Abstract: Telework and Mental Health during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Israel (Society for Social Work and Research 28th Annual Conference - Recentering & Democratizing Knowledge: The Next 30 Years of Social Work Science)
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Telework and Mental Health during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Israel

Schedule:
Friday, January 12, 2024
Marquis BR Salon 14, ML 2 (Marriott Marquis Washington DC)
* noted as presenting author
Mika Moran, PhD, Senior Lecturer, University of Haifa, Israel, Israel
Oren Heller, Ph.D., Research fellow, Washington University in Saint Louis, MT
Yung Chun, PhD, Assistant Professor of Research, Washington University in Saint Louis, St. Louis, MO
Yaniv Shlomo, Research fellow, Washington University in Saint Louis, MT
Michal Grinstein-Weiss, PhD, Shanti K. Khinduka Distinguished Professor, Washington University in Saint Louis, MO
Objective–To assess whether changes during the COVID-19 pandemic in working environments from in-person to telework (or vice versa) are associated with changes in anxiety and depressive symptoms among Israeli employees with different demographic characteristics.

Methods–We administered three consecutive online surveys between January through November 2021 among Israelis who work. We conducted panel regression models with individual fixed effects using anxiety and depressive symptoms as outcomes and change in telework status as exposure, while accounting for sociodemographic variables. We repeated this analysis among subgroups defined by demographic characteristics.

Results–Symptoms of anxiety (GAD-7) and depression (PHQ-9) decreased from 4.27 and 5.98 in January to 3.35 (p<0.01) and 4.57 (p<0.01) in November 2021, respectively. Increased risk for anxiety and depressive symptoms were significantly associated with telework. These associations were significant among non-partnered adults and among adults with no children, but not among partnered adults and those with children. Telework was significantly associated with anxiety among men and with depression among women.

Conclusions–Telework is associated with increased anxiety and depression and these associations vary across different sociodemographic groups.

Back to: [WITHDRAWN] The Mental Health Impacts of COVID-19: Evidence from the US and Israel
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