Association Between Objective and Subjective Indoor Coldness During Winter and Presenteeism: A Cross-Sectional Study...

Area of Science:

• Occupational Health
• Environmental Psychology
• Human Factors Engineering

Background:

• Presenteeism, or working while unwell, leads to significant productivity loss.
• Indoor environmental factors like temperature can influence worker well-being and performance.
• Understanding the impact of cold exposure on work functioning is crucial for occupational health.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine the relationship between objective room temperature (coldness) and subjective feelings of coldness with presenteeism.
• To quantify the impact of cold exposure on work functioning impairment.

Main Methods:

• Cross-sectional study of 2,568 Japanese workers.
• Objective room temperature measured over two weeks in winter.
• Subjective coldness assessed via a four-point scale; presenteeism via the Work Functioning Impairment Scale (WFun).
• Generalized linear models used for analysis, adjusting for confounders.

Main Results:

• Lower room temperature and higher frequency of feeling cold were associated with presenteeism.
• In a simultaneous model, only subjective feelings of coldness remained significantly associated with presenteeism.
• A dose-response relationship was observed between subjective coldness and work functioning impairment.

Conclusions:

• Both objective and subjective indoor coldness are linked to impaired work functioning.
• Subjective perception of coldness demonstrates a robust association with presenteeism, even when controlling for actual room temperature.
• Addressing subjective experiences of cold may be key to mitigating presenteeism in cold environments.