SFU Beedie School of Business professor Zhanna Lyubykh led a recently published study on the importance of taking breaks from work to increase performance.
According to the abstract, the research reviewed 83 existing empirical studies pertaining to the “relationship between work breaks and well-being and performance among knowledge workers.” The paper also highlights different categories of work breaks and how they affect the performance of workers differently. They categorized five features of work breaks which includes the initiator, duration of break time, frequency of breaks, activities done during the break, and experience.
To find out more about the research and its implications for students, The Peak interviewed Lyubykh.
Explaining the motivation behind undertaking the study, she said, “We know on an intuitive level that breaks are good for well-being. But what about performance?” Lyubukh noted some people might hesitate to take breaks because they are time consuming. However, they are an important opportunity for mental recovery. The study revealed breaks are essential to maintain performance.
Lyubykh noted the majority of the existing studies found a positive correlation between worker breaks and well-being. According to her, this was because taking breaks lowered levels of emotional exhaustion and depression.
Lyubykh’s interview touched on a specific kind of work break — social media. She found it is the most common form of break, used by 97% of people at work.
“What we see in the data is that social media may have some beneficial effects in the short run, but in the long run it can really harm people’s productivity,” she said. “I would generally suggest taking other types of breaks, especially given how much time we spend on the screen. For example, we’ve seen that engaging in things that are different from your work — exercising, enjoying nature, having a short walk — are usually more beneficial than browsing social media.”
Additionally, their study found taking unstructured breaks was found to be more beneficial, especially in the case of students. From an organization point of view, Lyubykh mentioned having rigid time slots for a break can be counter productive. Instead she recommended making time for breaks throughout the day, but not scheduling in a strict break time “because breaks are more beneficial when people can choose when they engage in those activities as well as the type of activity they engage in.”
For students, she said it’s important to prioritize breaks, especially when you are most busy. She underlined skipping breaks makes things worse and advised to keep an eye out for the mental indicators of fatigue.
