In Simple Words
Imagine attempting to write a document in a quiet room versus a busy kitchen where someone asks a question every few minutes. Stopping and restarting a task repeatedly breaks mental momentum, making the total output per minute significantly lower even if total hours spent are identical.
Women first assigned office gig offers in Kolkata
- Not offered a home-work upgrade
- Group used for comparison
- Accepted a home-work upgrade
- Output per minute 19% lower
Office-offer subgroup. Acceptance was a choice, so selection may matter. Home sessions were 10 minutes shorter; interruptions are a possible explanation. Other initial offers omitted.
See source →Research question
Transitioning employment from centralized office spaces to flexible home environments introduces domestic interruptions that fragment working hours. Caregiver responsibilities in home settings disrupt continuous task execution, impairing productivity and individual output rates.
Participants
Subset of 1,670 women in Kolkata, West Bengal, India participating in a smartphone-based digital task intervention.
Study Design
Randomized job option upgrade intervention where half of office-assigned participants were offered a switch to home-based flexible working arrangements.
Results
Participants who upgraded from office to flexible home work produced 19 percent less output per minute and experienced work sessions that were on average 10 minutes shorter due to home interruptions.
Takeaway
Structure home-based micro-task assignments into short, self-contained units that minimize flow-state disruption penalties during domestic interruptions.