UofL research shows connection between work and health

With employee burnout high and the Great Resignation looming, pioneering new research from the University of Louisville shows some likely drivers in workplace culture could impact more than just job choices — they could have a real impact on health. 

The UofL study is believed to be the first to connect biomarkers for chronic disease risk to factors such as stress, employee capacity for work assigned, workplace physical and social environment and whether we see our work as meaningful. The findings are published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health.

These factors are part of a new concept the UofL researchers have coined “Work Determinants of Health," which they hope will become a model for both employers and employees to better understand the health impacts of workplace culture.

“For a long time, we’ve assumed that workplace culture can impact our health,” said Brad Shuck, an author on the study and organizational culture researcher in UofL’s College of Education and Human Development. “This study shows, in biological terms, that assumption is true and improving our understanding of these links could help both employees and employers make better, more informed decisions that keep everyone healthy and happy in their work environments.”

In the study, Shuck and UofL Christina Lee Brown Envirome Institute researchers Kandi Walker, Joy Hart and Rachel Keith asked participants to complete questionnaires on their well-being and work determinants of health factors, such as how engaged and positive or negative they felt about their work environment. Walker and Hart hold faculty appointments in the College of Arts & Sciences and Keith is a faculty member in the School of Medicine.

[caption id="attachment_57420" align="alignright" width="679"] Left to right, UofL researchers Joy Hart, Kandi Walker, Brad Shuck and Rachel Keith form a team that has shown, with biological data, the link between Work Determinants of Health and real health effects.[/caption] The researchers then compared the survey results with biological samples that measure hormones signaling sympathetic nervous system activity. When higher than normal over a long period, these hormones indicate chronic stress and increased risk of cardiovascular disease and other chronic health conditions.   The results showed participants who reported greater well-being, engagement and positive feelings toward their work environment had lower levels of these stress-associated hormones, while the opposite was true for participants reporting poor well-being, isolation and negative feelings toward work.    “Stress is fine in smaller, short-term doses, and may even help us to finish an important project or solve a big crisis,” Keith said. “But if our work culture puts us under constant stress, this study suggests it can affect our health and our risk for chronic conditions over time.”   Stress and related burnout remain a leading cause of employee resignation, especially among younger workers. In a recent survey by Deloitte, about 46% of Gen Z and 45% of millennial workers reported feeling burned out by their work environments. Stress can negatively impact employee health – as the UofL study suggests – but it also can impact worker retention, as indicated by a fair number of both Gen Z and millennials reporting that they hoped to leave their jobs within two years. Shuck said better understanding of work determinants of health could help reduce burnout and improve both employee retention and health.   The work determinants of health concept and model, along with Shuck’s previous work to measure employee engagement, are protected through the UofL Office of Research and Innovation and are licensed or optioned to OrgVitals, an organizational metrics company he co-founded.   “Understanding these cultural factors and what contributes to an employee’s health and engagement in their work environment is good for everyone,” he said. “By understanding the work determinants of health, we can create better and healthier work environments that attract and retain great talent who want to be engaged.”