PurposeThe purpose of this study is to explore to what extent employees' mental well-being affects their productivity while working from home (WFH) during the COVID-19 crisis and whether mental well-being and productivity differ across some socio-demographic factors.Design/methodology/approachA cross-sectional study with online questionnaires was designed with 472 valid responses in Indonesia. Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21) and Individual Work Performance Questionnaire (IWPQ) were administered. Non-parametric tests and structural equation modeling were employed to analyze the data.FindingsThe prevalence of depression was 18.4%, anxiety 46.4% and stress 13.1%, with relatively good productivity. Gender, age, education level, job experiences, marital status, number of children and nature of the organization were associated with the employees' psychological health but not with their productivity, while the workspace availability influenced both outcomes. The study path model showed the negative correlation between WFH employees' psychological well-being and productivity.Research limitations/implicationsThis study may contribute to the implication of current mandatory WFH on mental well-being and productivity. Further studies need to address the representativeness and generalizability issues as well as incorporating potential stressors.Practical implicationsOrganizations may adopt WFH as a future working arrangement and identify the individual and occupational characteristics that provide the most impacts on productivity. It is also necessary for them to develop proper strategies to mitigate the psychological risks and overcome the WFH challenges.Originality/valueThere is still a lack of studies investigating the relationship between simultaneous effects of WFH on psychological well-being and productivity, and how they affect some socio-demographic variables in the context of COVID-19.

This study investigates the socio‐demographic factors and work from home challenges associated with job satisfaction and work performance. Using a cross‐sectional survey design and convenience sampling, data from 482 Indonesian employees were gathered via a web‐based questionnaire. Bivariate analysis was used to assess job satisfaction and work performance differences across several socio‐demographic factors. Hierarchical linear regression was performed to identify the contribution of socio‐demographic factors and work from home challenges on job satisfaction and work performance. All work from home challenges, with the exception of social isolation, linked significantly to job satisfaction and work performance. However, no significant differences in job satisfaction and work performance were found across most socio‐demographic factors. Our final model suggests that, after controlling socio‐demographic and work from home challenges, the length of employment and job satisfaction were the most significant determinants of work performance. This study provides insights for organizations wishing to raise employees’ satisfaction, and maximize the benefits gained by addressing work from home challenges, by improving some of the less favorable work from home practices of the past.

The widespread implementation of advanced and complex systems requires predominantly operators' cognitive functions and less importance of human manual control. On the other hand, most operators perform their cognitive functions below their peak cognitive capacity level due to fatigue, stress, and boredom. Thus, there is a need to improve their cognitive functions during work. The goal of this paper is to present a psychophysiology training approach derived from cardiovascular response named heart rate variability (HRV) biofeedback. Description of resonant frequency biofeedback-a specific HRV training protocol-is discussed as well as its supported researches for the performance enhancement. HRV biofeedback training works by teaching people to recognize their involuntary HRV and to control patterns of this physiological response. The training is directed to increase HRV amplitude that promotes autonomic nervous system balance. This balance is associated with improved physiological functioning as well as psychological benefits. Most individuals can learn HRV biofeedback training easily which involves slowing the breathing rate (around six breaths/min) to each individual's resonant frequency at which the amplitude of HRV is maximized. Maximal control over HRV can be obtained in most people after approximately four sessions of training. Recent studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of HRV biofeedback to the improvement of some cognitive functions in both simulated and real industrial operators.

The aim of this study was to examine the effect of resonant breathing biofeedback training for reducing stress among manufacturing operators. Resonant breathing biofeedback works by teaching people to recognize their involuntary heart rate variability and to control patterns of this physiological response. Thirty-six female operators from an electronic manufacturing factory were randomly assigned as the experimental group (n = 19) and the control group (n = 17). The participants of the intervention received 5 weekly sessions of biofeedback training. Physiological stress profiles and self-perceived depression, anxiety, and stress scale (DASS) were assessed at pre- and post-intervention. Results indicated that depression, anxiety, and stress significantly decreased after the training in the experimental group; they were supported by a significant increase in physiological measures. Overall, these results support the potential application of resonant biofeedback training to reduce negative emotional symptoms among industrial workers.

BACKGROUND: Predominantly cognitive tasks assigned to the shop floor can lead to decreased cognitive functions problems, thereby increasing occupational accident risks. A potential approach to prevent such circumstances is by improving operator's cognitive performance. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to examine whether heart rate variability (HRV) biofeedback training could improve cognitive performance among electronic manufacturing's operators. PARTICIPANTS: Subjects consisted of 36 female operators who were randomly assigned as the experimental (n = 19), and control group (n = 17). METHOD: The experimental participants received five session of weekly HRV biofeedback training of 30-50 minutes each. Physiological stress profiles and cognitive performance were assessed at pre and post-intervention. RESULTS: Significant group x time effects were observed for attention and memory (p < 0.01) but not present for cognitive flexibility. Significant higher total spectrum HRV and low frequency (LF) power also occurred during biofeedback sessions, in addition to slower respiration rate. Physiological stress profile showed that the biofeedback participants were able to increase their LF activity at baseline, stressor, and recovery periods from pre to post. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates potential application of HRV biofeedback for operator's performance enhancement, associated with increases in HRV.

In industrially developing countries (IDC), small and medium enterprises (SMEs) account for the highest proprotion of employment. Unfortunately, the working conditions in SMEs are often very poor and expose employees to a potentially wide range of health and safety risks. This paper presents a comprehensive review of 161 articles related to ergonomics application in SMEs, using Indonesia as a case study. The aim of this paper is to investigate the extent of ergonomics application and identify areas that can be improved to promote effective ergonomics for SMEs in IDC. The most urgent issue found is the need for adopting participatory approach in contrast to the commonly implemented top-down approach. Some good practices in ergonomics application were also revealed from the review e.g. a multidisciplinary approach, unsophisticated and low-cost solutions, and recognising the importance of productivity. The review also found that more work is still required to achieve appropriate cross-cultural adaptation of ergonomics application.Keywords: industrial ergonomics, health and safety, small and medium enterprises, industrially developing countries, intervention effectiveness Practitioner summary: Despite continuous efforts in addressing ergonomics issues in SMEs of industrially developing countries, workers are still exposed to poor work conditions. We reviewed factual based evidence of current ergonomics application to inform future strategies of ergonomics in IDC, using Indonesia as a case study.

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic has increased some psychosocial risks which may aggravate the development of musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) and reduced psychological well-being, two leading global occupational health problems. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to investigate whether an employee’s psychological well-being mediates the relationship between the psychosocial factors (job strain, work-life balance, and job security) and the prevalence of musculoskeletal pain in the Indonesian general working population during the pandemic. METHODS: A cross-sectional study design was employed using an online questionnaire. A total of 406 from 465 respondents were included in the final analysis. RESULTS: It was found that 73.9% of respondents suffered from upper body part pain, 25.15% from low back pain, and 39.7% reported pain in the lower limb. Process Macro Model 4 analysis showed the significant role of well-being as a mediator in the association between work-life balance and the odds of experiencing the upper body and low back pains. However, neither the direct nor mediating effect on the relationship between job strain or job security and any musculoskeletal pains were observed. These findings suggest that specific psychosocial factors may be more relevant to be investigated in the particular context. CONCLUSION: The use of a mediation model was able to link work-life balance to musculoskeletal complaints through well-being states in the context of the pandemic. Organizations need to mitigate poor well-being triggered by psychosocial stressors which could affect physical complaints to maintain employee’s health and productivity.

Background and Aims Although extensive research has been conducted on the psychological impact after exposure to the COVID‐19 pandemic, very few studies simultaneously investigated the negative and positive impacts on urban and rural residents. This study aims to compare the extent of psychological impact on Indonesian living in urban and rural areas a year after the first case of COVID‐19 was reported. Design, Methodology and Approach We employed a cross‐sectional study design. A total of 428 participants completed a set of web‐based questionnaires from February to March 2021, consisting of the Impact of Event Scale‐Revised (IES‐R), the Perceived Social‐Support (PSS), the mental health‐related lifestyle (MHLS), and 6‐item negative impacts, and the Jenkins' Sleep Scale (JSS). Findings Over 40% of the participants reported moderate to severe trauma‐related distress; 30%–40% increased stress at work, home, and financial stress, and 50% more social support gained from their family and friends. Although 62.1% of participants paid more attention to their mental health, only 30% engaged in a healthier lifestyle, and 36.7% had sleep problems. No significant differences were found between urban and rural residents on psychological impact, changes in mental health and related lifestyles, and sleep quality. Urban residents perceived more negative impacts, in parallel with increased social support, compared to rural residents. We also found a significant correlation between psychological impact, sleep disturbance, and increased social support. However, there was no significant association between mental health‐related lifestyles and other scales. Originality and Value This is among the first studies that examine the urban–rural disparity on the positive and negative impact of the COVID‐19 in the later stage of the pandemic. Our findings offer insights to provide equal effort to mitigate the negative impacts of the COVID‐19 crisis as well as promote healthy lifestyle behaviors in both urban and rural residencies.