Understanding Working from Home Practical Changes and Adaptations During the COVID-19 Pandemic

TL;DR

This study explores how individuals adapted to working from home during COVID-19, highlighting increased reliance on asynchronous communication, environmental distractions, and the potential for technology to improve remote work support.

Contribution

It provides empirical insights into practical changes and adaptations in remote work during the pandemic, emphasizing communication and environmental challenges.

Findings

Increased reliance on asynchronous communication slowed efficiency.

Home environment caused distractions and lacked facilities.

Passive adaptation to limitations may be unsustainable long-term.

Abstract

While much work focuses on the impacts of the pandemic on people's psychological and physical health, it is still unclear about the practical changes and adaptations. In this work, we interviewed 46 participants who were forced to work from home. Results show that there is an increased reliance on asynchronous communication, which slowed communication efficiency and decreased initiative to communicate. The home environment causes distraction from households and lacked facilities but is embraced by a group of people. Many people had to passively adapt to the communication and environmental changes and accept the limitations of technology, a situation that is not sustainable in the long run. We pointed out how technology can potentially play a larger role in supporting communication and coping with environmental changes in the future.