Dynamics of Industrial Revolution 4.0: Digital Technology Transformation and Cultural Evolution –
Wulandari et al (eds)
© 2021 The Author(s), ISBN 978-1-032-04451-4
Working virtually, exhausting in reality: Virtual cause of burnout in the
age of a pandemic
W.T.G. Putra
Telkom University, Bandung, Indonesia
A.L. Hakim
Swasaba Research Initiative, Yogyakarta, Indonesia
T. Kartasudjana
Pasundan University, Bandung, Indonesia
ABSTRACT: Until the middle 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic was still the central point of media
conversation. A pandemic such as this one can greatly change human behavior and habis, notably
increasing the human–internet interaction through the Work From Home (WFH) phenomena and
its consequences. This study uses a digital anthropology approach as one of the strategies and
entry points in understanding behavior in the digital world, and techniques for researching social
interactions via digital technology. It will be presented in the form of autoethnography to describe
and interpret cultural experiences, beliefs, practices, and texts. From the discussion, it shows that
virtual and real spaces are connected, and the events between these two different spaces have an
impact on each other. Burnout can be seen, not only as an outcome, but also as an indicator of
cultural changes and shows the challenges video conferencing platform providers face in presenting
experiences that visually and functionally accommodate its users.
Keywords: digital anthropology, work from home, digital culture, autoethnography, COVID-19
pandemic, burnout
1 INTRODUCTION
Until the middle of 2020 the COVID-19 pandemic was still the central point of media conversation.
Pandemics can change human behavior and in other perspectives can be seen as a socio-cultural
phenomena as infectious disease problems are biological and cultural, historical and contemporary,
theoretical, and practical (Inborn & Brown 2013). The handling and spreading of the virus related
to the world view of a group of people about the world around them, which then forms a habit in
the group. It includes social interactions, transforming the way they act and think.
In this century, regarding this customary negotiation, the pandemic then became central in the
discussion of social science, especially anthropology. A 1909 work entitled “Les Rites de Passage”
was written about how community groups respond to the presence of new people through habits
and create some architecture for quarantine (van Gennep et al. 2013); related to disaster mitigation
planning in swine flu (Atlani-Duault & Kendall 2009), human behaviors and its spread (Inborn
& Brown 2013); Ebola and its handling related to community habits (Abramowitz 2017); and
to discussions related to COVID-19 (Higgins et al. 2020). It also shows that massive pandemics
and infectious diseases are part of the dynamics of human civilization and culture. How are the
dynamics in Indonesia? This article will try to describe and record the cultural transformation that
took place in Indonesia within the COVID-19 pandemic. The focus of this paper is on the Work
From Home (WFH) phenomenon as jargon that emerged in Indonesia when the pandemic occurred,
DOI 10.1201/9781003193241-22
119
Wulandari et al (eds)
© 2021 The Author(s), ISBN 978-1-032-04451-4
Working virtually, exhausting in reality: Virtual cause of burnout in the
age of a pandemic
W.T.G. Putra
Telkom University, Bandung, Indonesia
A.L. Hakim
Swasaba Research Initiative, Yogyakarta, Indonesia
T. Kartasudjana
Pasundan University, Bandung, Indonesia
ABSTRACT: Until the middle 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic was still the central point of media
conversation. A pandemic such as this one can greatly change human behavior and habis, notably
increasing the human–internet interaction through the Work From Home (WFH) phenomena and
its consequences. This study uses a digital anthropology approach as one of the strategies and
entry points in understanding behavior in the digital world, and techniques for researching social
interactions via digital technology. It will be presented in the form of autoethnography to describe
and interpret cultural experiences, beliefs, practices, and texts. From the discussion, it shows that
virtual and real spaces are connected, and the events between these two different spaces have an
impact on each other. Burnout can be seen, not only as an outcome, but also as an indicator of
cultural changes and shows the challenges video conferencing platform providers face in presenting
experiences that visually and functionally accommodate its users.
Keywords: digital anthropology, work from home, digital culture, autoethnography, COVID-19
pandemic, burnout
1 INTRODUCTION
Until the middle of 2020 the COVID-19 pandemic was still the central point of media conversation.
Pandemics can change human behavior and in other perspectives can be seen as a socio-cultural
phenomena as infectious disease problems are biological and cultural, historical and contemporary,
theoretical, and practical (Inborn & Brown 2013). The handling and spreading of the virus related
to the world view of a group of people about the world around them, which then forms a habit in
the group. It includes social interactions, transforming the way they act and think.
In this century, regarding this customary negotiation, the pandemic then became central in the
discussion of social science, especially anthropology. A 1909 work entitled “Les Rites de Passage”
was written about how community groups respond to the presence of new people through habits
and create some architecture for quarantine (van Gennep et al. 2013); related to disaster mitigation
planning in swine flu (Atlani-Duault & Kendall 2009), human behaviors and its spread (Inborn
& Brown 2013); Ebola and its handling related to community habits (Abramowitz 2017); and
to discussions related to COVID-19 (Higgins et al. 2020). It also shows that massive pandemics
and infectious diseases are part of the dynamics of human civilization and culture. How are the
dynamics in Indonesia? This article will try to describe and record the cultural transformation that
took place in Indonesia within the COVID-19 pandemic. The focus of this paper is on the Work
From Home (WFH) phenomenon as jargon that emerged in Indonesia when the pandemic occurred,
DOI 10.1201/9781003193241-22
119