Part 1. Vocabulary
|
fatigue |
/fəˈtiːg/ n. - extreme
tiredness that is usually caused by physical or mental activity Example: He is suffering from mental fatigue. |
|
engaged |
/ɛnˈgeɪdʒd/ adj. - involved
in or doing something, especially in an interesting way Example: She was so deeply engaged in her book that she
didn’t hear a word I said. |
|
correlate |
/ˈkɔːrəleɪt/ v. - to have a
relationship or connection Example: A poor diet is correlated with a higher risk of
heart disease. |
|
counter |
/ˈkoun(t)ər/ v. - to act or
speak in opposition to something Example: The government is looking at ways to counter the
effects of the recession. |
|
conventional |
/kənˈven(t)SH(ə)n(ə)l/ adj. - based on
or relating to what is generally or typically done, believed, etc. Example: Lots of people have been shifting
from conventional cigarettes to electronic alternatives. |
|
wisdom |
/ˈwizdəm/ n. - the
quality of having a lot of experience and knowledge Example: He is regarded as a man of great intelligence
and wisdom. |
Part 2. Comprehension Questions
What may be one way to make virtual meetings less tiring?
How many employees participated in the four-week experiment?
Where does this fatigue correlate?
Who was more tired during virtual meetings? Why?
Part 3. Article
Using a Camera in Virtual Meetings May Increase
Fatigue
Meetings can be tiring. But if you're doing virtual meetings from home,
there may be one way to make them a little less tiring: turning off your
camera. At least that's what a new study from the University of Arizona
suggests.
The study, published in
the Journal of Applied Psychology, examined whether having the
camera on or off during virtual meetings affected fatigue.
Researchers did a four-week
experiment that included more than 100 employees from the same company in
Tucson, Arizona. Employees were asked to keep their cameras either on or off during all
of their meetings for two weeks, and then to switch for the next two weeks.
At 6:30 p.m. each day, participants
did a survey measuring their fatigue and how often they spoke and were engaged
during their meetings that day.
At the end of the experiment,
the researchers found that having the camera on during meetings increased the
employees' levels of fatigue.
Allison Gabriel, one of the
study's authors, said this fatigue correlated to less speaking and engagement
during meetings.
"So, in reality, those
who had cameras on were potentially participating less than those not using
cameras," she said. "This counters the conventional wisdom that cameras are required to
be engaged in virtual meetings."
Gabriel said there's a lot of
pressure to look good when on camera. "Having a professional background and looking
ready, or keeping children out of the room are among some of the
pressures," she said.
The study also found keeping
the camera on during meetings was more tiring for women and newer employees. The study authors thought this may be because these
groups feel more pressure to look good and perform well.
Using cameras in virtual
meetings is quite common. In a 2021 survey from consulting firm Virtira, which included more than
1,700 people, 61% said the video was required for all of their meetings. And more than 25% felt pressured to keep their
cameras on, even when it wasn't required.