Do digital competencies and social support boost work engagement during the COVID-19 pandemic?
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ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Oberlander M
PROVIDER: S-EPMC8733481 | biostudies-literature |
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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Project description:A regression analysis was conducted to assess the link between resilience, supervisor support, family and friend support, psychological empowerment, and facilitating conditions with work engagement using the Statistical Package of Social Sciences (SPSS) 26. This data was obtained from a cross-sectional survey of 259 knowledge workers in Malaysia. Specifically, this article provides data about the participants' demographic characteristics and the descriptive data of participants' responses. Further, the mean, standard deviation, reliability of the measured constructs, and regression analysis model summary are provided. This dataset offers suggestions to the top management in deducing ways to increase employees' work engagement during the COVID-19 pandemic.
| S-EPMC8653410 | biostudies-literature
Project description:In this paper we assess if two protective mechanisms for mental health - social support and social engagement - are associated with lower risk of reporting worsening mental health as a result of the pandemic. Using a demographically representative sample of working age adults in the United States (N = 4014) collected in February and March of 2021, we use logistic regression models to predict self-reported worsening mental health as a result of the pandemic using social support - measured as instrumental and emotional support - and social engagement. We use additional stratified models to determine if these relationships are consistent across rural-urban areas. Results indicate that among urban working age adults, emotional support, high levels of instrumental support, and some types of social engagement were associated with significantly lower risk of worsening mental health. However, among rural working age adults, only emotional support and high levels of instrumental support were significantly associated with lower odds of worsening mental health. Findings suggest that while emotional support may be effective for working age adults in lowering risk of worsening mental health from the pandemic, social engagement may not be for rural residents. The results support use of mental health promotion and prevention approaches that bolster emotional support through familial and local social networks, and raises caution about the efficacy of social engagement approaches in rural contexts.
| S-EPMC9304074 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic has changed work life profoundly and concerns regarding the mental well-being of employees' have arisen. Organizations have made rapid digital advancements and have started to use new collaborative tools such as social media platforms overnight.ObjectiveOur study aimed to investigate how professional social media communication has affected work engagement before and during the COVID-19 pandemic and the role of perceived social support, task resources, and psychological distress as predictors and moderators of work engagement.MethodsNationally representative longitudinal survey data were collected in 2019-2020, and 965 respondents participated in all 4 surveys. Measures included work engagement, perceived social support and task resources, and psychological distress. The data were analyzed using a hybrid linear regression model.ResultsWork engagement remained stable and only decreased in autumn 2020. Within-person changes in social media communication at work, social support, task resources, and psychological distress were all associated with work engagement. The negative association between psychological distress and work engagement was stronger in autumn 2020 than before the COVID-19 outbreak.ConclusionsThe COVID-19 pandemic has exerted pressure on mental health at work. Fostering social support and task resources at work is important in maintaining work engagement. Social media communication could help maintain a supportive work environment.
| S-EPMC8208471 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundDigital health, including telemedicine, is increasingly recommended for the management of chronic neurological disorders, and it has changed the roles of patients and clinicians.MethodsIn this cross-sectional study we aimed to investigate the digital work engagement of Italian neurologists through a survey collected between September 2020 and January 2021. Questionnaires were anonymous and collected demographic characteristics, attitudes towards digital devices and social media, and details about the clinician-patient relationship. We used logistic-regression models to identify characteristics associated with the propensity to communicate with patients using social media.ResultsAmong the 553 neurologists who participated to the study, smartphones and computers were widely preferred compared with tablets; wearable devices were not common, although some neurologists desired them. A total of 48% of participants reported communicating with patients using social media but only a few were in favor of social friendship with patients; WhatsApp was the social media most popular for professional (86%) and personal (98%) purposes. Propensity to communicate with social media was significantly higher among those who were older (p < 0.001) and lived in regions outside northern Italy (center: p = 0.006; south and the islands: p < 0.001). For 58% of responders, social media improved their relationship with patients, but 72% usually warned patients about unreliable websites.ConclusionsThe preferred social media were those which were rapid and which safeguard privacy more effectively; neurologists made many efforts to disprove fake news circulating online, providing help to patients in various ways. This analysis can help direct future interventions for the management of chronic neurological disorders.
| S-EPMC8299881 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Aims and objectivesTo assess formative and summative milestones in a digital course and the reach to low- and middle-income countries of a Massive Open Online Course focussing on supporting nurses dealing with an emerging pandemic.BackgroundThe severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has ravaged the globe and increased the need for timely and accurate information from reliable sources. Access to reliable and accurate information, as well as support, is important in achieving health systems strengthening. Using a Massive Open Online Course format, an educational resource aimed at large-scale interactive participation via the Internet, and participants were engaged in a course focussing on nursing in a time of crisis and involved using social learning principles.DesignObservational descriptive study.MethodRoutinely collected data were collated during the period of 18 May-18 July 2020 focused on both formative and summative milestones in the course. Data were separated and classified by income in accordance with the publicly accessible 2020 World Bank Open Dataset.ResultsDuring the 2-month period of observation (18 May-18 July 2020), 10,130 individuals from 156 countries enrolled in the course. More than 51% of participants were Active Learners. Thirty per cent completed over 90% of the course content by the end. There was widespread distribution of learners in low- and middle-income countries across Asia, Africa and Latin America.ConclusionThe COVID-19 pandemic has underscored the importance of reliable and valid information sources. The use of Massive Open Online Course format can facilitate dissemination.Relevance to clinical practiceIn the context of a dynamic global pandemic, leveraging digital resources to allow access to reliable information and resources is important. Incentivising participation through recognition of learning is important. Engaging in a social learning platform also has the power for reflection, promotion of resilience and capacity for health systems strengthening.
| S-EPMC8242900 | biostudies-literature
Project description:During the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, social service agencies (SSAs) play a crucial role in supporting renal patients, who are particularly vulnerable to infections. Social media platforms such as Facebook, serves as an effective medium for these SSAs to disseminate information. Content analysis of the SSAs' Facebook posts can provide insights on whether Facebook has been adequately utilized during the COVID-19 pandemic and enable SSAs to improve their social media use in future pandemics. This study aimed to compare renal-related SSAs' Facebook post content before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Facebook posts of three SSAs National Kidney Foundation (NKF), Kidney Dialysis Foundation (KDF), and Muslim Kidney Action Association (MKAC), posted during the pre-COVID-19 period (January 23, 2019 to June 2, 2019) and the peri-COVID-19 period (January 23, 2020 to June 1, 2020) were extracted. A classification scheme was developed by two coders with themes derived inductively and deductively. Each Facebook post was assigned with a theme. Quantitative analyses indicate that the number of Facebook posts increased from 115 in the pre-COVID-19 period to 293 in the peri-COVID-19 period. During peri-COVID-19, posts regarding lifestyle changes, donations and infectious disease surfaced. While the proportion of posts about encouraging kindness increased from one to 77 posts, the proportion of posts about community-based events and psychosocial support decreased from 44 to 15 posts and 17 to 10 posts respectively during the two periods. Facebook was found to be well-utilized by two of the three renal SSAs in engaging their beneficiaries during the pandemic. During future pandemics, renal SSAs should place emphasis on posts related to psychosocial support and encouraging kindness. Further studies are required to ascertain the impact of COVID-19 from the perspective of renal patients and also to validate the classification scheme which was developed in this study. The study's methodology and classification scheme can be used to guide future studies for evaluating the social media outreach performance of renal health support groups.
| S-EPMC8476881 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Aims and objectivesTo clarify both the potential influencing factors and the current status of front-line nurses' work engagement, and thus provide a reference for targeted interventions.BackgroundAfter coronavirus disease 2019 outbreak, front-line nurses embraced remarkable potential stress and huge workload when caring for coronavirus disease 2019 patients, which may lead to new challenges to work engagement.DesignA large sample survey was conducted at the end of February 2020 in a designated hospital treating coronavirus disease 2019 patients in Wuhan, the capital of Hubei Province, in China. t Test, one-way ANOVA, chi-squared test, Pearson's correlation and hierarchical multiple regression were performed among 1,040 nurses using SPSS 24.0. The STROBE checklist was followed for observational studies.ResultsThe final model interpreted 27.3% of the variance, of which each block could explain 11.7%, 10.3% and 7.9% R2 changes including sociodemographic characteristics, stress and workload, respectively. Work engagement was negatively correlated with stress and workload. The potential influencing factors included sociodemographic characteristics (married, rescue staff, cabin ward), stress (infection control, PPE discomfort) and workload (mental demand, performance, frustration).ConclusionsFront-line nurses perceived low stress and workload, but high work engagement, especially in self-dedication. However, infection control, PPE discomfort and frustration were negatively associated with nurses' work engagement, while mental demand and good performance were positively associated with nurses' work engagement. Future interventions focused on decreasing front-line staff's infection risk and enhancing their self-confidence may be recommendable to promote their work engagement.
| S-EPMC8014711 | biostudies-literature
Project description:COVID-19 has stretched the U.S. social safety net and prompted federal legislation designed to ameliorate the pandemic's health and economic impacts. We surveyed a nationally representative cohort of 1222 U.S. adults in April 2020 and November 2020 to evaluate changes in public opinion about 11 social safety net policies and the role of government over the course of the pandemic. A majority of U.S. adults supported six policies at both time points, including policies guaranteeing two weeks of paid sick leave; enacting universal health insurance; increasing the federal minimum wage; and increasing government spending on construction projects, business tax credits, and employment education and training. From April to November 2020, public support was stable for nine of the 11 policies but declined nearly 10 percentage points for policies guaranteeing two weeks paid sick leave (from 76% support in April 2020 to 67% support in November 2020) and extending unemployment insurance benefits (51% to 42%). Declines in support for these two policies were concentrated among those with higher incomes, more education, in better health status, the employed, and those with health insurance. The share of respondents believing in a strong role of government also declined from 33% in April to 26% in November 2020 (p > 0.05). Despite these shifts, we observed consistent majority support for several policies enacted during the pandemic, including guaranteeing paid sick leave and business tax credits, as well as employment-related policies.
| S-EPMC8620405 | biostudies-literature
Project description:An increased use of social networks is one of the most far-reaching consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. Aside from the traditional media, as the main drivers of social communication in crisis situations, individual profiles have emerged supported by social networks, which have had a similar impact to the more specialized communication media. This is the hypothesis of the research presented, which is focused on health communication and based on a virtual ethnography methodology with the use of social metrics. The aim is to understand the relationship established between the population in general and digital media in particular through the measurement of engagement. In this regard, a comparative study was carried out that describes this phenomenon over a period of six months on three social networks: YouTube, Twitter and Instagram, with a sample composed of specialized health media versus healthcare professionals. The results point to a new communications model that opens up a new space for agents whose content has a degree of engagement comparable to and even exceeding that of digital media specialized in health communication. The conclusions show that the crisis of the pandemic has accelerated the transformation of the communication sector, creating new challenges for the communication industry, media professionals, and higher education institutions related to market demands.
| S-EPMC7400399 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundVaccines are one of the most important achievements of modern medicine. However, their acceptance is only partial, with vaccine hesitancy and refusal representing a major health threat. Influenza vaccines have low compliance since repeated, annual vaccination is required. Influenza vaccines stimulate discussions both in the real world and online. Social media is currently a significant source of health and medical information. Elucidating the association between social media engagement and influenza vaccination is important and may be applicable to other vaccines, including ones against COVID-19.ObjectiveThe goal of this study is to characterize profiles of social media engagement regarding the influenza vaccine and their association with knowledge and compliance in order to support improvement of future web-associated vaccination campaigns.MethodsA weblink to an online survey in Hebrew was disseminated over social media and messaging platforms. The survey answers were collected during April 2020. Anonymous and volunteer participants aged 21 years and over answered 30 questions related to sociodemographics; social media usage; influenza- and vaccine-related knowledge and behavior; health-related information searching, its reliability, and its influence; and COVID-19-related information searching. A univariate descriptive data analysis was performed, followed by multivariate analysis via building a decision tree to define the most important attributes associated with vaccination compliance.ResultsA total of 213 subjects responded to the survey, of whom 207 were included in the analysis; the majority of the respondents were female, were aged 21 to 40 years, had 1 to 2 children, lived in central Israel, were secular Israeli natives, had higher education, and had a salary close to the national average. Most respondents (128/207, 61.8%) were not vaccinated against influenza in 2019 and used social media. Participants that used social media were younger, secular, and living in high-density agglomerations and had lower influenza vaccination rates. The perceived influence and reliability of the information on social media about COVID-19 were generally similar to those perceptions about influenza.ConclusionsUsing social media is negatively linked to compliance with seasonal influenza vaccination in this study. A high proportion of noncompliant individuals can lead to increased consumption of health care services and can, therefore, overload these health services. This is particularly crucial with a concomitant outbreak, such as COVID-19. Health care professionals should use improved and targeted health communication campaigns with the aid of experts in social media. Targeted communication, based on sociodemographic factors and personalized social media usage, might increase influenza vaccination rates and compliance with other vaccines as well.
| S-EPMC7968480 | biostudies-literature