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Workplace Stress and Anxiety During COVID-19

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A special issue of International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (ISSN 1660-4601). This special issue belongs to the section "Mental Health".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (23 March 2023) | Viewed by 24243

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Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Atte Oksanen

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Collection Editor

Faculty of Social Sciences, Tampere University, Kalevantie 5, 33014 Tampere, Finland
Interests: social sciences; social psychology; criminology; occupational wellbeing; social media; social robots

Dr. Iina Savolainen

E-Mail Website
Collection Editor

Faculty of Social Sciences, Tampere University, 33014 Tampere, Finland
Interests: social psychology; digital communication; group behaviors; addictive behaviors

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The global crisis caused by the outbreak of a novel coronavirus and the associated coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has changed the working conditions for many. As a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic and widespread social distancing policies, remote working has increased, and many organizations have started to use new digital applications. These changes have led to potential increases in workplace stress and anxiety.

The COVID-19 pandemic represents an unforeseen situation for many companies and workers. Prolonged remote work and having to learn and apply new ways of working and communicating challenged the old methods of working and forced workers around the world to take a digital leap. Socially isolated and digitally mediated work may have brought new and unseen challenges to companies and workers, which are now beginning to emerge. These may have long-lasting implications for worker wellbeing, satisfaction, and productivity. In some workplaces, remote work and safety measures due to the pandemic may not have been possible. Workers in these fields may have experienced increased stress and anxiety when at the workplace, impacting their work engagement and control.

This Topical Collection “Workplace Stress and Anxiety During COVID-19” seeks to publish papers (research, reviews) that report associations and findings on how the COVID-19 pandemic has influenced workers in different fields and occupations. Workers’ coping and wellbeing at work are of particular interest. We are interested in themes related to digital communication and social media use at work, remote work, work–family conflict, burnout, work engagement, alcohol and drug problems at work, fear, and stress and anxiety at work.

Prof. Dr. Atte Oksanen
Dr. Iina Savolainen
Collection Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

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Keywords

COVID-19
coping and wellbeing
Fear and anxiety at work
remote work
technology and digital communication at work
stress, work exhaustion and burnout
work engagement
alcohol and drug use at work

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Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

13 pages, 673 KiB

Open AccessArticle

COVID-19 Anxiety and Wellbeing at Work in Finland during 2020–2022: A 5-Wave Longitudinal Survey Study

by Atte Oksanen, Reetta Oksa, Magdalena Celuch, Anica Cvetkovic and Iina Savolainen

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023, 20(1), 680; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20010680 - 30 Dec 2022

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 3051

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic impacted workers globally during 2020–2022 and it has had major psychological implications for workers’ wellbeing. This longitudinal study analyzed risk and protective factors predicting COVID-19 anxiety among workers in Finland. Longitudinal national sample of Finnish workers (n = 685) participated in a five-wave study conducted in 2020–2022, covering multiple waves of the COVID-19 pandemic and its aftermath. Our outcome measure was COVID-19 anxiety. Predictors were psychological distress, work exhaustion, technostress, and loneliness. Models also controlled for self-regulation; social support at work and remote working; and socio-demographic background factors. Both within-person and between-person effects were analyzed using multilevel hybrid regression models. COVID-19 anxiety varied between time points which is explained by changes in circumstances during the pandemic. Highest anxiety was expressed in the middle of the Delta variant surge and lockdown in spring 2021. Within-person changes in psychological distress, work exhaustion, technostress, self-regulation, and perceived loneliness were all associated with COVID-19 anxiety. Between-person results showed that distressed, exhausted, technostressed, and lonely workers expressed more anxiety than others. Remote workers reported higher anxiety over time than others. Those who had reported high self-regulation reported lower anxiety than others. Female gender and younger age were associated with higher anxiety. COVID-19 anxiety continues to be an important phenomenon with a magnitude of consequences on people and numerous industries. This study showed that general mental health and work stressors predict COVID-19 anxiety. Promoting social support and workers’ self-regulation skills can be beneficial for overcoming anxiety during and after the pandemic. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Workplace Stress and Anxiety During COVID-19)

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11 pages, 874 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effect of Green Plants on Individuals’ Mental Stress during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Preliminary Study

by Tao Liu, Lin He, Wenhuan Yu, Thomas Freudenreich and Xianhao Lin

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(20), 13541; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192013541 - 19 Oct 2022

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 3400

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has not only jeopardized people’s physical health, but also put additional strain on their mental health. This study explored the role of indoor natural elements (i.e., green plants) in relieving individuals’ mental stress during a prolonged stressful period. A pilot and three formal studies examined the effect of indoor green plants placed in living and working environments on people’s perceived stress during the pandemic and further uncovered its underlying mechanism emphasizing a mediating role of emotion. The pilot study confirmed that the severity of the pandemic positively correlated with individuals’ level of stress. Study 1 then demonstrated that indoor green plants in people’s living environments might reduce their perceived stress during the pandemic, which is referred to as the “plant effect”. Study 2 repeated the plant effect in a field experiment conducted in a working environment and Study 3 revealed a mediating role of positive emotion. This study provides preliminary evidence for the mitigating effect of indoor green plants on individuals’ mental stress during the COVID-19 pandemic period. The indoor green plants placed in living and working environments may elicit positive emotion, which in turn reduce people’s mental stress. In addition, our results reveal that growth status of the indoor green plants affected the plant effect as well. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Workplace Stress and Anxiety During COVID-19)

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28 pages, 762 KiB

Open AccessArticle

“I Was Given Three Marks and Told to Buy a Porsche”—Supervisors’ Experiences of Leading Psychosocial Safety Climate and Team Psychological Safety in a Remote Academic Setting

by Kirsi Sjöblom, Jaana-Piia Mäkiniemi and Anne Mäkikangas

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(19), 12016; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph191912016 - 22 Sep 2022

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 3641

Abstract

This study examines leading psychosocial safety climate (PSC) within the organization and psychological safety in teams in remote work conditions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. These topical working life phenomena have an essential role in health, well-being and productivity in today’s working life, but they have rarely been studied in remote work context. A total of 26 supervisors and leaders at three Finnish universities participated in semi-structured interviews. The data were analyzed using qualitative content analysis, resulting in four main categories: supportive and challenging aspects of leading psychological safety and well-being, supportive and challenging aspects of organizational psychosocial safety climate leadership, support for working as a supervisor, and characteristics specific to working in academia. The results indicate that leading psychological safety remotely requires more time, deliberation and intentionality than when working face to face, and that the role of remote interaction is underlined in it. As to PSC, it is important to improve the cohesion in leading psychological safety and health in academic organizations. How PSC is led in the organizations affects not only the general psychosocial working conditions, but also the possibilities for good leadership of psychological safety in smaller units in the organization. The study makes a novel contribution especially in understanding (1) leadership of PSC and psychological safety in remote work conditions, and (2) the reciprocal relations between leading psychological safety and well-being at the organizational level and the team level. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Workplace Stress and Anxiety During COVID-19)

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11 pages, 1001 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Influence of Media Exposure on Anxiety and Working Memory during Lockdown Period in Italy

by Rosa Angela Fabio and Rossella Suriano

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(17), 9279; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18179279 - 2 Sep 2021

Cited by 14 | Viewed by 4199

Abstract

The rapid spread of the coronavirus pandemic has caused anxiety around the world. During lockdown, the media became a point of reference for people seeking information. However, little is known on the relationships between anxiety resulting from persistent media exposure to coronavirus-related programs and the effects produced on working memory. In this work, a total of 101 Italian citizens (53.7% female) aged between 18 and 45 years old, who were from 14 provinces in Italy, participated in an online survey. Participants were presented with media exposure and anxiety questionnaires and they were instructed to carry out working memory tasks (visual and auditory n-back). The results showed that media exposure is related to anxiety. It was also found that high levels of anxiety have a negative influence on the performance of both visual and auditory working memory tasks in terms of increased reaction times of responses and decreased accuracy. The results were critically discussed in the light of the Social Compensation Hypothesis. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Workplace Stress and Anxiety During COVID-19)

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15 pages, 891 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Loneliness and Well-Being during the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Moderating Roles of Personal, Social and Organizational Resources on Perceived Stress and Exhaustion among Finnish University Employees

by Jaana-Piia Mäkiniemi, Atte Oksanen and Anne Mäkikangas

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(13), 7146; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18137146 - 3 Jul 2021

Cited by 37 | Viewed by 6620

Abstract

The aim of this study is to investigate whether personal, social and organizational level resources can buffer against the negative effects of perceived loneliness on stress and exhaustion. The data was collected from Finnish university employees (n = 1463) in autumn 2020 via an electronic survey. Of the respondents, about 78% were working remotely, and 64% were female. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses were used to analyze the main and moderating (i.e., buffering) effects. The results indicated that perceived loneliness was directly and positively associated with stress and exhaustion. Further, as hypothesized, personal resilience moderated the relationship between loneliness and stress and exhaustion, and organizational support moderated the relationship between loneliness and stress. Unexpectedly, organizational support did not moderate the loneliness–exhaustion relationship. Moreover, a sense of social belonging was not associated with stress and exhaustion, nor did it moderate loneliness and well-being relationships. The results demonstrate the importance of personal resilience and organizational support in enhancing well-being in organizations during the COVID-19 pandemic. Future research directions and practical ways to promote resilience and to increase organizational support are discussed. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Workplace Stress and Anxiety During COVID-19)

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