Working from Home: Increased Productivity or a Gateway to Counterproductivity? The Role of Personality Traits

As flexible work arrangements gain popularity, the effects of working from home (WFH) on employee behavior have become increasingly relevant. This study investigates how Big Five personality traits influence remote work productivity, cyberslacking, and counterproductive work behavior (CWB), compared to office-based work. In an online survey, N = 106 employees reported their personality traits, weekly WFH proportion, and work behaviors. Results showed that conscientiousness and a higher WFH proportion were positively related to productivity. Conscientiousness also negatively correlated with cyberslacking and CWB. No moderating effect of conscientiousness on the WFH–behavior link was found. These findings suggest that personality impacts work behavior, though its role across work settings may be overstated.