Examining the associations of using the Calm app with team mindfulness and psychological safety in remote workers

Objective: The purposes of this study were to (1) illustrate how remote workers engage with an employer-provided mindfulness meditation app in the workplace and (2) examine the relationship between workplace app engagement, team mindfulness, and psychological safety among remote workers. Methods: A...

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Main Authors: Megan E. Puzia, Jeni Green, Claire Clarke, Sara Cloonan, Jen Huberty
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Japan Society for Occupational Health 2022-06-01
Series:Environmental and Occupational Health Practice
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/eohp/4/1/4_2022-0001-OA/_html/-char/en
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author Megan E. Puzia
Jeni Green
Claire Clarke
Sara Cloonan
Jen Huberty
author_facet Megan E. Puzia
Jeni Green
Claire Clarke
Sara Cloonan
Jen Huberty
author_sort Megan E. Puzia
collection DOAJ
description Objective: The purposes of this study were to (1) illustrate how remote workers engage with an employer-provided mindfulness meditation app in the workplace and (2) examine the relationship between workplace app engagement, team mindfulness, and psychological safety among remote workers. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was administered to employees within the United States who had received a subscription to Calm as part of their health benefits. Employees reported on three types of engagement with the Calm app in the context of the workplace — opportunities use to Calm together during the workday, using Calm with team members, and discussing Calm content with teams — and completed measures of team mindfulness and psychological safety. Fixed-effects regression models were used to assess effects of workplace app engagement on psychological safety and team mindfulness in remote workers. Results: Of 60,000 workers contacted, 801 employees completed the survey (1.3%) and 437 were full-time remote workers (0.7%). Only 20% of remote workers reported having opportunities to use Calm at work. Opportunities to use Calm at work was positively associated with team mindfulness (β=2.39, p=0.005) and psychological safety (β=1.85, p=0.005). Using Calm with team members was only significantly associated with team mindfulness (β=2.99, p=0.046) and discussing Calm with team members was only significantly associated with psychological safety (β=1.17, p=0.029). Conclusions: Creating opportunities for employees to engage with a mindfulness meditation app while at work may help foster team mindfulness and psychological safety, especially for remote workers. Considering the research limitations, future studies should investigate longitudinal relationships within workplace teams.
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spelling doaj.art-6efdce851ec04301b9744077325dec6e2022-12-22T00:24:43ZengJapan Society for Occupational HealthEnvironmental and Occupational Health Practice2434-49312022-06-014110.1539/eohp.2022-0001-OAeohpExamining the associations of using the Calm app with team mindfulness and psychological safety in remote workersMegan E. Puzia0Jeni Green1Claire Clarke2Sara Cloonan3Jen Huberty4https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0276-4640Behavioral Research and Analytics, LLC, United StatesCollege of Health Solutions, Arizona State University, United StatesCalm.com, Inc., United StatesCollege of Health Solutions, Arizona State University, United StatesCalm.com, Inc., United StatesObjective: The purposes of this study were to (1) illustrate how remote workers engage with an employer-provided mindfulness meditation app in the workplace and (2) examine the relationship between workplace app engagement, team mindfulness, and psychological safety among remote workers. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was administered to employees within the United States who had received a subscription to Calm as part of their health benefits. Employees reported on three types of engagement with the Calm app in the context of the workplace — opportunities use to Calm together during the workday, using Calm with team members, and discussing Calm content with teams — and completed measures of team mindfulness and psychological safety. Fixed-effects regression models were used to assess effects of workplace app engagement on psychological safety and team mindfulness in remote workers. Results: Of 60,000 workers contacted, 801 employees completed the survey (1.3%) and 437 were full-time remote workers (0.7%). Only 20% of remote workers reported having opportunities to use Calm at work. Opportunities to use Calm at work was positively associated with team mindfulness (β=2.39, p=0.005) and psychological safety (β=1.85, p=0.005). Using Calm with team members was only significantly associated with team mindfulness (β=2.99, p=0.046) and discussing Calm with team members was only significantly associated with psychological safety (β=1.17, p=0.029). Conclusions: Creating opportunities for employees to engage with a mindfulness meditation app while at work may help foster team mindfulness and psychological safety, especially for remote workers. Considering the research limitations, future studies should investigate longitudinal relationships within workplace teams.https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/eohp/4/1/4_2022-0001-OA/_html/-char/enmeditationmobile applicationspsychological safetyteam mindfulnessworkplace climate
spellingShingle Megan E. Puzia
Jeni Green
Claire Clarke
Sara Cloonan
Jen Huberty
Examining the associations of using the Calm app with team mindfulness and psychological safety in remote workers
Environmental and Occupational Health Practice
meditation
mobile applications
psychological safety
team mindfulness
workplace climate
title Examining the associations of using the Calm app with team mindfulness and psychological safety in remote workers
title_full Examining the associations of using the Calm app with team mindfulness and psychological safety in remote workers
title_fullStr Examining the associations of using the Calm app with team mindfulness and psychological safety in remote workers
title_full_unstemmed Examining the associations of using the Calm app with team mindfulness and psychological safety in remote workers
title_short Examining the associations of using the Calm app with team mindfulness and psychological safety in remote workers
title_sort examining the associations of using the calm app with team mindfulness and psychological safety in remote workers
topic meditation
mobile applications
psychological safety
team mindfulness
workplace climate
url https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/eohp/4/1/4_2022-0001-OA/_html/-char/en
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