Exhausted by remote meetings? How to avoid common pitfalls

In autumn, many people will again find themselves engaged in one remote meeting after another. How should remote meetings be held so that they would be useful to the participants? What creates strain in the meetings, and how could these aspects be reduced? Did you know that the leader of a remote meeting feels stress for partly different reasons than the other participants do?
Published
9.8.2023

A joint project between the universities of Jyväskylä and Oulu has provided new knowledge on these issues. The PhInGain project (Reducing Strain and Increasing Gain of Remote Workgroup Meetings with Physiological Indicators) investigated the experiences of the participants of remote workgroup meetings regarding stressful and useful moments as well as collaborative relationships and the related interactional factors in such meetings. The strain of the meetings was measured by observing the participants’ heart rate during the remote meetings.

The PhInGain project was funded by the Finnish Work Environment Fund. The findings of the project will be reported in more detail at the final seminar on 21 August 2023 in Jyväskylä.

Active participation in discussion is worth it

It was found that remote connections can promote good interaction that the participants consider useful. For the success of a meeting, active participation in discussion is beneficial: The participants considered a meeting to be more useful the more actively they participated in the discussion with their own speaking turns.

“Over remote connections, psychological safety develops more slowly than in face-to-face settings,” Associate Professor Virpi-Liisa Kykyri points out. “For this reason it is good to have some small talk at the beginning of the meeting, like also in face-to-face meetings. It helps us build connection with others.”

Body language is limited, technical problems create strain

Over a video connection, body language, which is quite important for successful interaction, gets altered or does not get across at all. Hence, in a remote meeting it is more difficult to assess and control the impression other people get from oneself than when meeting face to face. Thus, remote meetings often feel straining.

Technical issues are common, meaning troubleshooting and problem-solving take time from the actual agenda of the meeting. Disturbances break the smooth flow of conversation and are straining to everybody, but particularly to the leader of the meeting, who is responsible for its success.

A shared calming-down moment lowered heart rates

The project experimented with a shared, quiet calming-down moment with closed eyes at the beginning of the remote meeting. In two minutes, the participants’ heart rates lowered to a statistically significant degree. Based on questionnaire responses, this brief calming down had been important and useful to many people.

“Especially if the work situation is straining, such means are advisable in the light of our findings,” Kykyri says. The meetings were found to be less useful when people participated in them when they were already in a strained state.

However, a similar physiological change was not detected in the leaders of meetings, which is probably due to their highlighted responsibility for the proceedings.

The project has also developed computer-based machine vision technology for heart rate measurement (rPPG) and for the recognition of facial expressions. With the help of these, it is possible to get real-time information about physiological changes in the discussion participants and thereby about the variation of stress and alertness during meetings. In the future, it will be possible to develop applications to help reduce the strain and increase the gain from remote meetings.

Learn more about the study’s findings at the project’s final seminar on 21 August 2023 in Jyväskylä and through remote connections

The final seminar will address, among other issues, the following questions:

  • What kind of challenges do remote connections pose to interaction?
  • What kind of interaction was detected in the remote meetings that were considered useful?
  • What kind of participant activity seems particularly beneficial?
  • How does a straining work situation affect people’s experience of the benefit from a meeting and of the quality of interaction?
  • What kind of factors do strain the participants and leaders of meetings?
  • How can the strain be measured in the future by means of a computer display?
  • What are potential applications in the future that could increase the gain and reduce the strain of remote meetings?

You are invited to come listen and discuss the more specific results of the research project!

Time: Monday, 21 August 2023 at 1-4 p.m.
Place: Ģֱ, Agora, Lea Pulkkinen Hall (Mattilanniemi 2, 40100 Jyväskylä). The event can also be attended via remote connection.

Some portions of the Seminar will be held in English. In connection with the seminar, there is an opportunity to visit the Interaction Laboratory of the Department of Psychology, Ģֱ.

Participation in the seminar is free of charge.

Registration is necessary for catering and lab tour arrangements or for sending the link for remote attendance.

See you at the seminar!

Further information: