Hybrid Office Workers - Does location matter for mental stress?

Hybrid work arrangements have become increasingly prevalent in contemporary workplaces, yet their impact on employee stress remains understudied. While research has explored the perceived productivity, job satisfaction, and general stress levels of hybrid workers, quantitative data on mental stress levels based on specific work locations within hybrid models is limited.  This research aims to address this gap by examining the relationship between hybrid work arrangements and employee stress levels. By quantifying mental stress levels across different work locations, this study will provide valuable insights for organizations seeking to optimize hybrid work policies and promote employee well-being.

Presenting Speaker

Martha Parker, M.S., CPE is an ergonomist and managing director of the Texas A&M Ergo Center in College Station, TX.  She contributes to and manages multiple consulting projects, continuing education classes, and research projects within the Ergo Center.  In addition, Ms. Parker guides and mentors students as they understand the multi-factorial determinants of increased productivity and decreased injury/illness.  Formerly with m-erg, an ergonomic consulting firm based in Houston, TX, Martha was president and founder.  Her m-erg team technically supported customers by offering ergonomic assistance in design, redesign, and retrofit of new and existing office and industrial workspaces.  m-erg also provided ergonomic training through seminars and individual workstation evaluations.  Prior to that, Martha worked for Neutral Posture, Inc. as an ergonomist and was a founding member of the Neutral Posture Ergonomic Engineering Team (NEET).  She also worked for ALCOA, Tennessee Operations as the smelting safety engineer and for Texas A&M University as a graduate research assistant.  Martha is currently enrolled as a PhD student in interdisciplinary engineering at Texas A&M, and she earned her M.S. degree in Safety Engineering with an Ergonomic Specialty in May 1997. Her graduate thesis is entitled "An Investigation of the Transportation Methods of Laptop Computers".  She acquired a B.S. in Bioengineering with an Industrial Engineering Specialty from Texas A&M in December 1995.  She is a member of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society (HFES), Institute of Industrial and Systems Engineers (IISE), and the American Society of Safety Professionals (ASSP).  She is registered with the International Well Building Institute as a WELL Accredited Professional (WELL AP) and with the Board of Certification in Professional Ergonomics as a Certified Professional Ergonomist (CPE).