4-Day Workweek Boosts Productivity: "Increased Sleep Time Is Key"

Boston College Professor Juliet Shore's Research Team
Four-Day Workweek Employees Sleep 7.58 Hours Per Day
"Increased Sleep Time Improves Short-Term Memory and Concentration"

The four-day workweek has been shown to have a positive impact on well-being and productivity, including life satisfaction and work-family balance. Photo by Pixabay

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Juri] A study has found that when companies switch to a four-day workweek, most of the extra time workers gain is spent sleeping. The research team emphasized that this could lead to increased work productivity.

According to Bloomberg on the 28th (local time), Professor Juliet Shore's research team at Boston College surveyed 304 workers from 16 companies in the US, Australia, and Ireland participating in a four-day workweek pilot program. They found that the average sleep duration of four-day workweek employees was 7.58 hours per day.

This is about one hour longer than during a five-day workweek, indicating that workers used seven of the eight additional hours gained from the four-day workweek for sleep.

Professor Shore noted that the proportion of four-day workweek employees sleeping less than seven hours at night dropped sharply from 42.6% to 14.5%, expressing surprise at the increase in sleep duration due to the four-day workweek.

Furthermore, he explained that the four-day workweek positively impacted well-being and productivity aspects such as life satisfaction and work-family balance, suggesting that these results might be influenced by the increase in sleep time.

Professor Christopher Barnes of the University of Washington's Business School also introduced research findings that sleep deprivation leads to unethical behavior, decreased work engagement, uncooperative behavior toward colleagues, and more aggressive and sadistic leadership tendencies.

He emphasized that reducing sleep time for work can harm health and decrease job performance.

Professor Cleet Kushida of Stanford University also stated that increased sleep time appears to help work by improving workplace atmosphere, short-term memory, concentration, and job performance skills.

He added, "Sleeping more is always good," and "The degree of improvement varies by individual, but the greatest effect is being able to stay alert throughout the day."