Investigating the Impact of Occupational Technostress and Psychological Restorativeness of Natural Spaces on Work Engagement and Work–Life Balance Satisfaction

Matteo Curcuruto (), Sian Williams, Margherita Brondino and Andrea Bazzoli
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Matteo Curcuruto: School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Leeds Beckett University, Leeds LS1 3HE, UK
Sian Williams: School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Leeds Beckett University, Leeds LS1 3HE, UK
Margherita Brondino: Department of Human Sciences, University of Verona, 37129 Verona, Italy
Andrea Bazzoli: Department of Psychology, Washington State University, Vancouver, WA 98686, USA

IJERPH, 2023, vol. 20, issue 3, 1-13

Abstract: The COVID-19 pandemic has necessitated lockdowns and mandatory working from home, as well as restrictions on travel and recreation. As a result, many people have had to use their home as an office and have increased their use of Information Communications Technology (ICT) for work purposes. Nature and accessing natural spaces are known to be beneficial for human health and wellbeing, as a result of their restorative properties. Access to local outdoor spaces was permitted under restrictions, and use of such spaces increased during lockdown. This survey study investigated whether the perceived restorativeness of natural spaces and exposure to technostress predicted the levels of work engagement and work–life balance satisfaction (WLBS) during the period of COVID-19 restrictions adopted in 2020. Analyses conducted on a sample of 109 people employed in the UK revealed that technostress negatively impacted WLBS, whilst perceived psychological restorativeness positively predicted work engagement. The study highlights the benefits of having access to natural spaces to improve employees’ work engagement and potentially negate the negative effects of technostress, particularly during a period of intensive working from home. The results contribute to the understanding of the linkages between restorativeness and work engagement, paving the way for synergies across these research fields.

Keywords: environmental psychology; remote working; technostress; nature restorativeness; work engagement; work–life balance (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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