognition for their work (3.75±1.03 to 3.96±1.06, p=0.004), compared with women. For women, stress (2.94±0.92 to 2.66±0.88, p<0.001) and neck/shoulder pain (4.50±2.90 to 3.51±2.84, p<0.001) were higher than men and they also reported more concerns about their job security than men (3.01±1.33 to 2.78±1.40, p=0.043).
Preliminary evidence from the current study suggests that working from home may impact employees' physical and mental health, and that this impact is likely to be gendered. Although further analysis is required, these data provide insights into further research opportunities needed to assist employers in optimising working from home conditions and reduce the potential negative physical and mental health impacts on their employees.
研究在 COVID-19 大流行期间,强制性在家工作对身心健康的影响。
横断面、在线调查。
2020 年 9 月至 11 月期间在普通人群中进行在线调查。
澳大利亚居民,在 COVID-19 大流行期间至少每周在家工作 2 天。
人口统计学、照顾责任、在家工作安排、与工作相关的技术、工作与家庭的接口、心理社会和身体工作条件,以及报告的压力和肌肉骨骼疼痛。
924 名澳大利亚人对在线问卷做出了回应。受访者主要是女性(75.5%),来自维多利亚州(83.7%),从事教育和培训以及医疗保健行业。大约 70%的受访者每周在家工作 5 天以上,只有 60%的人在一个不受干扰的空间里有一个专用工作站。超过 70%的受访者报告出现肌肉骨骼疼痛或不适。观察到性别差异;与女性相比,男性报告家庭与工作冲突程度更高(3.16±1.52 至 2.94±1.59,p=0.031),对工作的认可度更低(3.75±1.03 至 3.96±1.06,p=0.004)。对于女性,压力(2.94±0.92 至 2.66±0.88,p<0.001)和颈部/肩部疼痛(4.50±2.90 至 3.51±2.84,p<0.001)均高于男性,她们对工作保障的担忧也多于男性(3.01±1.33 至 2.78±1.40,p=0.043)。
目前的研究初步证据表明,在家工作可能会影响员工的身心健康,而且这种影响可能是性别化的。尽管需要进一步分析,但这些数据为进一步研究提供了见解,需要进一步研究以帮助雇主优化在家工作条件,减少对员工潜在的负面身心健康影响。