Workplace Productivity Research Articles

Effect of mood and worker incentives on workplace productivity

Abstract We study the causal effect of mood on the productivity of call-center workers. Mood is measured through an online “mood questionnaire” which the workers are encouraged to fill out daily. We find that better mood actually decreases worker productivity for workers whose compensation is largely fixed. The negative effect of mood is attenuated for workers whose compensation is based on performance (high-powered incentives). This finding holds both at a correlational level and in two IV settings, where mood is instrumented for by weather or, alternatively, by whether the local professional sports team played/won the day before. We rule out a number of threats to the exclusion restrictions, and discuss the mechanisms that could generate our findings (JEL J24, J28, M52, C26).

Costs of missed work among employed people with inflammatory bowel disease: a cross-sectional population-representative study.

ObjectivesInflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic inflammatory disease primarily affecting the gastrointestinal tract. Periods of relapsing and remitting abdominal pain and diarrhea result in decreased quality of life. We report the impact of IBD on missed work and associated costs using population-representative data to understand population-level indirect costs. ApproachWe used the 2014 Canadian Community Health Survey to compare missed work and associated costs among employed respondents aged 20 to 64 years with and without self-reported physician-diagnosed IBD. Students and individuals with non-IBD bowel disorders were excluded. Costs of missed work were derived from reported annual income and the number of workdays missed. Survey weights were used for descriptive statistics. Logistic regression compared odds of employment. Negative binomial models compared the number of days missed and the cost of lost work in the two groups. All costs are in Canadian dollars and adjusted for inflation to 2022 dollars. ResultsAmong 33,344 eligible respondents, 1.0% had IBD. Employment in the last 3 months was reported among 72% of people with IBD and 81% of people without IBD (OR: 0.60, 95% CI 0.59-0.74). During this time, 48% of people with IBD and 31% of those without IBD missed work with a mean (sd) of 1.99 (5.17) and 1.03 (3.67) days of work missed, respectively (RR for days missed: 2.19, 95% CI 1.63-3.03). This corresponds to a cost of $608 (1635) among individuals with IBD and $298 (1063) among those without IBD every 3 months (RR: 2.18, 95% CI 1.22-4.43). Extrapolating to the estimated 133,030 employed Canadians with IBD, the attributable indirect cost of missed work due to IBD is nearly $165 million annually. ConclusionThe economic burden of IBD resulting from missed work is substantial. Since IBD is most often diagnosed during adolescence and early adulthood, employability and workplace productivity are important long-term outcomes for patients. Future interventions should be developed to help address these challenges.

Examining the Relationship Between Pediatric Behavioral Health and Parent Productivity Through a Parent-Reported Survey in the Time of COVID-19: Exploratory Study.

BackgroundPediatric behavioral health needs skyrocketed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Parents and caregivers lacked access to well-established tools to identify risk and protective factors while also experiencing decreased access to treatment options to meet their families’ behavioral health needs.ObjectiveThe aim of this study is to investigate the associations of known pediatric behavioral health risk factors and parents’ reports of workplace productivity.MethodsA clinical research team at Brightline—a virtual, pediatric behavioral health solution—drew on standardized instruments to create a survey designed to understand pediatric behavioral health conditions, child stress, and family resilience and connection during the COVID-19 pandemic. Multivariable linear regression was used to characterize the relationship between these variables and parents’ reports of workplace productivity.ResultsParticipants (N=361) completed the survey between October 2020 and November 2021. In the multivariable model, higher pediatric stress and time spent managing children’s behavioral health needs were associated with greater productivity loss among working parents, whereas higher family connection was associated with lower productivity loss. COVID-19 diagnoses among parents and dependents, financial impact of COVID-19 on households, and family resilience were not associated with parents’ workplace productivity.ConclusionsThis survey captured child stress, family connection, and productivity as reported by parents and caregivers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Exploratory studies are the first step in understanding the relationship between these variables. The results from this study can empower parents by providing insights to help manage their child’s behavioral health concerns and identify pediatric behavioral health services to aid working parents who are caregivers.

Work productivity among patients with metastatic breast cancer in the United States

ABSTRACT Objective To characterize workplace productivity measures in patients with metastatic breast cancer (mBC) using line of therapy (LOT) and first line (1 L) regimen. Methods A retrospective cohort study was conducted using IBM’s MarketScan Commercial Claims and Encounters (CCAE) and Health and Productivity Management (HPM) databases. The cohort included patients diagnosed with mBC who initiated 1 L treatment between 2/3/2015 and 6/30/2018. Productivity was measured using days absent from work and short- and long-term disability (STD, LTD) claims by LOT and 1 L regimen (any cyclin-dependent kinase 4/6 inhibitor [CDK4/6i], endocrine monotherapy, chemotherapy only, or other anti-cancer therapy [OACT]). LOT was defined using regimen-based progression. Results Overall, 548 patients were included; 148, 129, 145, and 126 received endocrine monotherapy, CDK4/6i, chemotherapy only, and OACT, respectively. The rate of LTD increased significantly by 3.1 and 2.6 times from 1 L to second line (2 L) and from 2 L to subsequent lines, respectively. Patients receiving 1 L chemotherapy had 2.4- and 2.7-times odds of using STD and LTD compared to patients receiving 1 L CDK4/6i. Conclusions Regimen-based disease progression is associated with increased use of STD and LTD. Patients with a 1 L regimen of chemotherapy have significantly higher odds of using STD or LTD than patients using 1 L CDK4/6i.

Gazing the dusty mirror: Joint effect of narcissism and sadism on workplace incivility via indirect effect of paranoia, antagonism, and emotional intelligence.

Workplace productivity is badly affected by many negative factors such as narcissism, and sadism. In addition, paranoia and antagonism play an important role in increasing workplace incivility. Through emotional intelligence, such negative behaviors could be addressed by managers and their junior colleagues. The current study aims to investigate the parallel mediating role of paranoia, antagonism, and emotional intelligence on the relationship between narcissism, sadism, and workplace incivility. A survey approach was used. Primary data was collected in PLS-SEM. The population of the study was all faculty members in higher education institutions in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (Pakistan) region. A measurement model and structural model were developed. The measurement model demonstrated that convergent and discriminant validities were established. The structural model's findings revealed that narcissism, antagonism, and emotional intelligence were not mediated between narcissism and workplace incivility. Similarly, emotional intelligence did not play any mediating role between sadism and workplace incivility. This implied that emotional intelligence has no role in decreasing or reducing workplace uncivil behavior.

Daily Effects of Perceived Leader’s Overqualification on Subordinates’ Work Behaviors

Overqualification is prevalent in today’s global workplace. Yet, the scholarship attending to potential benefits from the overqualified workforce is scarce. In this paper, drawing on equity theory, we develop a theoretical model of perceived overqualification on subordinates’ daily work behaviors. We elaborate on a poorly understood upward comparison process, in which subordinate’s perceptions about their leader’s overqualification evokes positive social behavior and in turn positive in-role work behaviors. The results from a daily repeated measures study provided empirical support for the hypothesized model. By shedding light on the potential bright side of overqualified managers from a third-party perspective, we provide useful insights for the future management research and practice on how organizations can leverage on the overqualified leaders harnessing workplace productivity through their subordinate’s social and proactive behaviors.

Sense of coherence in the workplace: design for well-being in the workplaces of academics

Workplace productivity can be improved by ensuring a sense of well-being and coherence in the workplace. The design of work- places needs to consider the type of work, behaviours, cultural differences, and backgrounds of its users which are associated with individual well-being. Design plays a key role in creating suitable work environments. But often the end-users’ sense of well-being is neglected and instead, design decisions are driven by attempts to maximise capacity and economic gain. However, the preferences for design and sense of well-being will vary among different workgroups. Academics play a key role in the dissemination of knowledge and academics’ workspaces have not gained much attention in the past. This study is focused on workspaces used by “academics” as a knowledge worker. A sample of six academics is selected from varying work settings. In-depth Interviews, questionnaires, checklists, and observations are done to explore the design features that are important for sense of wellbeing and coherence of academics. Findings show that privacy, accessibility, workplace fitting workstyle, biophilic design, informal (social) gathering and supporting personal identity expression to have a positive association with sense of wellbeing and coherence, and therefore are vital when designing workspaces for academics.

Economic value of nature via healthcare savings and productivity increases

Economic values of mental health benefits from nature can provide a new conservation tool. Here we calculate valuations from increased workplace productivity and reduced healthcare spending. Visiting national parks buffers workplace productivity against mental health losses. In Australia, for visits at least monthly, productivity increases are up to 11 %, with weighted mean 4.6 %. Total contribution across all visit frequencies is ~1.8 % of GDP. In Australia, visiting protected areas improves individual mental health by up to 17 %, with weighted mean effect 1.80 % for mentally healthy and 4.44 % for mentally unhealthy visitors. These effects reduce direct healthcare costs by a further ~0.6 % of GDP. Scaling up worldwide via GDP, with adjustments for park visitation rates, per capita healthcare costs, and distributions of mental health indicators, yields an estimated global health services value of protected areas, via productivity and healthcare costs alone, of ~US$2.1 trillion per annum. During 2020–2022, nature deprivation reduced mental health worldwide. Employers and health insurers would gain from increase budgets for national parks. There are mental healthcare programs relying on parks in at least 6 nations. Research priorities include mechanisms and duration of health benefits, cf components and intensity of nature experiences, including biodiversity.

Building casino employees’ affective commitment: A mediated moderation model

The affective commitment of employees has long been regarded as an important factor affecting workplace productivity. For casino operators, the business reality dictates that winning the hearts of employees is never easy. This study aims to deepen understanding regarding how casino employees’ affective commitment develops. Essentially, the study has adopted an integrated view in delineating the underlying mechanism and factors that cultivate casino employees’ emotional attachment to the organization. Findings of this study indicated that perceived fairness in pay, job satisfaction, and organizational climate are important determinants that play distinct roles in the transmission mechanism. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Why Soft Skills Matter: Analyzing the Relationship between Soft Skills and Productivity in Workplace of Academic Library Professionals

Abstract This study aimed to analyze the effects of soft skills on the work productivity of academic library professionals in Pakistan. The study employed quantitative survey method. The data was collected through a self-compiled online questionnaire from academic library professionals, yielding a response rate was 83%. Findings of this study reveal that library professionals’ level of different soft skills, interpersonal, emotional intelligence, leadership, motivation, and communication is high, which indicates that they are proficient in soft skills. Results of correlation test used to examine the relationship between the variables, soft skills, and work productivity of library professionals disclose a significant relationship between variables across the study. Moreover, soft skills have profound effects on the work productivity of library professionals, and no difference is found in library professionals’ perceptions based on their demographic characteristics. Soft skills help librarians to manage and perform different jobs effectively. Based on the outcomes of the study, it is suggested that LIS schools, professional associations, and other organizations offering professional development programs should endeavor to develop soft skills among LIS students and professionals by incorporating necessary contents in LIS curricula and offering training sessions. The research paper is the first attempt to explore the relationship between soft skills and work productivity from the perspective of librarianship in Pakistan; it will make a unique contribution to the literature.

MEmoR: A Multimodal Emotion Recognition using affective biomarkers for smart prediction of emotional health for people analytics in smart industries

The intersection of people, data and intelligent machines has a far-reaching impact on the productivity, efficiency and operations of a smart industry. Internet-of-things (IoT) offers a great potential for workplace gains using the “quantified self” and the computer vision strategies. Their goal is to focus on productivity, fitness, wellness, and improvement of the work environment. Recognizing and regulating human emotion is vital to people analytics as it plays an important role in workplace productivity. Within the smart industry setting, various non-invasive IoT devices can be used to recognize emotions and study the behavioral outcomes in various situations. This research puts forward a deep learning model for detection of human emotional state in real-time using multimodal data from the Emotional Internet-of-things (E-IoT). The proposed multimodal emotion recognition model, MEmoR makes use of two data modalities: visual and psychophysiological. The video signals are sampled to obtain image frames and a ResNet50 model pre-trained for face recognition is fine-tuned for emotion classification. Simultaneously, CNN is trained on the psychophysiological signals and the results of the two modality networks are combined using decision-level weighted fusion. The model is tested on the benchmark Bio Vid Emo DB multimodal dataset and compared to the state-of-the-art.

One Drop Improves Productivity for Workers With Type 2 Diabetes: One Drop for Workers With Type 2 Diabetes.

Diabetes research on work productivity has been largely cross-sectional and retrospective, with only one known randomized controlled trial (RCT) published, to our knowledge. Secondary analysis of the Fit-One RCT tested the effect of One Drop's digital health program on workplace productivity outcomes, absenteeism, and presenteeism, for employees and specifically for older workers with type 2 diabetes. Analysis of the 3-month Fit-One trial data from employees who have type 2 diabetes explored productivity using logistic analyses and generalized estimating equations. Treatment and control group comparisons showed that workers ( N = 125) using One Drop see direct benefits to workplace productivity, which leads to productivity savings for employers. This was the first RCT to demonstrate that a mobile health application for managing type 2 diabetes can positively affect productivity at work.

Clinical and Financial Outcomes Associated With a Workplace Mental Health Program Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Investment in workplace wellness programs is increasing despite concerns about lack of clinical benefit and return on investment (ROI). In contrast, outcomes from workplace mental health programs, which treat mental health difficulties more directly, remain mostly unknown. To determine whether participation in an employer-sponsored mental health benefit was associated with improvements in depression and anxiety, workplace productivity, and ROI as well as to examine factors associated with clinical improvement. This cohort study included participants in a US workplace mental health program implemented by 66 employers across 40 states from January 1, 2018, to January 1, 2021. Participants were employees who enrolled in the mental health benefit program and had at least moderate anxiety or depression, at least 1 appointment, and at least 2 outcome assessments. A digital platform that screened individuals for common mental health conditions and provided access to self-guided digital content, care navigation, and video and in-person psychotherapy and/or medication management. Primary outcomes were the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 for depression (range, 0-27) score and the Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item scale (range, 0-21) score. The ROI was calculated by comparing the cost of treatment to salary costs for time out of the workplace due to mental health symptoms, measured with the Sheehan Disability Scale. Data were collected through 6 months of follow-up and analyzed using mixed-effects regression. A total of 1132 participants (520 of 724 who reported gender [71.8%] were female; mean [SD] age, 32.9 [8.8] years) were included. Participants reported improvements from pretreatment to posttreatment in depression (b = -6.34; 95% CI, -6.76 to -5.91; Cohen d = -1.11; 95% CI, -1.18 to -1.03) and anxiety (b = -6.28; 95% CI, -6.77 to -5.91; Cohen d = -1.21; 95% CI, -1.30 to -1.13). Symptom change per log-day of treatment was similar post-COVID-19 vs pre-COVID-19 for depression (b = 0.14; 95% CI, -0.10 to 0.38) and anxiety (b = 0.08; 95% CI, -0.22 to 0.38). Workplace salary savings at 6 months at the federal median wage was US $3440 (95% CI, $2730-$4151) with positive ROI across all wage groups. Results of this cohort study suggest that an employer-sponsored workplace mental health program was associated with large clinical effect sizes for employees and positive financial ROI for employers.

Literature Review: Relating Factors to the Effectiveness of Occupational Health and Safety Program Performance

Background: Work safety performance assessment is one part of the Occupational Health and Safety Management System activity, which aims to ensure workers' right to safety and health in the workplace and increase productivity. Further identification of factors related to safety performance needs to be done to ensure the quality of the assessment results is accurate, effective, and efficient.
 Methods: This study is a literature review conducted to explore factors related to the performance of occupational safety and health programs. The literature search was conducted in September 2021. The research sources were taken from several databases, namely Science Direct, ProQuest, and Google Scholar. The Science Direct database found 823 articles, 8,802 ProQuest, and 3,200 Google Scholars. From the entire database, only 22 articles met the inclusion criteria. The variables in this study are the performance of OHS, OHS management system, and work.
 Results: This literature review shows that there are 19 personal factors, 19 work environment factors, 13 technical factors and 37 organizational factors related to the effectiveness of occupational safety and health program performance.
 Conclusion: Factors related to occupational safety and health program performance are grouped into four main factors, namely personal factors, work environment factors, technical factors, and organizational factors.

0048 The Association Between Sleep Health and Work- and Health-Related Quality of Life in Desk Workers and Differences in Associations Pre- and Post-COVID-19 Emergence

Abstract Introduction COVID-19 resulted in many office workers switching to remote work. Emerging studies report working from home has negatively affected sleep health (SH) and psychological well-being. Our aim was to evaluate the relationship between SH and health- and work-related quality of life and explore whether these associations differed pre- and post-COVID-19 emergence. Methods Baseline data from 125 adults enrolled pre- (n=59) and post-COVID-19 emergence (n=66) in a clinical trial with desk jobs were included in this analysis (86.4% White; 49.6% female; 43.9±10.7 y). Health-related quality of life (HRQoL) was assessed using the SF-36 questionnaire, which addresses eight health concepts (physical, social, and role functioning; mental health; health perceptions; energy or fatigue; pain; general health) and yields 2 summary scales (mental component summary, physical component summary). Workplace productivity and worker health was measured using the Health and Work Questionnaire (HWQ). Six SH dimensions were assessed using questionnaires (satisfaction, alertness) and 7 nights of actigraphy (regularity, timing, efficiency, duration). Each dimension was categorized as “good” or “poor”; a composite score was created based on the sum of good SH dimensions. Multiple linear regression models were adjusted for gender and age and stratified by enrollment pre- or post-COVID-19 emergence. Data are presented as standardized coefficients (β) and p-values (p). Results Compared to participants enrolled prior to COVID-19, those enrolled post-COVID-19 had worse SF-36 emotional, social, and general health and greater HWQ-assessed impatience (all p<0.05); however, SH did not differ between those enrolled pre- and post-COVID. Prior to COVID-19, greater SH was associated with higher SF-36 physical component scores (β=.389, p=.003); however, no association was observed post-COVID (β=.137, p=.271). In contrast, no association was observed pre-COVID between SH and SF-36 mental component scores (β=.181, p=.160), but greater SH was associated with greater mental component scores post-COVID (β =.308, p=.004). Furthermore, better SH was associated with lower stress post-COVID (β =-.423, p<.001). Conclusion SH was associated with HRQoL and workplace and worker health, though these associations sometimes differed between pre- and post-COVID emergence. Research should explore whether promoting SH in employees impacts their personal and workplace-related quality of life. Support (If Any) This study was funded by National Institutes of Health (NIH) grants R01HL134809 and R01HL147610.

Tu1038: MENTAL HEALTH AND WORKPLACE PRODUCTIVITY CHANGES ASSOCIATED WITH INFLAMMATORY BOWEL DISEASE: A STRUCTURAL EQUATION MODELING APPROACH

Tu1038: MENTAL HEALTH AND WORKPLACE PRODUCTIVITY CHANGES ASSOCIATED WITH INFLAMMATORY BOWEL DISEASE: A STRUCTURAL EQUATION MODELING APPROACH

Peer and Self-Assessment of Teamwork Skills in High School: Using a Multi-Rater Evaluation Method for Cooperative Learning Groups

Employers agree that high school graduates lack teamwork skills needed for workplace productivity. The lag in student readiness to meet employer expectations urges school reforms that implicate group interaction, empirical assessment, and reporting of teamwork competencies. The Teamwork Skills Inventory (TSI) evaluated how well individual students performed in cooperative learning teams as observed by peers and self with anonymous feedback. Field-testing involved 303 high school students in the United States from middle class and racially diverse families. Psychometric indicators of reliability, validity, exploratory factor analysis, and group analytics were determined. Qualitative responses by participants to TSI methodology were highly favorable.

Using a Smartphone App to Assess and Support Transfer of Training of Leadership Skills – A Feasibility Study

Studies have shown that leadership behaviors can have a large impact on workplace productivity and health, and considerable time and money is spent on leadership training. The transfer of skills learned in training to daily practice at the workplace is an important outcome. This study investigated the use of a smartphone app and ecological momentary assessment to improve and measure transfer of training. The app was used in conjunction with a leadership training program and combined reminders, checklists, and single-item work environment questions. Managers (N = 17) used the app over an 11-week time period, collecting data multiple times each week for an intensive longitudinal within-participants design with no control group. Results indicate that the number of self-reported skills increased during the training period and that the app was appreciated as a skills training support.

Law, compliance, and variation: Proximity and preferences regarding workplace lactation accommodations

AbstractFederal law mandates that employers accommodate lactating workers who wish to express breast milk at work. Lactation's physical demands set lactating employees apart from their coworkers, as lactation requires regular breaks and private rooms to express milk. Although longer breaks and convenient lactation accommodations make for more successful workplace milk expression, many lactating workers lack one or both. During their lactation breaks, some lactating workers wish to maintain workplace productivity, while others seek to relax and reconnect with their nurslings. Although the law mandates basic lactation accommodations, additional consideration must be given to location as well as to the preferences of lactating employees.

Migraine Outcome Should Not Be Used to Determine Diagnosis, Severity, and Therapy: Moving Towards a Multiparametric Definition of Chronicity

Chronic migraine (CM) diagnosis is nowadays based on the threshold of 15 headache days/month for three consecutive months, of which at least eight have migraine headache features. In recent years, proposals for reducing the threshold to 8 days/month have been proposed. The sole frequency parameter, however, is partial considering the variability in frequency, pain severity, associated symptoms, such as nausea, osmophobia, and photophobia, and presence of aura, but also the variable response to treatment and the association with several comorbidities. Therefore, in our opinion, a multiparameter perspective has to be taken into account that considers the underlying pathophysiology, in particular the presence of tension-type-like pain, cutaneous allodynia, and reduced pain threshold. A paradigm change in the definition of chronic migraine moves far beyond the mere 8 vs. 15 days/month, but has ethical and practical implications for treatment: should patients be treated with the most effective prophylactic drugs, i.e., monoclonal antibodies (MABs), if they enter into a new definition of CM? How should clinicians deal with treatment escalation towards MABs? What is the role of associated conditions, response to treatments, lifestyle issues, and psychological factors? And, finally, which endpoint should we use to define effectiveness? Is improvement in headache frequency enough, or should we move towards disability, quality of life, or workplace productivity?