14 DAY TRIAL // According to a new scientific study conducted by researchers at the University of Rochester, it would appear that all people who work, regardless of their jobs, tend to fare better during the weekend than in workdays. The work took into account factors such as aches and pains, mood, vitality and others of the sort. The research group again substantiates the claims that the “weekend effect” is real, and also that it influences the lives of lawyers, secretaries, construction workers and physicians alike.
“Workers, even those with interesting, high status jobs, really are happier on the weekend. Our findings highlight just how important free time is to an individual's well-being. Far from frivolous, the relatively unfettered time on weekends provides critical opportunities for bonding with others, exploring interests and relaxing – basic psychological needs that people should be careful not to crowd out with overwork,” UR Professor of Psychology Richard Ryan explains.
He is also the author of a new paper detailing the findings, which appears in the January 2010 issue of the Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology. The investigation also uncovered the fact that people tended to associate the weekend (Friday night to Sunday afternoon) with the possibility of pursuing their own interests, or spending time with their loved ones, after five hard days on the job. The study was conducted on 74 adults, aged 18 to 62, all of whom worked for more than 30 hours each week.
Ryan is currently investigating methods of creating work environments that would promote employee wellness, in the sense that the people won't see the five workdays as being completely separated from their weekend anymore. “To the extent that daily life, including work, affords a sense of autonomy, relatedness, and competence, well-being may be higher and more stable, rather than regularly rising and falling,” the expert says. Scientists at the Virginia Commonwealth University and the McGill University have also been involved in the new research.