Resilience during Crisis and the Role of Age: Involuntary Telework during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

We investigated the relationship between age, resilience, job demands and resources, and self-regulation in 1715 university employees during the COVID-19 pandemic (February 2021) by means of an online survey with closed and open questions. Correlation, regression, and qualitative analyses showed that older employees reported higher resilience than younger employees. This finding was robust after controlling for background factors (i.e., gender, expat status, job type, living alone). Age and resilience were directly related to higher job resources (i.e., job security and equipment), work–life balance, and seeing positives, whereas the relationship to demands was ambiguous. Age was unrelated to workload, negatively related to childcare, and positively to eldercare. Resilience was negatively related to workload but unrelated to childcare or eldercare demands. When all variables were combined to jointly predict resilience, age, job resources, and self-regulation resources predicted resilience, whereas demands (i.e., workload, childcare, and eldercare demands) did not. Our findings suggest that age-related advantages in well-being have persisted during the COVID-19 pandemic. Older workers were more likely to reframe the crisis and see it as an opportunity for personal growth. They possess and utilize resources in unique and beneficial ways, which could also benefit younger workers.

Hospitalization for COVID-19 is associated with a higher risk of subsequent hospitalization for psychiatric disorders: A French nationwide longitudinal study comparing hospitalizations for COVID-19 and for other reasons

“…A recent meta-analysis also found that anxiety levels were consistently associated with younger age during the pandemic [57]. This could be explained by the relationship between resilience and anxiety among COVID-19 patients, with older subjects showing higher levels of resilience [58][59][60].…”

“…This could be explained by the relationship between resilience and anxiety among COVID-19 patients, with older subjects showing higher levels of resilience [60][61][62].…”

Perceived Risk of COVID-19 and Employee Decision-Making: How Psychological Distress during the Pandemic Increases Negative Performance Outcomes among Healthcare Workers

“…The novel coronavirus, also known as COVID-19, is a highly transmittable and pathogenic disease [ 1 ]. It has instigated fear and caused panic all over the globe [ 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 ], negatively affected public health, crippled economies, and transformed social and business environments [ 16 ]. The COVID-19 pandemic, which is regarded as one of the worst pandemics in human history [ 17 ], has also had an unprecedented effect on the living conditions and deaths of human beings.…”

Psychological Research on Sleep Problems and Adjustment of Working Hours during Teleworking in the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Exploratory Study

“…In this work, we examined family contexts involving a new model of living in which several members are adapted to home confinement, with online work and school activities in the same space and at the same time. Sleep has been addressed considering the impact of telework and age/gender differences [ 5 , 7 , 12 , 13 ], but the evidence is still poor.…”

“…Considering the family context and work at home, the literature suggests that women and men behaved differently in terms of telework before the pandemic outbreak [ 12 ]. Women face less autonomy with remote work due to family constraints and the more roles they play in family tasks (working at home full-time).…”