How you type and move your mouse could predict your stress level at work: Swiss study

Researchers out of Switzerland say how a person types or clicks could be a better predictor of their stress level at work than their heart rate.

Researchers out of Switzerland say how a person types or clicks could be a better predictor of their stress level at work than their heart rate.

The findings come from a small recent study at ETH Zurich, published in the Journal of Biomedical Informatics, which found that stressed people move their mouse more often and less precisely, and make more mistakes while typing.

Using their model, researchers say employees could prevent chronic stress earlier.

"We were surprised that typing and mouse behaviour was a better predictor of how stressed subjects felt better than heart rate," Mara Nagelin, study author, mathematician and researcher at ETH Zurich, said in a news release last week.

The researchers observed 90 participants perform office tasks, such as planning appointments or data analysis, and recorded their mouse and keyboard movements and heart rates.

Forty-four participants were female and the mean age was about 23. Each person also filled out a sociodemographic and psychological questionnaire.

The researchers asked participants to act as employees at a fictional insurance company.