Abstract
This study investigated the effects of natural elements and direct and indirect sunlight exposure on employee mental health and work attitudes. We recruited participants via an online panel from the United States and India, and analyzed data from 444 employees. Natural elements and sunlight exposure related positively to job satisfaction and organizational commitment, and negatively to depressed mood and anxiety. Direct sunlight was a dominant predictor of anxiety; indirect sunlight was a dominant predictor of depressed mood, job satisfaction, and organizational commitment. Natural elements buffered the relationship between role stressors and job satisfaction, depressed mood, and anxiety. We also found that depressed mood partially mediated the relationship between natural elements and job satisfaction. We discuss scientific and policy implications of these findings.
Highlights
Work in modern settings has been epidemiologically linked to a variety of maladies
This study investigated the effects of natural elements and direct and indirect sunlight exposure on employee mental health and work attitudes
The results of regression analyses indicated that natural elements exposure was negatively related to depressed mood (β = -.17, p < .01) and positively related to job satisfaction (β = .37, p < .01) and organizational commitment (β = .30, p < .01), partially supporting Hypothesis 1
Summary
Work in modern settings has been epidemiologically linked to a variety of maladies. Many of these are stress-related illnesses—such as depression, anxiety, hypertension, and gut ailments; others—lower back pain, some sleep disorders, and respiratory problems—are more related to physical conditions [1]. This study focuses on the effects of exposure to natural elements and sunlight on employee mental health and job attitudes. Hypothesis 1: Exposure to natural elements in the workplace will be positively related to employees’ mental health (lower depressed mood and anxiety) and work attitudes (higher job satisfaction and organizational commitment). Because environments with exposure to natural elements exert restorative effects on mental fatigue and physiological arousal, these environments should mitigate the relationship between role stressors and employee mental health and work attitudes [43]. For individuals who report more natural elements exposure at work, the relationships between (a) role stressors and mental health (i.e., depressed mood and anxiety) and (b) between role stressors and job attitudes (i.e., job satisfaction and organizational commitment) will be weaker than for the employees who report lower levels of natural elements exposure. Because there is little empirical overlap between our measures of natural elements and sunlight exposure, we should be able to estimate their relative independent contributions to mental health and work attitudes
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