What are the Causes of Zoom Fatigue?

Now that everything is digital, even learning and communications migrated to the online realm. This was highly encouraged in the Philippines most especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. That is when students must sit in front of their laptops or computers and attend classes via different platforms. These include various video calling platforms such as Google Meet, Zoom, etc. Additionally, this also became the mode when people are staying connected with their loved ones remotely.

This is also the time when the term “zoom fatigue” becomes famous. But to clarify, it’s generally not just the Zoom app. “Zooming” was generally used to refer to videoconferencing. And “zoom fatigue” therefore referred to the exhaustion someone feels due to videoconferencing.

Below are two of the causes of this so-called zoom fatigue:

People usually don’t move during a video conference.

Since cameras are set in a specific place during a video call, it restricts people from walking around and doing unnecessary movements. That is why students and workers who attend to a long-time video conference tends to feel tired and exhausted.

We use our cognitive abilities more during a video call.

Well, this is true. First and foremost, there are usually presentations shared on the screen while students or workers attend a videoconference. Therefore, it requires not just listening but reading and analyzing what is projected on the screen. This becomes an extra effort because we cannot see the non-verbal cues that a person might be making while discussing a presentation. Professor Jeremy Bailenson of Stanford Virtual Human Interaction Lab said that people has a natural way of interpreting non-verbal communication gestures, thus, making it easier to interpret meanings during face-to-face interactions.

To avoid this zoom fatigue thing and to enjoy an enhanced video calling experience, it is best if we get timely breaks. This will generally increase our productivity. And certainly, it will thereby prohibit us from getting into some health issues.