Working in the digital economy: A systematic review of the impact of work from home arrangements on personal and organizational performance and productivity

Amy Hackney; Marcus Yung; Kumara G Somasundram; Behdin Nowrouzi-Kia; Jodi Oakman; Amin Yazdani

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0274728

Working in the digital economy: A systematic review of the impact of work from home arrangements on personal and organizational performance and productivity

PLoS One. 2022 Oct 12;17(10):e0274728. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0274728. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Amy Hackney¹, Marcus Yung¹, Kumara G Somasundram¹, Behdin Nowrouzi-Kia², Jodi Oakman³, Amin Yazdani^{1

4

5}

Affiliations

¹ Canadian Institute for Safety, Wellness & Performance, School of Business, Conestoga College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning, Kitchener, ON, Canada.
² Department of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
³ Department of Psychology and Public Health, Centre of Ergonomics and Human Factors, La Trobe University, Bundoora, Australia.
⁴ School of Public Health and Health Systems, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON, Canada.
⁵ School of Geographic and Earth Sciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada.

Abstract

Work-from-home has become an increasingly adopted practice globally. Given the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic, such arrangements have risen substantially in a short timeframe. Work-from-home has been associated with several physical and mental health outcomes. This relationship has been supported by previous research; however, these health and safety issues often receive little resources and attention from business perspectives compared to organizational and worker performance and productivity. Therefore, aligning work-from-home practices with business goals may help catalyze awareness from decision makers and serve to effectively implement work-from-home policies. We conducted a review to synthesize current knowledge on the impact of work-from-home arrangements on personal and organizational performance and productivity. Four large databases including Scopus, PubMed, PsychInfo, and Business Source Complete were systematically searched. Through a two-step screening process, we selected and extracted data from 37 relevant articles. Key search terms surrounded two core concepts: work-from-home and productivity/performance. Of the articles published prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, 79% (n = 19) demonstrated that work-from-home increased productivity and performance whereas 21% (n = 5) showed mixed or no effects. Of the articles published during the pandemic, 23% (n = 3) showed positive effects, 38% (n = 5) revealed mixed results, and 38% (n = 5) showed negative effects. Findings suggest that non-mandatory work-from-home arrangements can have positive impacts on productivity and performance. When work-from-home becomes mandatory and full-time, or external factors (i.e., COVID-19 pandemic) are at play, the overall impacts are less positive and can be detrimental to productivity and performance. Results will help foster an understanding of the impact of work-from-home on productivity and performance and inform the development of organizational strategies to create an effective, resilient, and inclusive work-from-home workplace by helping to effectively implement work-from-home policies that are aligned with business goals.

Publication types

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

MeSH terms

COVID-19* / epidemiology
Efficiency
Humans
Pandemics*
Teleworking
Workplace

Grants and funding

The research was co-funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) and the Government of Canada’s Future Skills program through Skills and Work in Digital Economy Funding Competition. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. Initials of authors who received the award: AY, MY, JO, and BNK SSHRC Ref.: 872-2020-0029 Funding Agency Website: https://www.sshrc-crsh.gc.ca/home-accueil-eng.aspx.