How Work Location Influences Task Selection and Well-being: A Qualitative Study of Hybrid Workers

Abstract

Hybrid work allows employees to choose among offices, homes, and third places, yet practical guidance on matching tasks to locations and understanding well-being mechanisms remains limited. This qualitative study examines how hybrid workers select locations for tasks and how environmental characteristics shape well-being. Nineteen information workers in Japan completed semi-structured interviews of thirty minutes during December 2023 and January 2024. Inductive coding identified five task categories, mapped task–location correspondence, organized environmental factors, and classified well-being effects; mention tallies complemented interpretation. Location choice varied by task: meetings and synchronous collaboration were widely distributed; creative and conceptual work concentrated in third places; administrative and routine tasks were most often performed at home; and deep-concentration work showed pronounced individual differences. Private rooms or booths and reliable connectivity were pivotal enablers, while their insufficiency was the most frequent constraint. Third places were linked to refreshment and enhanced creativity; homes supported concentration and time efficiency; negative well-being effects were limited. Against mixed evidence on working from home, the findings support autonomy-supportive hybrid systems that treat location as a strategic resource and invest in quiet enclosed spaces and robust networks across sites.

Keywords: Hybrid Work, Work Location, Task–Location Fit, Well-being, Third Places, Workation

DOI: 10.54941/ahfe1006990