While hundreds of Americans have not stepped foot in their employer’s office since the pandemic struck in 2020, 66% of companies now require workers to come into their facilities, and that’s expected to rise to 90% in early 2023.

Estimates that predicted 25% of all employees would be remote working by the end of 2022 now seem like a distant memory. But those employees who do work from home – even in a hybrid model – are seeing changes in family dynamics and relationships, as confirmed by recent research.

For many families, having at least one adult working from home has proven to be an unequivocal improvement to household mental health and relationships. In other cases, remote work has introduced new strains and burdens. One clear thing in all cases is that the change of tides towards remote work is making waves throughout the typical American household.

Since the massive shift toward remote work began in early 2020, there has been a constant conversation on the human impact of that shift.

A recent meta-analysis from the National Library of Medicine (NLM), now paints a more detailed, updated picture of the American family in the remote work era.

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The typical American 9-5 takes employees away from their families for more than just 8 hours per day. Additional factors like long commutes, overtime, and work events can diminish people’s time with their loved ones. Remote positions reduce this time away from family or even eliminate it.

Many families have seen an increase in their quality time together since one or more members switched to remote work. Per the NLM, that extra time can benefit the family’s well-being.

More time around family contributes to stronger relationships, a better understanding of one another, and more opportunities to offer family support. In addition, work-from-home employees tend to carry lower stress, further positively impacting interpersonal dynamics with family.

Also, there has been a significant drop in domestic violence crimes during this period. While the pandemic and work-from-home transitions undoubtedly gave rise to domestic violence in some instances, the NLM report reveals an overall trend with associated crimes down 8.7%.

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Old Burdens and New Ones in The Remote Work Era

Remote work offers potential for strengthening family ties, but it doesn’t guarantee it. In some cases, the new dynamic exacerbated existing tensions and even created new ones.

For instance, women who already bore a disproportionate share of unpaid household responsibilities often found this imbalance got worse after shifting to remote work. 

Instead of gaining more time to keep up with housework and childcare, many women experienced the opposite. Partners in these cases often adopted higher expectations and a more hands-off approach to ostensibly shared responsibilities after the transition, despite being more present.

Remote work also creates new challenges in raising children. While having a parent more present is generally positive, too much exposure to a parent’s work life could harm the way children think about work and their parents. Some experts suspect that kids could receive the wrong messages about workplace interpersonal dynamics and prioritizing work above family members.

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Remote Work, Families, and Mental Health

The transition to remote work is not necessarily good or bad for family dynamics. Families land across a spectrum of positive and negative experiences after this change. The lasting effects will depend largely on interpretation and intentionality.

Some families have found a bastion of safe, psychological support, and uplifting social connections within their households. Others have discovered new obstacles and rediscovered old ones.

What they all have in common is significantly more time together in this new stage.

One key finding of the NLM report is that work-life balance is more important for family relationships than remote work itself. On a broad scale, remote work doesn’t directly correlate to improved work-life balance. However, it is an opportunity.

Changing to a remote position allows workers to see their families more. It also creates more space to set clear boundaries with one’s job and protect that precious family time. On the other hand, in many cases, since work and home are comingled, boundaries may be harder to establish.

For those who acknowledge and grasp this opportunity, remote work could be one of the best things to happen to your family bonds and mental health. However, it is a significant life transition, and undergoing such changes with complacency may lead to disappointing results. 

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Facing The Remote Work Landscape as a Family

Remote work is changing the fabric of American families in several different ways. What can be an endless season of quality time and pillow forts can also become an echo chamber of stress and tension. Remote work impacts everyone differently, and that’s okay. 

If your recent family change toward remote work has been less than stellar, you’re not alone. This transition is challenging for many families, and change isn’t always easy. The best advice is to keep having conversations with your family, with professional support if needed, and keep working to draw out the positives of this new situation.

(C) Wealth of Geeks

This article was produced by Finance Quick Fix and syndicated by Wealth of Geeks. It was originally published at this site: https://wealthofgeeks.com/remote-work/