Multi-Stakeholder Perspectives of Factors That Influence Contact Centre Call Agents’ Workplace Physical Activity and Sedentary Behaviour

Morris, Allison; Murphy, Rebecca; Shepherd, Sam; Graves, Lee E. F.

doi:10.3390/ijerph15071484

Cited by 17 publications

(35 citation statements)

References 53 publications

(114 reference statements)

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Identifying, and addressing barriers and enablers as part of the intervention development process is also consistent with guidance from the Medical Research Council [16] and supports the development of more effective interventions [15]. To date, only a small number of studies have reported barriers and enablers to workplace sitting interventions as a first step to intervention development [17–19]. More frequently, qualitative studies have explored barriers and enablers to sitting less at work as a standalone study, without explicitly stating that these findings will then be used to inform the development of interventions [20–22].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 76%

Sitting less at work: a qualitative study of barriers and enablers in organisations of different size and sector

et al. 2019

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background Prolonged sitting is associated with a range of chronic health conditions and working in office-based jobs is an important contributor to total daily sitting time. Consequently, interventions to reduce workplace sitting have been developed and tested; however, no single intervention strategy consistently produces reductions in workplace sitting time. Exploring barriers and enablers to sitting less at work has been shown to support the development of more effective interventions. In order to address these barriers and enablers during the development and implementation of sit less at work interventions, it is important to understand how they may differ in different types of organisation, an area which has not yet been explored. The main aim of this study was to determine whether barriers and enablers to sitting less at work varied between organisations of different size and sector. Methods A qualitative study design was used. Four organisations of different sizes and sectors participated: a small business, a charity, a local authority and a large corporation. A total of ten focus groups comprising 40 volunteer employees were conducted. Focus groups were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim. Transcripts were then thematically analysed using pre-defined themes, but analysis also allowed for emergence of additional themes. Results Barriers and enablers which were consistently raised by participants across all four organisations primarily included: individual-level factors such as habits and routines, and personal motivations and preferences; and factors relating to the internal physical environment. Barriers and enablers that differed by organisation mainly related to: organisational-level factors such as organisational culture, organisation size, and ways of working; and factors relating to the broader social, economic and political context such as the idea of presenteeism, and the impact of wider economic and political issues. Conclusions This study found that although some themes were consistently raised by participants from organisations of different size and sector, participants from these organisations also experienced some different barriers and enablers to sitting less at work. For future research or practice, the study findings highlight that organisation-specific barriers and enablers need to be identified and addressed during the development and implementation of sit less at work interventions.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 76%

Sitting less at work: a qualitative study of barriers and enablers in organisations of different size and sector

et al. 2019

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Team leaders are perceived as pivotal in changing call agent perceptions of workplace PA and SB [18] and are frequently utilised in workplace interventions [61,62]. Accordingly, to provide call agents in the present study with interpersonal support from their team leader, all team leaders were invited to participate, with only call agents in the team of an interested and eligible team leader subsequently invited to participate.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Factors contributing to low PA and high SB at work among call agents are multifaceted and include high productivity requirements, sedentary working cultures and sitting-based workstations [18][19][20]. In contrast to other sectors of desk-based workers (i.e.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A multi-component intervention to sit less and move more in a contact centre setting: a feasibility study

et al. 2019

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background: Call agents spend~90% of their working day seated, which may negatively impact health, productivity, and wellbeing. This study aimed to explore the acceptability and feasibility of a multi-component workplace intervention targeting increased activity and decreased prolonged sitting in the contact centre setting prior to a full-scale effectiveness trial. Methods: An 8-week non-randomised pre-post feasibility study was conducted. Using a mixed methods approach, focus groups and interviews were thematically analysed to explore the acceptability and feasibility of key study phases, and provide context to agents' process evaluation and survey responses. The multicomponent intervention, conducted in a single call centre, included height-adjustable workstations, emails, education and training sessions, and support from team leaders and a workplace champion. Results: Six (of 20) team leaders were recruited, with 17 of 84 call agents (78% female, 39.3 ± 11.9 years) completing baseline assessments and 13 completing follow-up. High workload influenced recruitment. Call agents perceived assessments as acceptable, though strategies are needed to enhance fidelity. Education sessions, height-adjustable workstations and emails were perceived as the most effective components; however, height-adjustable hot-desks were not perceived as feasible in this setting. Conclusions: This study has identified unique, pragmatic considerations for conducting a multi-level, multi-component PA and SB intervention and associated evaluation in highly sedentary call agents in the challenging contact centre setting. The intervention was largely perceived positively, with call agents and team leaders describing numerous perceived positive effects on behavioural, health and work-related outcomes. Findings will be of value to researchers attempting to intervene in contact centres and will be used by the current authors to design a subsequent trial.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Contact centres (also known as call centres) are associated with higher levels of sedentary behaviour than other office-based workplaces [4,24,25]. Employees typically spend up to 90% of their working day sitting down [24]. The technology used by staff in contact centres prevents them from regularly leaving their desk and many call handlers often report stressful work environments due to low workplace autonomy, strict supervision of individual performance and commission-based salary systems [26].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Design, rationale and analysis plan for the Stand Up for Health trial in contact centres: a stepped wedge feasibility study

Parker

Manner

Sivaramakrishnan

et al. 2020

Pilot Feasibility Stud

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background Contact centres are one of the most sedentary workplaces, with employees spending a very high proportion of their working day sitting down. About a quarter of contact centre staff regularly experience musculoskeletal health problems due to high levels of sedentary behaviour, including lower back pain. There have been no previous randomised studies specifically aiming to reduce sedentary behaviour in contact centre staff. To address this gap, the Stand Up for Health (SUH) study aims to test the feasibility and acceptability of a complex theory-based intervention to reduce sedentary behaviour in contact centres. Methods The Stand Up for Health study has a stepped wedge cluster randomised trial design, which is a pragmatic design whereby clusters (contact centres) are randomised to time points at which they will begin to receive the intervention. All contact centre staff have the opportunity to experience the intervention. To minimise the resource burden in this feasibility study, data collection is not continuous, but undertaken on a selective number of occasions, so the stepped wedge design is “incomplete”. Eleven contact centres in England and Scotland have been recruited, and the sample size is approximately 27 per centre (270 in total). The statistical analysis will predominantly focus on assessing feasibility, including the calculation of recruitment rates and rates of attrition. Exploratory analysis will be performed to compare objectively measured sedentary time in the workplace (measured using an activPAL™ device) between intervention and control conditions using a linear mixed effects regression model. Discussion To our knowledge, this is the first stepped wedge feasibility study conducted in call centres. The rationale and justification of our novel staircase stepped wedge design has been presented, and we hope that by presenting our study design and statistical analysis plan, it will contribute to the literature on stepped wedge trials, and in particular feasibility stepped wedge trials. The findings of the study will also help inform whether this is a suitable design for other settings where data collection is challenging. Trial registration The trial has been registered on the ISRCTN database: http://www.isrctn.com/ISRCTN11580369

show abstract

Multi-Stakeholder Perspectives of Factors That Influence Contact Centre Call Agents’ Workplace Physical Activity and Sedentary Behaviour

Cited by 17 publications

References 53 publications

Sitting less at work: a qualitative study of barriers and enablers in organisations of different size and sector

Sitting less at work: a qualitative study of barriers and enablers in organisations of different size and sector

A multi-component intervention to sit less and move more in a contact centre setting: a feasibility study

Design, rationale and analysis plan for the Stand Up for Health trial in contact centres: a stepped wedge feasibility study

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About