A metaverse has been used to carry out an anonymous study which found miscommunication and fear are root causes of anxiety in the workplace.
Virtual platform Rethinkly has been used to speak to people about anxiety and its impact on productivity – and 26% of respondents said they harbour all workplace tension and find confrontation too difficult.
The survey showed 35% of workers admit they are unable to fulfil any kind of public delivery such as presentations and client meetings without some form of anxiety, 28% said the inability to communicate within the workplace has had the largest impact on productivity and 18% said they worry they will be judged for making a mistake.
Furthermore, 15% of respondents are increasingly taking time off due to feeling so challenged and 25% felt that they have no voice in the workplace.
The software removes all real-world references to create a safe virtual space communicating anonymously using avatars.
Andrew Jackson, co-founder of Rethinkly, believes the survey shows an inherent culture of fear is a fundamental culprit in contributing to absenteeism and feeling disconnected from work.
He said: “Most challenges at work stem from a lack of or just bad communication.
“Communication challenges are directly aligned with morale, productivity, and commitment which have real business impact.
“Effective communication and building a strong culture based on healthy engagement are often talked about but surprisingly difficult to achieve.
“But when organisations start to embed and grow critical communication skills and adopt them as a competitive advantage, they can start to see a significant shift in their trajectory.
“Ambitious organisations are using tools like Rethinkly to discover what their talent really thinks and feels, only then do you have real power through more comprehensive data to make positive changes.”
It comes as a government report has shown the UK’s collective productivity is currently at its lowest and continues to rapidly decline post-pandemic – which has led to long-term absence due to poor mental health.
In this episode of the Safety & Health Podcast, ‘Burnout, stress and being human’, Heather Beach is joined by Stacy Thomson to discuss burnout, perfectionism and how to deal with burnout as an individual, as management and as an organisation.
We provide an insight on how to tackle burnout and why mental health is such a taboo subject, particularly in the workplace.
