1. Social Isolation and Stress as Predictors of Productivity Perception and Remote Work Satisfaction during the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Role of Concern about the Virus in a Moderated Double Mediation
- Author
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Ferdinando Toscano, Salvatore Zappala, Toscano, Ferdinando, and Zappalà, Salvatore
- Subjects
Mediation (statistics) ,social isolation ,media_common.quotation_subject ,Geography, Planning and Development ,TJ807-830 ,Management, Monitoring, Policy and Law ,TD194-195 ,Renewable energy sources ,03 medical and health sciences ,stress ,0302 clinical medicine ,stre ,Perception ,0502 economics and business ,Pandemic ,medicine ,remote work satisfaction ,GE1-350 ,Social isolation ,Productivity ,media_common ,Government ,concern about COVID-19 ,Environmental effects of industries and plants ,Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment ,05 social sciences ,Environmental sciences ,Work (electrical) ,job productivity ,Job satisfaction ,medicine.symptom ,Psychology ,Social psychology ,050203 business & management ,030217 neurology & neurosurgery - Abstract
From mid-March to the end of May 2020, millions of Italians were forced to work from home because of the lockdown provisions imposed by the Italian government to contain the COVID-19 epidemic. As a result, many employees had to suddenly switch to remote work, experiencing both troubles and opportunities. Social isolation from colleagues and the workplace represents a typical aspect of remote work which increased significantly during the social confinement imposed by the government. This study investigates the correlates of social isolation in terms of stress, perceived remote work productivity and remote work satisfaction, proposing the sequential mediation of stress and perceived remote work productivity, and the moderating role of concern about the new coronavirus. An online survey was conducted, and the responses of 265 employees showed the deleterious role of social isolation in stress, which leads to decreased perceived remote work productivity that, in turn, is related to remote work satisfaction. Furthermore, the results suggested that concern about the virus moderates the relationships between social isolation and remote work perceived productivity, from one side, and social isolation and remote work satisfaction from the other. This latter result suggests that the indirect sequential effect of social isolation on remote work satisfaction is conditional on concern about the virus. Some conclusions are drawn to support managers and HR officers in the choices to better manage employees&rsquo, work during the health emergency.
- Published
- 2020