Teleworking Is Significantly Associated with Anxiety Symptoms and Sleep Disturbances among Paid Workers in the COVID-19 Era

Minji Kim; Inho Park; Hyojin An; Byungyoon Yun; Jin-Ha Yoon

doi:10.3390/ijerph20021488

Teleworking Is Significantly Associated with Anxiety Symptoms and Sleep Disturbances among Paid Workers in the COVID-19 Era

Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2023 Jan 13;20(2):1488. doi: 10.3390/ijerph20021488.

Authors

Minji Kim¹, Inho Park¹, Hyojin An¹, Byungyoon Yun², Jin-Ha Yoon^{2

3}

Affiliations

¹ Yonsei University College of Medicine, 50, Yonsei-ro, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul 03722, Republic of Korea.
² Department of Preventive Medicine, Yonsei University College of Medicine, 50, Yonsei-ro, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul 03722, Republic of Korea.
³ The Institute for Occupational Health, Yonsei University College of Medicine, 50, Yonsei-ro, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul 03722, Republic of Korea.

Abstract

Due to social distancing during COVID-19, teleworking has spread in Korea. Accordingly, the effects of teleworking on physical and mental health have emerged. We aim to determine the association between teleworking and mental health, including anxiety symptoms and sleep disturbance, in paid workers. The data of paid workers from the Sixth Korean Working Conditions Survey, collected between October 2020 and April 2021, were analyzed. Gender stratification analysis and propensity score matching were performed for variables relevant to sociodemographic and occupational characteristics. Adjusted odds ratios (AORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for each sex were analyzed using multivariable logistic regression, adjusting for sociodemographic and occupational characteristics. Among 28,633 participants, analyses were performed for anxiety symptoms (teleworkers vs. non-teleworkers; men: 12.1% vs. 4.9%; women: 13.5% vs. 5.3%) and sleep disturbance (men: 33.6% vs. 21.3%; women: 39.7% vs. 25.3%). In male teleworkers, the AORs for anxiety symptoms and sleep disturbance were 1.86 (95% CI: 1.14-3.04) and 1.52 (95% CI: 1.10-2.11), respectively. In female teleworkers, the AORs for anxiety symptoms and sleep disturbance were 1.66 (95% CI: 1.13-2.43) and 1.65 (95% CI: 1.28-2.14), respectively. Our results emphasize the importance of mental health and the need for continuous education and care for teleworkers, given the rapid increase in teleworking.

Keywords: COVID-19; anxiety symptom; sleep disturbance; telework.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Anxiety / diagnosis
Anxiety / epidemiology
COVID-19* / epidemiology
Female
Humans
Male
Sleep
Sleep Wake Disorders* / epidemiology
Surveys and Questionnaires
Teleworking

Grants and funding

This work was supported under the framework of the international cooperation program managed by the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF-2021K2A9A1A01102239).