Zoom fatigue and virtual meetings: management mode

Following the mass adoption of online video communication tools, fatigue from too many virtual meetings has been a widespread phenomenon documented and analyzed since 2021. The excessive practice of virtual meetings has led to the concepts of "Zoom fatigue" and zoombie (anyone whose gray matter has been deteriorated by endless Zoom meetings).

If you only have a few short, well-spaced virtual meetings a week, you probably don't experience the phenomenon, but those who string together hours of virtual meetings and encounters, such as distance teachers, often experience one or more of the symptoms associated with too many virtual meetings:

• feeling exhausted after the meeting;
• feeling eye irritation;
• avoiding social situations after the meeting, craving solitude;
• feeling emotionally exhausted;
• feeling tired, wanting to do nothing.
  

Other behaviors are also signs of "Zoom Fatigue," such as trying to avoid, cancel, or reschedule video conferences, having difficulty organizing between multiple activities, and more generally remaining tense or tired.

Jeremy Bailenson, a professor at the Stanford Virtual Human Interaction Lab  published a scientific paper "Nonverbal Overload: A Theoretical Argument for the Causes of Zoom Fatigue" in the journal "Technology, Mind, and Behavior" that details the reasons and recommendations for avoiding the major side effects of virtual meetings.

The gist of it is in the Wikipedia article Zoom fatigue, reproduced below:

• Excessive close eye contact is very demanding.
  
  Because large faces close to one is normally associated with being in one's personal sphere.
  Reduce the video interface to its minimum size in an effort to reduce the surface area of faces and use a keyboard separate from the device in an effort to create a buffer zone between oneself and others.
  
  
• Constantly seeing yourself in real time during video exchanges is tiring.
  
  The mirror effect encourages us to constantly "be self-aware."
  Users should disable the platform's "mirroring" and only display a pleasing photo of themselves for them to see.
  
  
• Video exchanges greatly reduce our usual mobility.
  
  Normally our attention is all around the room in a wide field, we are not riveted to a screen.
  Users should instead use a separate camera from their device, allowing them to physically move around without losing eye contact with others. Also, on occasion, they should turn off their image broadcast completely, allowing for a mental break.
  
  
• The cognitive load is much higher in video exchanges.
  
  Looking for non-verbal cues, our attention is over-focused.
  During long encounters, users should occasionally switch to audio only mode. In this way, they could make socially unacceptable moves, but which would allow them to relieve tension without provoking negative reactions from interlocutors.

A short test to assess one's state of Zoom Exhaustion, the ZEF (Stanford Zoom Exhaustion & Fatigue Scale) is proposed. This test measures:

• Emotional fatigue,  related to feeling overwhelmed and drained after interactions with others.
• Motivational fatigue,  related to motivation to start an activity and feeling active.
• Visual fatigue, how you perceive your vision or visual distress.
• Social fatigue, feeling like you want to be alone after interactions with others.
• General fatigue
  

Prevention and reduction

The suggested behaviors to prevent fatigue are simple and seemingly effective, but more than that, reducing the frequency of meetings seems to be the best approach. 

1. Do we really need this meeting. Would an email exchange or a phone call be better? More generally, would there be a more efficient alternative to get to the outcome?
   
2. Are the people invited all the people who need to be there? No more, no less.
   
3. During the meeting, is a clear agenda established and adhered to in time?

Feeling like a waste of time is frustrating and exhausting. If we feel like we're being efficient, our energy and motivation remain.

Illustration: edited from Depositphotos - monkeybusiness

References

Nonverbal Overload: A Theoretical Argument for the Causes of Zoom Fatigue - Jeremy Bailenson -  Stanford Virtual Human Interaction Lab
https://tmb.apaopen.org/pub/nonverbal-overload/release/2

Test - Stanford Zoom Exhaustion & Fatigue Scale
https://stanforduniversity.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_3f9xepi9ryP7WK2

Zoom Exhaustion & Fatigue Scale (Article)
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2451958821000671

Stanford researchers identify four causes for 'Zoom fatigue' and their simple fixes - Vignesh Ramachandran - Stanford News
https://news.stanford.edu/2021/02/23/four-causes-zoom-fatigue-solutions/

Science just confirmed what you already knew: Zoom fatigue is real - Jill Waldbieser - Work Life
https://www.atlassian.com/blog/teamwork/science-just-confirmed-what-you-already-knew-zoom-fatigue-is-real

How to Combat Zoom Fatigue - Five research-based tips - Liz Fosslien and Mollie West Duffy - Harvard Business Review
https://hbr.org/2020/04/how-to-combat-zoom-fatigue

'Zoom Fatigue' Is Real - Here's How to Cope (and Make It Through Your Next Meeting) - Taneasha White - Healthline
https://www.healthline.com/health/zoom-fatigue

Zoom fatigue - Wikipedia - https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zoom_fatigue