Work from home and employee well-being: a double-edged sword
Abstract Background With the advancement of globalization and technology, remote work has gradually become a feasible and popular work model, particularly with the rapid adoption of working from home driven by the COVID-19 pandemic. This shift not only provides employees with greater flexibility and...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
BMC
2025-08-01
|
| Series: | BMC Psychology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-025-02994-5 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1849341936626827264 |
|---|---|
| author | Jun-jie Dong Zhi-dan Tan Yu-liang Zhang Yu-jie Sun Yuan-kai Huang |
| author_facet | Jun-jie Dong Zhi-dan Tan Yu-liang Zhang Yu-jie Sun Yuan-kai Huang |
| author_sort | Jun-jie Dong |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background With the advancement of globalization and technology, remote work has gradually become a feasible and popular work model, particularly with the rapid adoption of working from home driven by the COVID-19 pandemic. This shift not only provides employees with greater flexibility and convenience, potentially enhancing their well-being, but also brings challenges such as blurred boundaries between work and family, and increased social isolation, which can lead to a decline in well-being. Therefore, exploring the dual-edged impact of working from home on employee well-being can help organizations design and implement better policies, enabling employees to balance work and family while improving overall well-being. Methods Using the Job Demands-Resources model, this research develops a moderated dual-mediation model to examine the effects of working from home on employee well-being. Data were collected through an anonymous online survey, resulting in a total of 343 valid responses. Results Our findings reveal that the direct effect of working from home on employee well-being is not statistically significant, however, its influence is multifaceted. Specifically, working from home can negatively impact well-being by exacerbating family-work conflict, while simultaneously promoting well-being by enhancing job engagement. Furthermore, an individual's confidence in managing work and family responsibilities, referred to as "work-family balance self-efficacy," moderates the relationship between working from home and family-work conflict. Conclusions The research findings contribute to advancing theoretical understanding of remote employee management and positive organizational behavior in the digital era. They offer valuable insights for organizations to optimize the management of working from home and support the innovation of human resource management practices in enterprises. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-ca46c276e68a4645a9c79be65e613e99 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2050-7283 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-08-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMC Psychology |
| spelling | doaj-art-ca46c276e68a4645a9c79be65e613e992025-08-20T03:43:31ZengBMCBMC Psychology2050-72832025-08-0113111910.1186/s40359-025-02994-5Work from home and employee well-being: a double-edged swordJun-jie Dong0Zhi-dan Tan1Yu-liang Zhang2Yu-jie Sun3Yuan-kai Huang4Logistics and E-Commerce College, Zhejiang Wanli UniversitySchool of Economics and Management, Tongji UniversitySchool of Business Administration, Anhui University of Finance and EconomicsSchool of Economics and Management, Tongji UniversityLogistics and E-Commerce College, Zhejiang Wanli UniversityAbstract Background With the advancement of globalization and technology, remote work has gradually become a feasible and popular work model, particularly with the rapid adoption of working from home driven by the COVID-19 pandemic. This shift not only provides employees with greater flexibility and convenience, potentially enhancing their well-being, but also brings challenges such as blurred boundaries between work and family, and increased social isolation, which can lead to a decline in well-being. Therefore, exploring the dual-edged impact of working from home on employee well-being can help organizations design and implement better policies, enabling employees to balance work and family while improving overall well-being. Methods Using the Job Demands-Resources model, this research develops a moderated dual-mediation model to examine the effects of working from home on employee well-being. Data were collected through an anonymous online survey, resulting in a total of 343 valid responses. Results Our findings reveal that the direct effect of working from home on employee well-being is not statistically significant, however, its influence is multifaceted. Specifically, working from home can negatively impact well-being by exacerbating family-work conflict, while simultaneously promoting well-being by enhancing job engagement. Furthermore, an individual's confidence in managing work and family responsibilities, referred to as "work-family balance self-efficacy," moderates the relationship between working from home and family-work conflict. Conclusions The research findings contribute to advancing theoretical understanding of remote employee management and positive organizational behavior in the digital era. They offer valuable insights for organizations to optimize the management of working from home and support the innovation of human resource management practices in enterprises.https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-025-02994-5Work from home, Employee wellBeing, FamilyWork conflict, Job engagement, WorkFamily balance selfEfficacy |
| spellingShingle | Jun-jie Dong Zhi-dan Tan Yu-liang Zhang Yu-jie Sun Yuan-kai Huang Work from home and employee well-being: a double-edged sword BMC Psychology Work from home, Employee well Being, Family Work conflict, Job engagement, Work Family balance self Efficacy |
| title | Work from home and employee well-being: a double-edged sword |
| title_full | Work from home and employee well-being: a double-edged sword |
| title_fullStr | Work from home and employee well-being: a double-edged sword |
| title_full_unstemmed | Work from home and employee well-being: a double-edged sword |
| title_short | Work from home and employee well-being: a double-edged sword |
| title_sort | work from home and employee well being a double edged sword |
| topic | Work from home, Employee well Being, Family Work conflict, Job engagement, Work Family balance self Efficacy |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-025-02994-5 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT junjiedong workfromhomeandemployeewellbeingadoubleedgedsword AT zhidantan workfromhomeandemployeewellbeingadoubleedgedsword AT yuliangzhang workfromhomeandemployeewellbeingadoubleedgedsword AT yujiesun workfromhomeandemployeewellbeingadoubleedgedsword AT yuankaihuang workfromhomeandemployeewellbeingadoubleedgedsword |