A major new Australian study has provided some of the clearest evidence yet on how the now-commonplace practice of working from home affects workers' psychological wellbeing, revealing significant differences between men and women.
Two decades of data paints a clear picture
Researchers from the University of Melbourne analysed an impressive 20 years of data from the national Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey. This allowed them to track the work patterns and mental health of more than 16,000 employees over the long term.
To ensure their findings reflected normal conditions, the team deliberately excluded the turbulent pandemic years of 2020 and 2021. Their statistical models also accounted for major life events, isolating the specific effects of commuting and remote work arrangements.
Commuting hits men harder, hybrid model boosts women
The research uncovered a clear gender divide. For women, the length of their daily commute showed no detectable impact on their mental health scores. For men, however, the story was different. Longer commute times were linked to poorer mental health, but specifically for those men who were already struggling psychologically.
The effect was measurable: for an average man, adding 30 minutes to his one-way trip reduced his reported mental health by an amount equivalent to a 2 per cent drop in his household income.
When it came to working from home, the benefits were most pronounced for women. The study found a strong positive effect on women's mental health, but crucially, only under a specific hybrid arrangement. The biggest gains were seen when women worked mainly from home but still spent one to two days each week in the office.
For women with initially poor mental health, this hybrid model led to improvements comparable to those from a substantial 15 per cent rise in household income. The analysis confirmed these benefits went beyond simply saving time on a commute, pointing to reduced workplace stress and better work-life balance as key factors.
Key takeaways for workers, employers, and policymakers
The study's lead message is that workers with poorer mental health are most sensitive to their work arrangements. They benefit the most from reduced commutes and flexible working-from-home options, likely because they have less capacity to handle additional stress.
Conversely, those with strong mental health showed less sensitivity to either commuting times or work location.
Based on these findings, the researchers, Jan Kabatek and Ferdi Botha from the Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, offer clear recommendations. They advise workers to personally monitor how different arrangements affect their wellbeing. Employers are urged to offer flexible, hybrid models and to treat commute time as a legitimate factor in wellbeing discussions, avoiding rigid return-to-office mandates. For policymakers, the advice is to invest in transport and strengthen frameworks that support flexible work.
The study underscores that there is no one-size-fits-all approach to the future of work, but that targeted flexibility can deliver significant mental health dividends, particularly for those who need it most.
