Thursday, November 20, 2014
The
more
time
you
spend
getting
to
and
from
work,
the
less
likely
you
are
to
be
satisfied
with
life,
says
a
new
study
by
Applied
Health
Sciences
faculty,
Margo
Hilbrecht,
Steven
Mock,
and
Bryan
Smale.
Published
in
World
Leisure
Journal,
the
research
reveals
exactly
why
commuting
is
such
a
contentment
killer—and
surprisingly,
traffic
isn’t
the
only
reason
to
blame.
While
commuting
has
long
been
thought
to
have
some
upsides,
like
providing
time
to
unwind
and
transition
from
the
workday,
the
new
findings
suggest
the
opposite
is
true
for
most
people.
Long
commutes
bad
for
health,
well-being
The
researchers
analyzed
data
from
Statistics
Canada
to
better
understand
the
links
between
commute
time
and
well-being.
They
found
that
on
top
of
being
linked
to
lower
life
satisfaction,
long
commute
lengths
are
related
to
an
increased
sense
of
time
pressure.
“Some
people
may
enjoy
a
commute,
but
overall,
longer
travel
time
is
linked
to
feelings
of
time
crunch,
which
can
increase
stress
levels,”
says
Hilbrecht.
Lengthy
commutes
have
already
been
linked
to
poor
mental
and
physical
health,
including
hypertension,
obesity,
low-energy
and
illness-related
work
absences.
Why
commutes
drag
you
down
Beyond
bad
traffic,
the
researchers
found
one
other
factor
to
be
highly
correlated
with
commuters’
life
satisfaction:
physical
activity.
“We
learned
that
commuters
who
had
time
for
physical
leisure
had
higher
life
satisfaction,”
says
Hilbrecht.
“Physical
activity
can
mitigate
commuting-related
stress
if
workers
can
include
it
in
their
daily
routines,
but
the
obvious
constraint
is
time
scarcity.
Longer
commutes
mean
less
time
for
other
activities,
which
leads
to
lower
life
satisfaction.”
Other
factors
linked
to
higher
life
satisfaction
among
commuters
include
flexible
work
hours
and
a
higher
household
income.
According
to
the
study,
women
reported
higher
levels
of
time
pressure,
as
did
those
with
a
partner
or
spouse.
Call
for
changes
Hilbrecht
hopes
that
the
new
findings
will
help
contribute
to
the
development
of
programs
and
policies
to
support
better
health.
“The
message
to
employers
is
that
encouraging
flexible
work
hours
or
providing
time
for
physical
leisure
can
pay
dividends
in
their
employees’
satisfaction
with
life.”
Hilbrecht
acknowledges
that
this
may
not
be
an
easy
sell,
but
stresses
the
importance
of
starting
the
conversation.
“A
long
commute
is
detrimental
to
health.
Maybe
it’s
better
to
take
a
job
that
pays
a
little
less
money
but
is
closer
to
home.
If
you
have
a
choice,
it’s
worth
looking
at
the
impact
of
the
commute
on
well-being.”