Who says back, says return of videoconferences and frozen smiles in front of our webcam.Doesn't that enchant you?So much the better: a recent study proves that turning off your camera during virtual meetings makes us more productive, but also less tired.

If the end of the """"minimal number of days"""" of telework was announced on September 1 for private companies, the videoconferences have not yet been bowed out.Source of proven mental exhaustion, these interposed screen meetings have become the bane of employees, who very often emerge and less productive.What if the solution, during these virtual meetings, was simply to turn off your camera?

Admittedly, the idea seems counter-intuitive, but it would allow to be less tired at work and even more effective.This is what researchers at the University of Arizona advance in a new study published in the scientific journal Journal of Applied Psychology.

""""It is wrongly believed that having his camera on during a videoconference will make us more involved in our work,"""" notes Allison Gabriel, management professor and the main author of the study.""""But being faced with a webcam also puts the pressure on us.This implies having a professional 'professional', to look ready, or to ensure that children are not in the same room as we.""""

Fewer interactions during meetings

For four weeks, Allison Gabriel and her team carried out experience with 103 volunteer employees, who had to participate in virtual meetings daily with their lit camera, or off.When it was extinguished, the researchers realized that the employees were no longer forced to focus on their image, and therefore participated more actively in virtual exchange.

""""Quand les participants à l'étude ont reçu l’ordre de garder leur caméra allumée, ils ont rapporté une plus grande fatigue que leurs homologues qui ne l'utilisaient pas"""", note Allison Gabriel. """"Cette fatigue a entraîné une diminution de la parole et de l’engagement pendant les réunions.So, in reality, those who had lit cameras potentially participated less than those who did not use cameras.""""

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These effects were all the more marked in women and employees who arrived recently within a structure, reveals the study. Chez eux, la caméra a généré davantage de fatigue, liée à la pression d'avoir l'air """"présentable"""".An observation which had already been the subject of a major study, published last April in the scientific journal Social Science Research Network (SSRN).

For more productivity within a company, the idea would therefore be to leave the choice for employees to turn on or not their camera.And if your boss insists, you will now know what to answer him.