Medical Students’ Zoom Fatigue in a Thai Medical School During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Public concern about an emerging phenomenon of exhaustion during online studies, known as “Zoom fatigue”, is growing. This study evaluated Zoom fatigue and undergraduate medical students’ perceptions of online lectures. This cross-sectional study was conducted at a medical school in southern Thailand from September to October 2022 and included voluntary participation of first- to third-year medical students. The perception of Zoom fatigue was evaluated using the Zoom Exhaustion and Fatigue (ZEF) scale on a five-point Likert scale. One hundred twenty-five students responded to the questionnaire. Most participants experienced moderate Zoom fatigue, with a mean composite ZEF score of 2.82. The women were associated with high Zoom fatigue [odds ratio (OR) 2.87; 95% confidence interval (CI); 1.29–6.37, p = 0.01]. The median concentration time for online lectures was 60 min. It was found that 81.6% (n = 102) of students disagreed that Zoom lectures provided more interaction with their teachers than traditional lectures. Almost all students (93.6%, n = 117) preferred to turn off their cameras during class. Nearly half of them (49.6%, n = 62) disagreed that online lectures were better than traditional ones, whereas 28.8% (n = 36) were unsure. Most students had neutral or negative perceptions of online lectures. Therefore, strategic interventions are necessary to prevent or mitigate fatigue during online lectures.