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Evaluating the Impact of a Yoga-Based Intervention on Software Engineers' Well-Being

Cristina Martinez Montes, Birgit Penzenstadler

TL;DR

This study investigates whether an eight-week workplace yoga intervention improves software engineers’ general well-being. Using a quasi-experimental mixed-methods design with six psychometric scales and a weekly well-being measure, plus a focus group, it found no statistically significant gains, though participants and organizers reported perceived benefits. The study highlights that a once-per-week yoga program in a high-stress SE context may be insufficient and that contextual factors can mask benefits; it also emphasizes the value of publishing null results and suggests design refinements for future work. It contributes to literature on mindfulness in software engineering and informs practitioners about integration, dosage, and measurement considerations.

Abstract

Software engineering tasks are high-stress and cognitively demanding. Additionally, there is a latent risk of software engineers presenting burnout, depression and anxiety. Established interventions in other fields centred around attention awareness have shown positive results in mental well-being. We aim to test how effective a yoga intervention is in improving general well-being in the workplace. For that, we designed, implemented and evaluated an eight-week yoga programme in a software development company. We used a mixed-methods data collection, using a survey of six psychometric scales, pre and post-intervention, and a weekly well-being scale during the programme. For method triangulation, we conducted a focus group with the organisers to obtain qualitative data. The quantitative results did not show any statistically significant improvement after the intervention. Meanwhile, the qualitative results illustrated that participants felt better and liked the intervention. We conclude that yoga has a positive impact, which, however, can easily get overlaid by contextual factors, especially with only a once-per-week intervention.

Evaluating the Impact of a Yoga-Based Intervention on Software Engineers' Well-Being

TL;DR

This study investigates whether an eight-week workplace yoga intervention improves software engineers’ general well-being. Using a quasi-experimental mixed-methods design with six psychometric scales and a weekly well-being measure, plus a focus group, it found no statistically significant gains, though participants and organizers reported perceived benefits. The study highlights that a once-per-week yoga program in a high-stress SE context may be insufficient and that contextual factors can mask benefits; it also emphasizes the value of publishing null results and suggests design refinements for future work. It contributes to literature on mindfulness in software engineering and informs practitioners about integration, dosage, and measurement considerations.

Abstract

Software engineering tasks are high-stress and cognitively demanding. Additionally, there is a latent risk of software engineers presenting burnout, depression and anxiety. Established interventions in other fields centred around attention awareness have shown positive results in mental well-being. We aim to test how effective a yoga intervention is in improving general well-being in the workplace. For that, we designed, implemented and evaluated an eight-week yoga programme in a software development company. We used a mixed-methods data collection, using a survey of six psychometric scales, pre and post-intervention, and a weekly well-being scale during the programme. For method triangulation, we conducted a focus group with the organisers to obtain qualitative data. The quantitative results did not show any statistically significant improvement after the intervention. Meanwhile, the qualitative results illustrated that participants felt better and liked the intervention. We conclude that yoga has a positive impact, which, however, can easily get overlaid by contextual factors, especially with only a once-per-week intervention.

Paper Structure

This paper contains 36 sections, 6 figures, 5 tables.

Table of Contents

  1. Introduction
  2. Related Work
  3. The Effectiveness of Yoga in General
  4. The Effectiveness of Hatha Yoga
  5. Consequences for job performance and outcomes proposed
  6. Moderating Factors and Conditions for Mindfulness
  7. Well-being Interventions in SE
  8. Methodology
  9. Research Design
  10. Intervention
  11. Company, Population and Inclusion Criteria
  12. Data Collection
  13. Entry and Exit Survey
  14. Weekly Well-being Scale
  15. Focus Group
  16. ...and 21 more sections

Figures (6)

  • Figure 1: General Methodology of the Study
  • Figure 2: Participants' Having Well-being Practices Before the Intervention
  • Figure 3: Participants' Weekly Well-being Score. We considered all participants means that answered each week.
  • Figure 4: Means Comparison Between the Intervention (pre and post-programme) and Control Group
  • Figure 5: Participant's Symbolic Journey During the Yoga Programme
  • ...and 1 more figures