“Zoom Fatigue” Revisited: Are Video Meetings Still Exhausting Post-COVID-19?

Abstract

During COVID-19, participating in video meetings was associated with exhaustion, a phenomenon termed “Zoom fatigue.” Different explanations were suggested for this phenomenon. Video meetings may be exhausting because they (a) gained a symbolic meaning during the pandemic, (b) are cognitively demanding, or (c) are understimulating, leading to “passive fatigue.” Characterizing video meetings as “fatiguing” might have critical implications for hybrid work policy. Therefore, we must ask whether video meetings are still exhausting post-COVID-19. In 2024, we constructively replicated an experience sampling study about “Zoom fatigue” during the pandemic. Although the meaning of video meetings might have changed, considering the current state of the literature, we hypothesized that ”Zoom fatigue” still exists. We conducted a 10-day experience sampling study with four daily measurement points. Results from a threelevel analysis (N = 125participants, n = 590days, n = 945meetings) showed that video meetings are unrelated to exhaustion or passive fatigue. Active participation in the meeting and multitasking were not significant moderators. Video meetings shorter than 44 min were less exhausting than other meetings, suggesting potential advantages of video meetings. More boring video meetings were slightly more exhausting. Our results highlight the importance of constructively replicating research findings in different historical settings. They support the view that video meetings gained a symbolic meaning during the pandemic, which may have changed afterward. We also suggest that people might have gotten used to video meetings, leading to “no-Zoomfatigue.” Our results open avenues for future studies and have important practical implications.