Working from home, quality of life, and perceived productivity during the first 50-day
      COVID-19 mitigation measures in Austria: a cross-sectional study

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Abstract

Objectives

To explore changes in quality of life and perceived productivity, focusing on the effects of working from home during the first COVID-19 50-day mitigation period in Austria.

Methods

We conducted an Austrian-representative online survey ( N = 1010) of self-reported life- and work-related changes during the first COVID-19 50-day mitigation period (March 16 through May 1 2020) compared to the situation before. We used multinominal logistic regression models to identify correlates of improved/decreased quality of life in the entire sample, and of improved/decreased productivity in a subsample of the working population ( N = 686). We also calculated age- and multivariable-adjusted ORs and 95% CIs of an improved/decreased quality of life and an improved/decreased productivity by work from home status.

Results

During the COVID-19 mitigation period, quality of life improved in 17.5%, but decreased in 20.7% of the general Austrian population; perceived productivity at work increased in 12.7%, but decreased in 30.2% of the working population. Working from home during the mitigation period was associated with an increased quality of life (vs. none, partially: OR 2.07, 95% CI 1.09–3.91; all the time: 3.69, 1.86–7.29). In contrast, perceived productivity seemed to decrease when people worked from home (vs. none, partially: 1.42, 0.86–2.35; all the time: 1.48, 0.85–2.58). Working from home and related benefits were not equally distributed among gender, age, and educational attainment.

Conclusions

A transition to more flexibility of workplace and working hours for employees could have important positive consequences for family and professional life, for stakeholders, for public health, and ultimately for the environment.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s00420-021-01692-0.

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Most cited references 32

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The psychological impact of quarantine and how to reduce it: rapid review of the evidence

Samantha K. Brooks, Rebecca K Webster, Louise E. Smith … (2022)

Summary The December, 2019 coronavirus disease outbreak has seen many countries ask people who have potentially come into contact with the infection to isolate themselves at home or in a dedicated quarantine facility. Decisions on how to apply quarantine should be based on the best available evidence. We did a Review of the psychological impact of quarantine using three electronic databases. Of 3166 papers found, 24 are included in this Review. Most reviewed studies reported negative psychological effects including post-traumatic stress symptoms, confusion, and anger. Stressors included longer quarantine duration, infection fears, frustration, boredom, inadequate supplies, inadequate information, financial loss, and stigma. Some researchers have suggested long-lasting effects. In situations where quarantine is deemed necessary, officials should quarantine individuals for no longer than required, provide clear rationale for quarantine and information about protocols, and ensure sufficient supplies are provided. Appeals to altruism by reminding the public about the benefits of quarantine to wider society can be favourable.

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Distinguishing optimism from neuroticism (and trait anxiety, self-mastery, and self-esteem): a reevaluation of the Life Orientation Test.

Michael F Scheier, Charles S. Carver, Michael W. Bridges (1994)

Research on dispositional optimism as assessed by the Life Orientation Test (Scheier & Carver, 1985) has been challenged on the grounds that effects attributed to optimism are indistinguishable from those of unmeasured third variables, most notably, neuroticism. Data from 4,309 subjects show that associations between optimism and both depression and aspects of coping remain significant even when the effects of neuroticism, as well as the effects of trait anxiety, self-mastery, and self-esteem, are statistically controlled. Thus, the Life Orientation Test does appear to possess adequate predictive and discriminant validity. Examination of the scale on somewhat different grounds, however, does suggest that future applications can benefit from its revision. Thus, we also describe a minor modification to the Life Orientation Test, along with data bearing on the revised scale's psychometric properties.

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Effects of COVID-19 Home Confinement on Eating Behaviour and Physical Activity: Results of the ECLB-COVID19 International Online Survey

Achraf Ammar, Michael Brach, Khaled Trabelsi … (2020)

Background: Public health recommendations and governmental measures during the COVID-19 pandemic have resulted in numerous restrictions on daily living including social distancing, isolation and home confinement. While these measures are imperative to abate the spreading of COVID-19, the impact of these restrictions on health behaviours and lifestyles at home is undefined. Therefore, an international online survey was launched in April 2020, in seven languages, to elucidate the behavioural and lifestyle consequences of COVID-19 restrictions. This report presents the results from the first thousand responders on physical activity (PA) and nutrition behaviours. Methods: Following a structured review of the literature, the “Effects of home Confinement on multiple Lifestyle Behaviours during the COVID-19 outbreak (ECLB-COVID19)” Electronic survey was designed by a steering group of multidisciplinary scientists and academics. The survey was uploaded and shared on the Google online survey platform. Thirty-five research organisations from Europe, North-Africa, Western Asia and the Americas promoted the survey in English, German, French, Arabic, Spanish, Portuguese and Slovenian languages. Questions were presented in a differential format, with questions related to responses “before” and “during” confinement conditions. Results: 1047 replies (54% women) from Asia (36%), Africa (40%), Europe (21%) and other (3%) were included in the analysis. The COVID-19 home confinement had a negative effect on all PA intensity levels (vigorous, moderate, walking and overall). Additionally, daily sitting time increased from 5 to 8 h per day. Food consumption and meal patterns (the type of food, eating out of control, snacks between meals, number of main meals) were more unhealthy during confinement, with only alcohol binge drinking decreasing significantly. Conclusion: While isolation is a necessary measure to protect public health, results indicate that it alters physical activity and eating behaviours in a health compromising direction. A more detailed analysis of survey data will allow for a segregation of these responses in different age groups, countries and other subgroups, which will help develop interventions to mitigate the negative lifestyle behaviours that have manifested during the COVID-19 confinement.

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Author and article information

Contributors

Eva Schernhammer:

ORCID: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4337-9415

eva.schernhammer@meduniwien.ac.at

Journal

Journal ID (nlm-ta): Int Arch Occup Environ Health

Journal ID (iso-abbrev): Int Arch Occup Environ Health

Title: International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health

Publisher: Springer Berlin Heidelberg (Berlin/Heidelberg )

ISSN (Print): 0340-0131

ISSN (Electronic): 1432-1246

Publication date (Electronic): 20 April 2021

Publication date PMC-release: 20 April 2021

Pages: 1-15

Affiliations

[1 ]GRID grid.22937.3d, ISNI 0000 0000 9259 8492, Department of Epidemiology, Center for Public Health, , Medical University of Vienna, ; Vienna, Austria

[2 ]GRID grid.22937.3d, ISNI 0000 0000 9259 8492, Department of Neurology, , Medical University of Vienna, ; Vienna, Austria

[3 ]Institute for Sleep-Wake-Research, Vienna, Austria

[4 ]Konrad Lorenz Institute for Evolution and Cognition Research (KLI), Klosterneuburg, Austria

[5 ]GRID grid.215654.1, ISNI 0000 0001 2151 2636, School of Life Sciences, , Arizona State University, ; Tempe, AZ USA

[6 ]GRID grid.209665.e, ISNI 0000 0001 1941 1940, Santa Fe Institute, ; Santa Fe, NM USA

[7 ]GRID grid.484678.1, Complexity Science Hub, ; Vienna, Austria

[8 ]GRID grid.6862.a, ISNI 0000 0001 0805 5610, Institut Für Technische Chemie, TU Bergakademie Freiberg, ; Freiberg, Germany

[9 ]GRID grid.38142.3c, ISNI 000000041936754X, Channing Division of Network Medicine, Department of Medicine, , Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, ; Boston, MA USA

[10 ]GRID grid.20513.35, ISNI 0000 0004 1789 9964, Academy of Disaster Reduction and Emergency Management, School of Geography, , Beijing Normal University, ; Beijing, 100875 China

[11 ]GRID grid.424922.b, ISNI 0000 0004 7667 4458, Global Climate Forum, ; 10178 Berlin, Germany

[12 ]GRID grid.15462.34, ISNI 0000 0001 2108 5830, Department for Knowledge and Communication Management, Faculty of Business and Globalization, , Danube University Krems, ; Krems, Austria

[13 ]GRID grid.38142.3c, ISNI 000000041936754X, Department of Epidemiology, , Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, ; Boston, MA USA

Author information

Eva Schernhammer http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4337-9415

Article

Publisher ID: 1692

DOI: 10.1007/s00420-021-01692-0

PMC ID: 8056371

PubMed ID: 33877416

SO-VID: 0438d667-cad0-4ee8-b2c2-16f74c0610ef

License:

Open AccessThis article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article's Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article's Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.

History

Date received : 25 November 2020

Date accepted : 6 March 2021

Funding

Funded by: Department of Epidemiology, Medical University Vienna

Funded by: Medical University of Vienna

Open Access :

Open access funding provided by Medical University of Vienna.

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Working from home, quality of life, and perceived productivity during the first 50-day COVID-19 mitigation measures in Austria: a cross-sectional study

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Most cited references 32

The psychological impact of quarantine and how to reduce it: rapid review of the evidence

Distinguishing optimism from neuroticism (and trait anxiety, self-mastery, and self-esteem): a reevaluation of the Life Orientation Test.

Effects of COVID-19 Home Confinement on Eating Behaviour and Physical Activity: Results of the ECLB-COVID19 International Online Survey

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Cited by 16

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