Case Study on the Relationship Between Socio-Demographic Characteristics and Work-from-Home Behavior Before, During, and After the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Many studies have explored the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on work-from-home (WFH) behavior from different perspectives. However, it is rare to find studies focusing on how the newly adopted WFH practices will affect commuting patterns in the post-pandemic era. This study defines two mediation factors to capture the perceptions of pandemic severity and work environment at home and further investigates their impacts on future WFH adoption. This study utilizes a comprehensive survey and a path analysis method known as structural equation modeling (SEM) to explore the association between demographic factors, perception of COVID-related issues, and WFH behavior before, during, and after the pandemic. The results show that motherhood negatively affected WFH experiences in the before, during, and after periods of the pandemic. It was also found that being forced to WFH and mixing the working environment with their children made mothers less likely to WFH in the post-pandemic era. The results also show that older workers are less appreciative of the WFH approach and are less likely to continue to WFH in the post-pandemic era. The findings also confirmed the association between WFH during and after the pandemic with other factors, such as age and education. The positive or negative experiences with WFH during the pandemic will significantly shape workers’ decisions on continuing to WFH in the post-pandemic era. These findings could help transportation agencies understand the impacts of these factors on the choices of WFH during and, more importantly, after the pandemic era.