Exploring the link between work and health: workaholism and family history of metabolic diseases

International Journal of Workplace Health Management,Volume 10, Issue 2, April 2017. Purpose Examine if facets of workaholism are associated with a family history of metabolic diseases. Design/methodology/approach Data on workaholism and family history of health issues were collected, through administration of an online survey, from 194 employees. Findings Workaholism significantly related to a family history of metabolic diseases. Research limitations/implications Future researchers should collect objective disease data, examine work-related moderators as well as potential mediators, and implement longitudinal designs with much larger samples. That said, our data reveal a correlation between workaholism and family history of metabolic disease. Practical implications The results provide valuable information to help promote a healthy workforce and to improve employees ’ health by reducing workaholic tendencies. They could also help to minimize health-related costs associated with metabolic diseases that could develop in parallel with workaholism, as well as costs in terms of a loss in productivity due absenteeism. Originality/value Ours is the first study t o investigate the relationship between facets of workaholism and family history of health issues that have often been associated with metabolic diseases.

Source: International Journal of Workplace Health Management - February 16, 2017 Category: Occupational Health Source Type: research