Påverkar arbetstider välmående? - en kvantitativ studie om sambandet mellan upplevd flexibilitet av arbetstider och självskattat psykiskt välmående

Sammanfattning: The purpose of the study was to examine the relationship between perceived flexibility of working hours and self-reported mental well-being. This due to the fact that some studies have found that flexibility in working hours was beneficial for mental well-being, while others have found the opposite. The method was a cross-sectional survey. Mental well- being was measured using Mental Health Continuum Short Form (MHC-SF) and perceived flexibility of working hours was assessed with a self-constructed measurement based on relevant literature. The participants (N=153) were gathered using convenience sampling which was expanded into snowball sampling. The population was Swedes over 18 years old who worked full time and during day time. The result from correlation analysis showed no relationship between perceived flexibility of working hours and self- reported mental well-being (rho=.-054, p=.509). Mann-Whitney U-test and chi-square test for independence did not show any significant results. The conclusion drawn was that the nonexistent correlation could be due to that perceived flexibility of working hours and self-reported mental well-being were not related, that the advantages and disadvantages of fixed and flexible working hours cancelled each other out, that there were moderating variables which affected the covariation or that the participants were not representative for the population. The results indicated that there is need for more research in the field.