Pop-up, buzz, ding!, Chats: how work interruptions affect employees well-being at work
It's 10 am, you work on a major report and for some reason, today you rock it! Maybe you'll even be able to finish it before lunch time. But suddenly, the phone rings and two emails pop up. Immediate attention required.
And yet again, you will fall behind with your tasks today. But you’re not alone. Work interruptions are common in workplaces, but what are their consequences for the well-being of employees? This is the question asked in the study by Keller et al. (2019) in which the mid- and long-term effects of frequent work interruptions are investigated using two longitudinal studies.
Legend: Recommendation of our expert
Expert advisor:
- Anita KELLER, Assistant Professor, University of Groningen, the Netherlands
Authors:
- Étienne FOUQUET, research assistant, Université de Sherbrooke
Marie-Élise LABRECQUE, Research Professional, Université de Sherbrooke
This initiative was made possible through a collaboration with the Université de Sherbrooke.
WHAT DO WE MEAN BY:
Work interruptions
These are circumstances or events when work has to be set aside to handle other situations, such as responding to emails or phone calls, dealing with equipment malfunctions, or interacting with colleagues. Usually, these work interruptions are involuntary and are not controllable by the employee. It means that looking at Facebook or Instagram does not represent a work interruption in the sense of this study.
Well-being
In the present study, well-being is measured with two variables:
- Psychosomatic complaints
The physical experience of stress experiences such as headaches, back pain, or sleep problems. - Job satisfaction
A positive feeling towards work and the work situation. Job satisfaction is closely related to commitment, turnover, absenteeism, and job performance.
Complete reference
- Keller, A. C., Meier, L. L., Elfering, A., & Semmer, N. K. (2019). Please wait until I am done! Longitudinal effects of work interruptions on employee well-being. Work & Stress, 1-20.
https://doi.org/10.1080/02678373.2019.1579266
Method
Study 1
- Country: Switzerland
Number of participants: 415
Mean age: 20.6 years
Mean working hours: 39.6 to 40.2
Sex: 65% were female - Recruitment of participants:
Participants from a panel study following young adults from compulsory education to the labor market were selected. Participants had to be fully employed in 2005 to participate in the study (five years after compulsory schooling). - Method used: Five-year longitudinal study with 4 waves (2005, 2006, 2007, 2010).
Study 2
- Country: Switzerland
Number of participants: 663
Mean age: 32.4 years
Mean working hours: 38.5 to 39
Sex: 51% were female - Recruitment of participants:
The participant sample consisted of employees from different organizations, with a broad spectrum of occupations. - Method used:
Eight months longitudinal study with five waves over eight months (one every two months).
WHAT ARE THE FINDINGS OF THE STUDY?
Overall, the study showed that higher amounts of interruptions are associated with lower job satisfaction levels and more psychosomatic complaints and have a negative effect over time by further reducing employee well-being.
An increase in work interruptions has an effect on employee well-being by decreasing job satisfaction and increasing psychosomatic complaints.
- The decrease in well-being can be explained in different ways. For example, an increase in work interruptions requires employees to develop new coping strategies, while those already acquired become ineffective over time.
- The more the number of work interruptions increases, the more complex dealing with them becomes and the consequences are felt more severely such as increased time pressure, accumulation of work, passed deadlines. An accumulation of work interruptions also gives employees the impression of a loss of control over their schedule, which affects their ability to adapt.
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