There are more workers to work from home and more students to study from home. This is because computer technology is more and more easily accessible and cheaper. Do you think it is a positive or negative development?
An increasing number of people nowadays conduct their work and study from the comfort of their homes as a result of the advancements in computers. In my view, although this trend, like any other, has its drawbacks, these are largely outweighed by the associated personal and social benefits.
To begin, there are health-related side effects associated with this change. The sedentary lifestyle of modern humans has been at the core of many health issues in the modern world, a problem this change has only aggravated. As unintentional as it may be, but traveling to work or study is a form of exercise for people, an exercise that has largely been taken away due to an increasing number of people preferring to work or study from home. However, it is equally true that, due to the saved traveling time, these people have extra time to attend to their health. The sedentary lifestyle can, thus, be considered more of a conscious choice than a condition forced by circumstances.
On individual level, the most obvious upside has been an improved work-life balance for people who have embraced this new trend. Some of their time and energy, which would otherwise have been expended on traveling, is saved and people are able to give more time to their hobbies or families. Collectively, this change has proved beneficial for the living environment. To explain, a significant cause of rising pollution levels has been the excess number of vehicles, with daily commuters or student travelers being the prime culprit. With more people being able to study or work from home, however, the number of vehicles, and consequently, the amount of pollution has decreased.
In conclusion, although the trend of working and studying from home does pose health risks, these can easily be overcome through individual effort. The advantages, in this case – better work-life balance and a healthier environment, make this a positive development overall.
