Working from Home, Telework, and Psychological Wellbeing? A Systematic Review

The practice of telework, remote work, and working from home has grown significantly across the pandemic era (2020+). These practices offer new ways of working but come with a lack of clarity as to the role it plays in supporting the wellbeing of staff. (1) Background: The purpose of this study is to examine the current literature on wellbeing outcomes and effects of telework; (2) Methods: This study adopts a systematic literature review from 2000-2022 using the PRISMA approach and thematic analysis guided by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (Wellbeing, Decent Work, Gender Equality, and Inclusive Production); (3) Results: It was evident that there is a lack of clarity on the actual effects of telework on employee wellbeing, but it appeared that it had a generally positive effect on the short-term wellbeing of staff, and created more flexible and proactive work design opportunities; (4) Conclusions: There is a need for more targeted research into work designs that support wellbeing and productivity of staff, and consider the environmental sustainability changes from reduced office and onsite work and increased working from home.

Automated summary

The actual effects of remote work on employee wellbeing lack clarity, but it appears to have a generally positive impact on short-term wellbeing and creates more flexible and proactive work design opportunities.