Anyone who works in a university is well aware that a long hours culture can be the norm. This can affect everyone from the leadership down to students. There can be a kind of pride associated with pushing oneself to spend longer in the lab, at the office and out at conferences, displaying dedication to one’s chosen field. There are still some researchers who see long hours as a rite of passage, separating the truly committed from those with less endurance. And in recent years, an additional pressure to work harder and put in more hours has also come from management. University leaders are keen for researchers to produce more to put their institute on the map. While a push can help many succeed, when does the pressure become too much?
Sadly, this question has recently received its most tragic answer, owing to a number of deaths of researchers in China. There, some early- and mid-career researchers have pushed themselves (or been pushed) so hard that they dropped dead – apparently from overwork. The latest was Li Haibo, a highly-cited nanotechnologist at Ningxia University, who died at the age of 41 in April. In one interview, Li talked of routinely getting just four to five hours of sleep a night as teaching and research consumed his day, leaving him to write grant proposals at night. The death of another materials scientist Liu Yongfeng, earlier this year at the age of 47 from a brain haemorrhage, was notable because Liu’s family spoke out. In an open letter following his death, they wrote of an ‘insane’ workload that rarely saw him leave the lab before 9pm.
The pressure cooker environment that researchers find themselves in isn’t confined to China. In the UK, the death of Stefan Grimm was over a decade ago now, but his suicide still casts a long shadow over the research community. In Grimm’s case, university leaders pushing to secure more funding added to the stress he was already under. While there’s greater awareness in recent years that this pressure is unhealthy and can damage lives, it’s still part and parcel of university life for many. In 2020, one study reported that 12% of UK researchers worked more than 60 hours a week.
In all the talk of long hours, I’m reminded of the story of a personal hero, John Sulston, renowned for his painstaking work tracking the entire development of a microscopic nematode. Sulston’s groundbreaking work saw him spend long hours at the microscope, even taking it home with him at one point and storing his worms among the salad in his fridge. Personal curiosity drove Sulston to work long hours, not pressure from higher-ups and young researchers need to be aware of the difference between these two motivators.
Can there still be room for this kind of all-consuming search for new knowledge, while protecting the physical and mental health of researchers? I think there can be but it is a difficult balancing act for institutes. Researchers need to be given space to pursue their passion on the understanding that management will look out for their health and steer them away from burnout. Equally, leaders need to make clear to all that research is not a long hours competition and what’s appropriate for one scientist, may not work for another. Younger researchers, in particular, may need protection to prevent them being shaped by unhealthy environments or role models. Balancing work and life can be a difficult juggling act, but it’s a responsibility that everyone must work at.
In the UK and Ireland, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123, or email jo@samaritans.org or jo@samaritans.ie. In the US, you can call or text the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline on 988, chat on 988lifeline.org, or text HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis counsellor. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. Other international helplines can be found at befrienders.org.
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