Experiences and Contexts of Remote Work among Older, Mid-Life and Young Adults: The Case for Age-Specific Remote Work Interventions

Abstract

Purpose Over half of the U.S. workforce works from home at least one day per week. The shift to remote work, catalyzed by the Covid-19 pandemic, has revolutionized our relationship with work. Evidence from multiple nationally-representative surveys indicates that working remotely, at least some of the time, has benefits for worker well-being (Parker Horowitz, & Minkin 2020; 2022; Saad & Wigert, 2021). However remote workers also have been found to struggle with stress and social isolation. To date there has been little research conducted on the impact of remote work on well-being across the adult life course. This study examines how older remote workers (aged 65+) compare to mid-life (aged 45-64) and young adult (aged 18-44) remote workers in terms of their experiences with remote work and its impact on well-being (Figure 1). Method Data are from a survey module within a large U.S. nationally representative monthly survey, The Survey of Consumer Attitudes (SCA), (Curtin, Presser, & Singer, 2005; Curtin, Singer, & Presser, 2007). The SCA has been conducted since 1940 and monthly since 1977 (Curtin et al., 2005; Curtin et al., 2007). The SCA captures the impact of the expectations of consumers on their spending and saving behavior. It is administered monthly by telephone to a nationally representative sample of adults age 18 and older (Curtin et al., 2007). Participants provided informed consent prior to being surveyed. We developed a 5-minute supplemental module focused on remote work that was included in the SCA’s December 2021 and January 2022 surveys. Participants in this study (n=370) were all working remotely at least part of the time. Results and Discussion Bivariate analyses indicate that older remote workers were significantly less likely than younger remote workers, but more likely than mid-life remote workers, to report feeling anxious and lonely sometimes or more often. In a multivariate regression model, the finding concerning feelings of anxiety remained after adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics (b = -0.35; p<0.001). The curvilinear relationship between age and anxiety highlights the need for development of age and environment-specific interventions to promote remote worker well-being across the adult life course.

References

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Curtin, R., Singer, E., & Presser, S. (2007). Incentives in random digit dial telephone surveys: A replication and extension. Journal of Official Statistics, 23(1), 91.

Parker, K., Horowitz, J. M., & Minkin, R. (2020). How the coronavirus outbreak has–and hasn’t–changed the way Americans work. Pew Research Center, 9.

Parker, K., Horowitz, J., & Minkin, R. (2022). COVID-19 pandemic continues to reshape work in America. Pew Research Center.

Saad, L., & Wigert, B. (2021). Remote work persisting and trending permanent. Gallup News Insights, 13.

Keywords: remote work, older adults, life-course, well-being, environment

Address: Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan, United States

Email: jessfran@umich.edu