IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/sae/sagope/v13y2023i2p21582440231173654.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Job Satisfaction and Overcoming the Challenges of Teleworking in Times of COVID-19: A Pilot Study Among Iranian University Community

Author

Listed:
  • Fereshteh Ahmadi
  • Saeid Zandi
  • Mohammad Khodayarifard
  • Önver A. Cetrez
  • Sharareh Akhavan

Abstract

The coronavirus pandemic changed the academic world in many ways, and most academic institutions continue operating through teleworking. The aim of the present study was to determine how satisfied the university community (faculty/staff members and students) in Iran has been with remote work, and the ways in which they have dealt with the lockdown and working from home during the coronavirus pandemic. A survey was conducted among 196 academics from different universities in Iran. The results show that a majority of our participants (54%) are very or somewhat satisfied with the current work-from-home arrangement. The most frequently used methods for managing the challenges of teleworking were social contacts with colleagues or classmates at a distance , solidarity and offering kindness and support to the people around them . The least used coping method was trusting state or local health authorities in Iran . The coping strategies that have the highest impact on overall teleworking satisfaction are “ Make myself busy with my working day because it makes me feel useful ,†“ I care for my mental and physical health ,†and “ Think about what I can do rather than what I can’t do .†The findings were discussed in detail, taking into consideration the theoretical approaches, as well as bringing forth more dynamic aspects of the culture.

Suggested Citation

  • Fereshteh Ahmadi & Saeid Zandi & Mohammad Khodayarifard & Önver A. Cetrez & Sharareh Akhavan, 2023. "Job Satisfaction and Overcoming the Challenges of Teleworking in Times of COVID-19: A Pilot Study Among Iranian University Community," SAGE Open, , vol. 13(2), pages 21582440231, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:sagope:v:13:y:2023:i:2:p:21582440231173654
    DOI: 10.1177/21582440231173654
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/21582440231173654
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1177/21582440231173654?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Fereshteh Ahmadi & Önver Andreas Cetrez & Saeid Zandi, 2023. "Living through a Global Pandemic: A Cross-Sectional Study on the Psychological Resilience of the University Population in Iran," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(6), pages 1-14, March.
    2. Eric Brunelle & Jo-Annie Fortin, 2021. "Distance Makes the Heart Grow Fonder: An Examination of Teleworkers’ and Office Workers’ Job Satisfaction Through the Lens of Self-Determination Theory," SAGE Open, , vol. 11(1), pages 21582440209, February.
    3. Tsitsi Chirombe & Sharon Benza & Epiphania Munetsi & Herbert Zirima, 2020. "Coping Mechanisms Adopted By People During The Covid-19 Lockdown In Zimbabwe," Business Excellence and Management, Faculty of Management, Academy of Economic Studies, Bucharest, Romania, vol. 10(5), pages 33-45, October.
    4. Peter D. Lunn & Cameron A. Belton & Ciarán Lavin & Féidhlim P. McGowan & Shane Timmons & Deirdre A. Robertson, 2020. "Using behavioral science to help fight the Coronavirus," Journal of Behavioral Public Administration, Center for Experimental and Behavioral Public Administration, vol. 3(1).
    5. Agota Giedrė Raišienė & Violeta Rapuano & Kristina Varkulevičiūtė & Katarína Stachová, 2020. "Working from Home—Who Is Happy? A Survey of Lithuania’s Employees during the COVID-19 Quarantine Period," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(13), pages 1-23, July.
    6. repec:eme:ws0000:00438020210418791 is not listed on IDEAS
    7. Johnson, J.V. & Hall, E.M., 1988. "Job strain, work place social support, and cardiovascular disease: A cross-sectional study of random sample of the Swedish Working Population," American Journal of Public Health, American Public Health Association, vol. 78(10), pages 1336-1342.
    8. Maayan Shacham & Yaira Hamama-Raz & Roni Kolerman & Ori Mijiritsky & Menachem Ben-Ezra & Eitan Mijiritsky, 2020. "COVID-19 Factors and Psychological Factors Associated with Elevated Psychological Distress among Dentists and Dental Hygienists in Israel," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(8), pages 1-7, April.
    9. Itzhak Harpaz, 2002. "Advantages and disadvantages of telecommuting for the individual, organization and society," Work Study, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 51(2), pages 74-80, April.
    10. Fereshteh Ahmadi & Mohammad Khodayarifard & Mohammad Rabbani & Saeid Zandi & Mona Sabzevari, 2022. "Existential Meaning-Making Coping in Iran: A Qualitative Study among Patients with Cancer," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 11(2), pages 1-20, February.
    11. Hartman, Alexandra C. & Morse, Benjamin S., 2020. "Violence, Empathy and Altruism: Evidence from the Ivorian Refugee Crisis in Liberia," British Journal of Political Science, Cambridge University Press, vol. 50(2), pages 731-755, April.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Jimmy Stephen Munobwa & Fereshteh Ahmadi & Saeid Zandi & Natalie Davidsson & Sharareh Akhavan, 2022. "Coping Methods and Satisfaction with Working from Home in Academic Settings during the COVID-19 Pandemic," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(19), pages 1-13, October.
    2. Monica Aureliana Petcu & Maria Iulia Sobolevschi-David & Adrian Anica-Popa & Stefania Cristina Curea & Catalina Motofei & Ana-Maria Popescu, 2021. "Multidimensional Assessment of Job Satisfaction in Telework Conditions. Case Study: Romania in the COVID-19 Pandemic," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(16), pages 1-16, August.
    3. Jun Yu & Yihong Wu, 2021. "The Impact of Enforced Working from Home on Employee Job Satisfaction during COVID-19: An Event System Perspective," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(24), pages 1-22, December.
    4. Hannah Carver & Tracey Price & Danilo Falzon & Peter McCulloch & Tessa Parkes, 2022. "Stress and Wellbeing during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Mixed-Methods Exploration of Frontline Homelessness Services Staff Experiences in Scotland," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(6), pages 1-20, March.
    5. Suzuki, Etsuji & Takao, Soshi & Subramanian, S.V. & Komatsu, Hirokazu & Doi, Hiroyuki & Kawachi, Ichiro, 2010. "Does low workplace social capital have detrimental effect on workers' health?," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 70(9), pages 1367-1372, May.
    6. Akiomi Inoue & Hisashi Eguchi & Yuko Kachi & Sarven S. McLinton & Maureen F. Dollard & Akizumi Tsutsumi, 2021. "Reliability and Validity of the Japanese Version of the 12-Item Psychosocial Safety Climate Scale (PSC-12J)," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(24), pages 1-14, December.
    7. Juan Sandoval-Reyes & Sandra Idrovo-Carlier & Edison Jair Duque-Oliva, 2021. "Remote Work, Work Stress, and Work–Life during Pandemic Times: A Latin America Situation," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(13), pages 1-12, July.
    8. Georges Steffgen & Philipp E. Sischka & Martha Fernandez de Henestrosa, 2020. "The Quality of Work Index and the Quality of Employment Index: A Multidimensional Approach of Job Quality and Its Links to Well-Being at Work," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(21), pages 1-31, October.
    9. Huizing, Anna R. & Hamers, Jan P.H. & de Jonge, Jan & Candel, Math & Berger, Martijn P.F., 2007. "Organisational determinants of the use of physical restraints: A multilevel approach," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 65(5), pages 924-933, September.
    10. Rosie Mulholland & Andy McKinlay & John Sproule, 2013. "Teacher Interrupted," SAGE Open, , vol. 3(3), pages 21582440135, September.
    11. Matteo Sestito, 2023. "Identity conflict, ethnocentrism and social cohesion," AMSE Working Papers 2304, Aix-Marseille School of Economics, France.
    12. Myra Sader & Barthélemy Chollet & Sébastien Brion & Olivier Trendel, 2021. "Supported, detached, or marginalized? The ambivalent role of social capital on stress at work," Post-Print hal-03167159, HAL.
    13. Lea Sell & Bryan Cleal, 2011. "Job Satisfaction, Work Environment, and Rewards: Motivational Theory Revisited," LABOUR, CEIS, vol. 25(1), pages 1-23, March.
    14. Joan Costa-i-Font & Cristina Vilaplana-Prieto, 2023. "Health System Trust and Compliance with Covid-19 Restrictions," CESifo Working Paper Series 10291, CESifo.
    15. Fujishiro, Kaori & Xu, Jun & Gong, Fang, 2010. "What does "occupation" represent as an indicator of socioeconomic status?: Exploring occupational prestige and health," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 71(12), pages 2100-2107, December.
    16. Alexander Matros & Vladimir Smirnov & Andrew Wait & Helen Zhang, 2023. "Microfoundations of work intensification and burnout," Working Papers 2023-02, University of Sydney, School of Economics.
    17. Lutz Bellmann & Olaf Hübler, 2022. "Personality traits, working conditions and health: an empirical analysis based on the German Linked Personnel Panel, 2013–2017," Review of Managerial Science, Springer, vol. 16(2), pages 283-318, February.
    18. Leonard Bright, 2022. "Why Does PSM Lead to Higher Work Stress? Exploring the Role that Organizational Identity Theory has on the Relationship between Public Service Motivation and External-Related Stress among Federal Gove," Public Organization Review, Springer, vol. 22(3), pages 803-820, September.
    19. Alba Yela Aránega & Clara Gonzalo Montesinos & Raúl Castaño Urueña & Rafael Castaño Sánchez, 2025. "Digitalization intention in entrepreneurs and SMEs: a structural equation model of digital behavior and work-life balance," International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, Springer, vol. 21(1), pages 1-22, December.
    20. Emmanuel Maziti & Agnes Mujuru, 2020. "Levels Of Hopelessness During Covid19 Imposed Lockdown," Business Excellence and Management, Faculty of Management, Academy of Economic Studies, Bucharest, Romania, vol. 10(5), pages 155-167, October.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:sae:sagope:v:13:y:2023:i:2:p:21582440231173654. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: SAGE Publications (email available below). General contact details of provider: .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.