Reading online news 'may boost workplace productivity'
Friday, 03, Apr 2009 08:48
Taking a break at work to read the news online could improve workplace productivity, according to a new Australian study.
Research led by Dr Brent Coker of the University of Melbourne's department of management and marketing found that people who engage in Workplace Internet Leisure Browsing (WILB) are up to nine per cent more productive in the office than those who do not take short breaks.
Looking at online news was ranked among the top WILB activities in the study of 300 workers, in addition to searching for information about products, viewing video content and playing web-based games.
The university estimates that some 70 per cent of people who use the internet at work engage in WILB and that in moderation, the brief breaks restore workers' concentration, making them more productive.
However, Dr Coker stressed that these figures only represent employees who spend less than 20 per cent of their working day on such sites.
Earlier this week, Hitwise revealed that celebrity and entertainment-related terms dominated searches in Google News in the 12 weeks leading to March 21st.
Online news searches for music and sport also ranked highly, according to the figures.
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