The Use of Robots in the Workplace: Conclusions from a Health Promoting Intervention Using Social Robots Flashcards
Industry 4.0 / Fourth Industrial Revolution
the integration of digital technologies, such as the Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence, big data, and automation, into manufacturing and industrial processes to create more efficient, interconnected, and data-driven systems
Presenteeism
a workplace phenomenon where employees come to work while they are unwell or not fully productive, often due to factors like job insecurity, heavy workload, or company culture, leading to reduced performance and potentially negative health outcomes
Social Robots and Maintaining Health Behavior Changes
social robots may offer benefits in maintaing health behavior changes through personalized interactions
Aim of Study:
assessing the impact of a robotic agent compared to a human agent in a health-promoting intervention and its effects on productivity, organizational outcomes, and employee engagement
aims to contribute to the understanding of presenteeism, the Health Action Process Approach (HAPA) theoretical framework, the Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) model, and human-robot interaction in a workplace context
Health Action Process Approach (HAPA) theoretical framework
theoretical framework that explains how individuals transition from the motivational phase of deciding to adopt a health-related behavior to the volitional phase of actually implementing and maintaining that behavior
applied to the study
Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) model
psychological framework that examines how workplace factors, including job demands (stressors) and job resources (support and opportunities), interact to influence employees’ well-being and performance
Lifestyle Risk Behaviors
common and can jeopardize individuals’ physical and psychological health
strain healthcare resources and affect organizations and companies
workplace health programs aim to reduce healthcare costs by discouraging unhealthy behaviors like physical inactivity, tobacco use, poor dietary habits, and stress
Challenges to Implementing Health Interventions in the Workplace
lack of employee interest, especially among high-risk individuals who could benefit the most
lack of motivational support as a hindrance to adopting and maintaining lifestyle changes in health programs
high workloads, office temptations, and time constraints
Relationship between Health, Productivity, Engagement, and Mental Well-Being
ample evidence suggesting a strong connection between individuals’ health, well-being, and productivity outcomes, influenced by presenteeism and absenteeism
investing in workers’ health through preventive interventions aimed at discouraging unhealthy behaviors can enhance on-the-job performance and productivity
Work engagement
state of intense, positive, and fulfilling involvement in one’s job, characterized by a sense of dedication, enthusiasm, and absorption, leading to increased well-being and productivity in the workplace
Mental Well-Being
complex construct focused on life satisfaction, happiness, self-realization, and psychological functioning
Hypothesis 1 - Robot agent will lead to improved individuals’ productivity despite sickness presenteeism
True, group with robot agent had significantly higher post-test productivity despite sickness presenteeism levels than pre-test
Group with human agent showed no significant change in productivity between pre-test and post-test
Hypothesis 2 - Robot agent will lead to an improvement in individuals’ engagement
False, no differences in engagement levels between pre and post test for both the robot agent and human agent
Hypothesis 3 - Robot agent will lead to an improvement in individuals’ mental well-being
True, in the robot agent condition, post-test scores for mental well-being were significantly higher than pre-test
However, for the human agent condition, there was no statistically significant change in mental well-being between pre-test and post-test
Hypothesis 4 - Robot agent will lead to an improvement in productivity despite presenteeism, engagement and mental well-being
The type of agent had a significant effect on productivity despite presenteeism and mental well-being post-intervention scores but not on engagement post-intervention scores
