Effect of Exercise Intervention on Pain, Disability, Job Stress, and Quality of Life in Office Workers With Neck Pain

1. INTRODUCTION

With the digitalization of working life, the center of gravity of work-related musculoskeletal disorders has shifted from occupational sectors dominated by heavy physical loads to office environments characterized by prolonged static loads. The office worker spends the majority of the day in a sitting position, with the head and neck fixed toward the screen and the upper extremities relatively immobile over the keyboard and mouse. When considered individually, this working pattern appears harmless; however, it creates a cumulative mechanical and neuromuscular load on the cervical region, with neck pain emerging as the most visible clinical outcome.

Neck pain ranks among the top contributors to years lived with disability worldwide among musculoskeletal conditions. Global Burden of Disease data show that neck pain is a widespread and persistent public health burden, and this burden will continue to rise as working patterns become increasingly digitalized. A problem so prevalent in the general population becomes even more pronounced in groups with concentrated exposure, such as office workers, where the annual prevalence of neck pain in this population is reported to range between 42% and 63%. Research conducted on computer-using office workers in Turkey also confirms that the most frequently reported musculoskeletal symptom occurs in the neck region.

The vast majority of neck pain observed in office workers is non-specific in nature; meaning no specific identifiable structural pathology can be shown as the source of pain. Nevertheless, the pain significantly impacts the individual's daily living activities, work performance, and psychological well-being. A cluster of interacting mechanisms plays a role in its pathogenesis. Under prolonged static posture, activation of the deep cervical flexor muscles decreases, while compensatory hyperactivation develops in the superficial muscles. This neuromuscular reorganization weakens the dynamic support of the cervical segments, impairs proprioceptive feedback, and creates a vicious cycle that contributes to the persistence of pain. Viewing the issue solely through a biomechanical lens provides an incomplete framework; evidence is growing stronger that psychosocial factors-such as job stress, low job satisfaction, and lack of support-play a decisive role in the onset and chronicity of neck pain.

In the management of non-specific neck pain, exercise currently holds the strongest evidence base among intervention methods. Strengthening, stretching, and motor control exercises targeted at the cervical and scapulothoracic regions have been shown to exert positive effects on pain, disability, and quality of life, while also improving psychosocial outcome measures such as job stress.