Boredom in the Workplace: Reasons, Impact, and Solutions

Abstract

Boredom in the workplace is not uncommon, and has been discussed widely in the academic literature in relation to the associated costs to individuals and organizations. Boredom can give rise to errors, adverse patient events, and decreased productivity-costly and unnecessary outcomes for consumers, employees, and organizations alike. As a function of boredom, individuals may feel over-worked or under-employed, and become distracted, stressed, or disillusioned. Staff who are bored also are less likely to engage with or focus on their work. In this article, we consider the nature of boredom and also the reasons why employees, including mental health nurses, become bored in the workplace. We also discuss the role that can be taken by employees and employers to recognise and address the problem of boredom and we consider how best to develop sustainable workplaces that are characterised by engaged employees who provide the best possible service in healthcare settings.

Two Tales of Rumination and Burnout: Examining the Effects of Boredom and Overload

“…Managers may also take advantage of job crafting, as looking for novelty and innovation in one’s work has been shown to reduce work‐related boredom (Harju, Hakanen, & Schaufeli, 2016). Additional strategies, such as providing breaks, creating meaningful environments, using humor or developing effective time management skills have also been suggested (Cleary et al, 2016). Nevertheless, in the case of bored employees, managers should take into consideration that, although these workers benefit from these activities, they are usually less motivated to engage in such behaviors, being “trapped” in a negative spiral (Harju et al, 2016).…”

“…Boredom is a subjective experience, as individuals may interpret a given situation differently. Nonetheless, factors such as limited interactions with colleagues, opportunities for progression or lack of options or inadequate resources contribute to the experience of boredom (Cleary, Sayers, Lopez, & Hungerford, 2016). It is a rather complex individual experience, as it often comes with conflicting behavioral patterns.…”

Predictores del agotamiento laboral por aburrimiento laboral en una muestra de trabajadores de la industria bancaria de Puerto Rico

“…Also, they say that there is not a well-grounded theory on work boredom, but there are a few concepts established on boredom. Many studies point out that it has identified a range of individual and work-related factors that can be associated with workplace boredom; moreover, boredom does have an impact on job satisfaction, commitment and decreased productivity (Cleary, Sayers, Lopez, & Hungerford, 2016;Mael, & Jex, 2015;Whiteoak, & Mohamed, 2016). However, Velasco (2017) argue that recent literature suggests that workplace boredom goes beyond monotony; other studies focus on the possibility that some employees are boredom-prone by nature.…”

Can nursing students' perceived teacher enthusiasm dampen their class-related boredom during theoretical lessons? A cross-sectional study among Chinese nursing students

“…Class-related boredom experienced by nursing students may affect their health (Deasy et al, 2016) and learning outcomes (Zhou et al, 2016). Therefore, elevating the task value and reducing the level of boredom are core goals in theoretical and practical research in education (Perkins and Hill, 1985;Pekrun et al, 2010) and nursing settings (Cleary et al, 2016).…”