Is working from home good or bad? - answer

The debate about working from home is still not over… is it good for your mental health? If so, how many days a week working from home is beneficial? Is it because we laugh off the stress of the journey? These issues are among the questions answered by the latest large-scale research. They followed 16,000 Australian workers and found that working from home improved the mental health of women more than men.

How was the study conducted?

20 years of data from the HILDA Survey were analyzed, which allowed the researchers to observe occupational and mental health issues among more than 16,000 employees. However, this did not include the pandemic years 2020 and 2021, as many other factors affected the mental state of the participants at that time. 

According to the obtained data, they observed how the mental health of employees changed when they had to physically go to work and when they had to work from home. However, the results are even worse If Fio were there, they would remove the statistical models in which we encountered significant life changes, whether it was a job change or children. In addition, they observed how the results were in people with good and bad mental state. And now researchers tell us that

Commuting affects women and men differently

Commuting did not have a significant effect on women, which was not the case for men, for whom long commuting time was directly associated with poorer mental health in those with already strained nervous systems. And in numbers, it all looked like this: Among men with average mental health, adding half an hour to a commute reduced mental health almost as much as a 2 percent drop in family income.

A hybrid work mode was best for women

Working from home had a strong positive effect on women's mental health, but only to a certain extent In the following cases. The effect was particularly pronounced when women mostly worked from home, but could also go to the office 1-2 days a week. And in women with poor mental condition, a similar method led to an improved mental state compared to working in an office.

The results support earlier research showing that the hybrid mode has a positive effect on job satisfaction and productivity. However, it wasn't just a matter of saving commuting time, it was about less work stress, better balancing of personal and professional life.

In men, this did not have any significant effect, neither positive nor negative. This is thought to be due to the gender division of housework among Australians, as well as the fact that men's social and friendship circle is largely limited to work. 

Recommendations based on research

If you're an employee, look at how commuting and other things affect you Other work-from-home templates for your well-being. If you have mental health issues, schedule challenging tasks on days when you work from your comfort zone. 

If you're an employer, offer flexible hours, especially for people with mental health issues. Consider commuting time as an additional factor when talking about workload and well-being. Avoid working with a one-size-fits-all approach, as it may not work for everyone. 

If you are creating public policy, focus on reducing congestion and improving public transport. Empower an environment that favors hybrid workflows. Support access to mental health services.

So, to the question of whether working from home is good or bad for you, the answer according to this study is for you to decide…

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