Validation of an Employee Remote Workplace Stress Measure Embedded Within a Novel Employee Wellbeing App

Rationale To the investigator's knowledge, there is no existing psychometric scale to measure employee wellbeing and work-related stress while working remotely. As working remotely is likely to be a core feature for workers for the foreseeable future, either fully or in hybrid form, we believe this is a fruitful area for study. Additionally, there have been very few studies published regarding employee wellbeing while working from home, largely because the pandemic is a new phenomenon. Development and validation of a psychometric measure of employee wellbeing while working remotely is an important step in understanding the impact of remote working on workplace stress and wellbeing.

Theoretical Framework The theoretical framework used in this study integrates aspects of the two aforementioned models based on our conceptualisation of remote working and its impact on employee wellbeing. The investigator hypothesises that employee wellbeing is influenced by four domains: (1) environmental; (2) support; (3) social; and (4) boundaries. The environmental domain contains factors such as having an inadequate work environment (e.g. unsuitable chairs, diskspace, interruptions from family, pets, deliveries, etc.). The support domain contains factors such as the ability to access support through one's organization (e.g. supervisors, HR, occupational health, etc.) and one's team of colleagues. The social domain contains factors such as the ability to maintain social relationships with colleagues, and the ability to have informal contact like one would in an office (e.g. chatting while making a drink). The boundaries domain contains factors such as ability to work contracted hours, ability to take breaks, ability to 'switch off' and maintain distance between home and work lives.

The investigator further hypothesises that the influence of these domains is moderated by personal factors such as mood, resilience, mental health status, physical health status, etc. For example, if an employee already has an established back condition causing pain, an inadequate workspace lacking a supportive chair will worsen this condition, likely causing some distress, affecting employee wellbeing. Combine this with an inability to contact one's supervisor or HR department to correct the issues, distress is likely to be heightened, causing further decline in employee wellbeing.

Quality Assurance and Protocol Compliance The research is designed to be compliant with this protocol. Protocol compliance will be assessed and monitored throughout the study by the lead researcher. Any deviations from the protocol will be recorded and evaluated. The research is being guided by the American Institute of Stress, although they are not the sponsors of this study. This also helps with quality assurance. The principal researcher and author is a psychology graduate with a Master's degree in Psychology (studying for a doctorate in clinical psychology from September 2021), working on a freelance basis.

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