Global News: Being a workaholic isn’t as dangerous to your health as you might think

Originally found at GlobalNEWS

Workaholism, a defining characteristic of the career-obsessed professional who compulsively checks emails on the weekend and while on vacation, has always been painted as a negative trait. Studies have linked it to health issues like heart disease and diabetes, as well as depression and anxiety.

But a study conducted by Simon Fraser University, in conjunction with the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and the University of North Carolina Charlotte, found there is no evidence that working long hours will increase the risk of these disorders. It appears in the fall issue of the Academy of Management Discoveries.

The reason for this is that there are different types of workaholics: those who are engaged and those who aren’t.

“The general assumption is that being a workaholic is bad for you and will lead to a heart attack, but we found that only the people who weren’t engaged in their work had higher risk of metabolic syndrome, which is the overarching measure for cardiovascular disease and diabetes,” Lieke ten Brummelhuis, assistant professor of management at the Beedie School of Business at Simon Fraser University and lead author of the study, tells Global News.

In addition, she says, not all workaholics are driven by the same factors.

When we talk about workaholics, we’re looking at two different dimensions: those who work excessively and those who work compulsively.

The difference is the former group works that way of their own accord, while the latter is driven by compulsion and guilt.

Continue reading original article at Global News.

Learn more about the AOM Scholars and explore their work:

• Lieke L. Ten Brummelhuis, Simon Fraser University
• Nancy P. Rothbard, University of Pennsylvania
• Benjamin Uhrich, University of North Carolina – Charlotte