We all know we’d be 100 percent healthier if we only worked less. Many Americans are overworked, which means higher stress and lower mental well-being. Unfortunately, according to a new study, we’d need to cut down at work much more than most of us can afford.
In a study from the University of Cambridge and the University of Salford, researchers unlocked the work pattern that would be best for employees’ mental health. While examining any links between how much people work, mental health, and life satisfaction in more than 71,000 people working in the U.K., British scientists found that it was best for mental well-being to work around one day a week (or just eight hours weekly).
RELATED: How to Deal with Workplace Anxiety
In fact, there were no boosts to mental health when people worked more than eight hours per week. But when moved from unemployment or stay-at-home parenting into working up to eight hours per week, mental health risks reduced by an average of 30 percent.
According to the report, “Full-time work was not the optimum category, as it was not significantly different from any other category in terms of mental health and well-being.”
The study suggested something we’ve all kind of expected — we’d enjoy our work a lot more if we worked less. In order to enjoy any mental health benefits that come with employment, the workweek has to be drastically reduced.
“Most policy options for addressing a potential rise in unemployment levels have focused on measures such as a universal basic income to provide economic support to those without employment,” the authors said. “Our findings support an alternative, more radical, theoretical perspective — a redistribution of working hours in society.”
RELATED: How to Know When It's Time to Change Jobs
While most of us can’t fathom surviving on an eight-hour workweek, the study’s authors suggest other options, such as five-day weekends, limiting work to just a couple of hours per day. Another is increasing vacations and time off to months rather than weeks.
Cutting work hours not only brings mental health benefits to employees, but it actually results in increased productivity and cutting carbon emissions from commuting. According to Cambridge University sociologist Brendan Burchell, “If the UK were to plough annual productivity gains into reduced working hours rather than pay rises, the normal working week could be four days within a decade.”
So while it’s good to get paid, we might want to take a look at the benefits that come with working less. Plus, a lot of us can agree on one thing — a five-day weekend would make us all feel a lot better.
source:- https://www.askmen.com/news/career_money/study-work-is-good-for-you-but-only-8-hours-a-week.html
In a study from the University of Cambridge and the University of Salford, researchers unlocked the work pattern that would be best for employees’ mental health. While examining any links between how much people work, mental health, and life satisfaction in more than 71,000 people working in the U.K., British scientists found that it was best for mental well-being to work around one day a week (or just eight hours weekly).
RELATED: How to Deal with Workplace Anxiety
In fact, there were no boosts to mental health when people worked more than eight hours per week. But when moved from unemployment or stay-at-home parenting into working up to eight hours per week, mental health risks reduced by an average of 30 percent.
According to the report, “Full-time work was not the optimum category, as it was not significantly different from any other category in terms of mental health and well-being.”
The study suggested something we’ve all kind of expected — we’d enjoy our work a lot more if we worked less. In order to enjoy any mental health benefits that come with employment, the workweek has to be drastically reduced.
“Most policy options for addressing a potential rise in unemployment levels have focused on measures such as a universal basic income to provide economic support to those without employment,” the authors said. “Our findings support an alternative, more radical, theoretical perspective — a redistribution of working hours in society.”
RELATED: How to Know When It's Time to Change Jobs
While most of us can’t fathom surviving on an eight-hour workweek, the study’s authors suggest other options, such as five-day weekends, limiting work to just a couple of hours per day. Another is increasing vacations and time off to months rather than weeks.
Cutting work hours not only brings mental health benefits to employees, but it actually results in increased productivity and cutting carbon emissions from commuting. According to Cambridge University sociologist Brendan Burchell, “If the UK were to plough annual productivity gains into reduced working hours rather than pay rises, the normal working week could be four days within a decade.”
So while it’s good to get paid, we might want to take a look at the benefits that come with working less. Plus, a lot of us can agree on one thing — a five-day weekend would make us all feel a lot better.
source:- https://www.askmen.com/news/career_money/study-work-is-good-for-you-but-only-8-hours-a-week.html
No comments:
Post a Comment