Not Extent of Telecommuting, But Job Characteristics as Proximal Predictors of Work-Related Well-Being

J Occup Environ Med. 2017 Oct;59(10):e180-e186. doi: 10.1097/JOM.0000000000001132.

Abstract

Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the curvilinear relationship between extent of telecommuting and work-related well-being (ie, burnout, work engagement, and cognitive stress complaints), as well as to test whether job characteristics act as explanatory mechanisms underlying this relationship.

Methods: A sample of 878 employees from an international telecommunication company with a long history of telecommuting participated in a survey on psychosocial risk factors and well-being at work. Mediation path analyses were conducted to test the hypotheses.

Results: Social support from colleagues, participation in decision-making, task autonomy, and work-to-family conflict, but not extent of telecommuting, were directly related to work-related well-being. Extent of telecommuting was indirectly related to well-being via social support.

Conclusion: Employers should invest in creating good work environments in general, among both telecommuters and nontelecommuters.

MeSH terms

  • Burnout, Professional / epidemiology
  • Burnout, Professional / etiology
  • Employment / psychology
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Job Satisfaction*
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Occupational Stress / epidemiology
  • Occupational Stress / etiology
  • Social Support
  • Surveys and Questionnaires
  • Telecommunications*
  • Work Engagement
  • Work-Life Balance
  • Workplace / psychology*