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New research based on surveys using a smartphone app found that workers were unhappy and stressed while on the job. In fact, respondents ranked being sick in bed as the only activity more unpleasant than working. When offered dozens of options ranging from leisure, such as going to a concert, to personal paperwork, such as paying bills, workers preferred cleaning the house or waiting in line to being on the job.

The findings, which were published by the Centre for Economic Performance at the London School of Economics and Political Science, are based on a project conducted by Alex Bryson and George MacKerron. Mr. Bryson is a visiting research fellow with the Centre for Economic Performance. Mr. MacKerron is a lecturer in economics at the University of Sussex.

The findings aren't incompatible with the notion that having a meaningful job contributes to one's well-being and sense of self, Mr. Bryson pointed out. "Although work can be beneficial, it can also stress you out and make you worried and anxious," he said. "That's why we normally have to be paid to work in the first place, because in the moment, we'd rather actually be doing anything else."

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