ON-CAMPUS VERSUS REMOTE

LIFE-WORK INTERFACE, WORKPLACE PRODUCTIVITY, WORK INFRASTRUCTURE, AND PERSONALITY IN A UNIVERSITY WORKFORCE

Abstract

The quality of work life construct describes workers’ experiences in various dimensions of their employment and how these dimensions directly impact work life quality. COVID-19 disrupted the work lives of employees in most industries, including higher education, and temporarily normalized remote work for faculty and staff. Objective: This study explored the life-work interface, workplace productivity, work infrastructure, and personality of faculty, staff, and administrators in on-campus and remote work environments at a Midwestern state university (N=59). Methods: Fifty-six quantitative and four qualitative items were included in the anonymous On-Campus versus Remote Quality of Work Life Survey developed by the researchers. Of the fifty-six quantitative items, nineteen were adapted with permission from the authors of the Individual Workplace Performance Questionnaire (IWPQ) (Koopmans, 2014) and the Work-Related Quality of Life Scale (WRQoL-2) (Easton & Van Laar, 2018). Four open-ended items were used to collect participants’ workplace productivity-related narratives. The survey was field-tested and updated according to the recommendations provided by a sample of the target population prior to electronic distribution to the full university. Results: Ambiverts and introverts reported higher work satisfaction with remote work. For extroverts, higher satisfaction occurred when working on campus. Degrees of satisfaction along the three theoretical domains, and in consideration of the work setting, varied significantly across faculty, staff, and administrators. While the sample size did not support multivariate analyses, statistically significant correlations (p < .05) served to preliminarily validate the study’s proposed theory as applied to employees’ personality and their work settings. Conclusion: Further research will uncover higher-level evidence that may positively impact work-life quality and systemic labor policies in the higher education workforce. These efforts could improve higher education employees’ overall sense of well-being, productivity, and equitable access to optimal work environments.