Psychological Responses to Home-Working Practices: A Network Analysis of Relationships with Health Behaviour and Wellbeing
Year: 2024
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Working at home, rather than in the workplace, has been suggested to affect office-based workers' health and wellbeing. This exploratory, cross-sectional study sought to identify discrete psychological responses to home-working practices and investigate their relationship with engagement in health-related behaviours and wellbeing. A sample of 491 home-workers completed a survey assessing ten psychological responses to home-working (e.g., the ability to 'switch off' from work), ten health behaviour indices (e.g., sleep trouble), and seven wellbeing indices. Network Analysis modelled relationships between these variables. Results showed four clusters of psychological responses to home-working practices (representing 'home-working independence', 'home-work transition', 'daily work pressure', and 'work-day forecasting'). Variables within these clusters linked to health behaviour and wellbeing: perceptions of workload manageability, ability to switch off from work, homeworking autonomy, and planning and organising a home-working day had cascading influences on indicators of health, health behaviours, and wellbeing. The findings point to a complex system of potential health and wellbeing consequences of working from home. Further evidence is needed to establish truly causal relationships; nonetheless, our findings call for the development of public health initiatives and organisational policies to support the adoption of home-working practices to benefit the health and wellbeing of home-workers.
Source: Behavioral Sciences
DOI: 10.3390/bs14111039
Institutions: King's College London, University of Surrey
Language: English
Subfield: Sociology and Political Science
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $2,501
Funder: King's College London
OpenAlex ID: W4404076429