Reopening after lockdown: The influence of working-from-home and digital device use on sleep, physical activity, and wellbeing following COVID-19 lockdown and reopening

Massar, Stijn A A; Ng, Alyssa S C; Soon, Chun Siong; Ong, Ju Lynn; Chua, Xin Yu; Chee, Nicholas I Y N; Lee, Tih Shih; Chee, Michael W L

STUDY OBJECTIVES: COVID-19 lockdowns drastically affected sleep, physical activity, and wellbeing. We studied how these behaviors evolved during re-opening the possible contributions of continued working from home and smartphone usage. METHODS: Participants (N=198) were studied through the lockdown and subsequent reopening period, using a wearable sleep/activity tracker, smartphone-delivered ecological momentary assessment (EMA) and passive smartphone usage tracking. Work/study location was obtained through daily EMA ascertainment. RESULTS: Upon re-opening, earlier, shorter sleep and increased physical activity were observed, alongside increased self-rated stress and poorer evening mood ratings. These re-opening changes were affected by post-lockdown work arrangements and patterns of smartphone usage. Individuals who returned to work or school in-person tended towards larger shifts to earlier sleep and wake timings. Returning to in-person work/school also correlated with more physical activity. Contrary to expectation, there was no decrease in objectively measured smartphone usage after reopening. A cluster analysis showed that persons with relatively heavier smartphone use prior to bedtime had later sleep timings and lower physical activity. CONCLUSIONS: these observations indicate that the re-opening after lockdown was accompanied by earlier sleep timing, increased physical activity, and altered mental wellbeing. Moreover, these changes were affected by work/study arrangements and smartphone usage patterns.