By Stephen Beech
Employees are suffering “techno-strain” as a result of digital systems making it difficult to switch off from work, warns a new study.
Staff are experiencing mental and physical issues due to being “hyperconnected” through digital technology, according to the findings.
Researchers from the University of Nottingham’s Schools of Psychology and Medicine conducted detailed interviews with employees from a variety of professions.
They found that the cognitive and affective effort associated with constant connectivity and high work pace driven by the digital workplace is detrimental to employee well-being.
The study is the final part of a research project exploring the “dark side effects” of digital working which include stress, overload, anxiety and fear of missing out.
The results, published in the journal Frontiers in Organisational Psychology, highlight an “overarching” theme of “digital workplace technology intensity” as a result of digital workplace job demands.
The research team says their findings indicate a “sense of burden” associated with working digitally which surfaced for most participants in perceptions of overload and feelings of being “overwhelmed” by the proliferation of messages, apps and meetings in the digital workplace.
They say “fear of missing out” – or FOMO- on important information and contact with colleagues also contributed to stress and strain for digital workers, as did hassles encountered when using digital technologies.
Study leader Elizabeth Marsh said: “Digital workplaces benefit both organizations and employees, for example by enabling collaborative and flexible work.
“However, what we have found in our research is that there is a potential dark side to digital working, where employees can feel fatigue and strain due to being overburdened by the demands and intensity of the digital work environment.
“A sense of pressure to be constantly connected and keeping up with messages can make it hard to psychologically detach from work.”
Fourteen employees were interviewed in detail and asked about their perceptions and experiences of digital workplace job demands and impacts to their health.
Comments from interviewees included: “[It’s] just more difficult to leave it behind when it’s all online and you can kind of jump on and do work at any time of the day or night.”
Another participant said: “You kind of feel like you have to be there all the time. You have to be a little green light,” while another commented: “It’s that pressure to respond […] I’ve received an e-mail, I’ve gotta do this quickly because if not, someone might think “What is she doing from home?”
In their analysis, the researchers explored potential underlying psychological, technological and organizational factors that may influence ways in which employees experience digital workplace job demands.
The findings showed that participants’ dark side experiences were particularly shaped by a pervasive and constant state of connectivity in the digital workplace, termed “hyperconnectivity.”
Those experiences contributed to a sense of pressure to be available and the erosion of work-life boundaries, according to the research team.
They said the evidence also indicates that “hyperconnectivity” has become the norm among workers post-pandemic.
PhD student Marsh said: “The findings underline the need for both researchers and professionals to identify, understand and mitigate the digital workplace job demands to protect the well-being of digital workers.”
The research also makes practical suggestions for employers including helping workers improve their digital skills and empowering them to manage boundaries in the digital workplace.
The team says their findings could also be used by IT departments to consider how to improve the usability and accessibility of the digital workplace, as well as reining in the proliferation of applications.
Dr. Alexa Spence, Professor of Psychology, said: “This research extends the Job Demands-Resources literature by clarifying digital workplace job demands including hyperconnectivity and overload.”
She added: “It also contributes a novel construct of digital workplace technology intensity which adds new insight on the causes of technostress in the digital workplace.
“In doing so, it highlights the potential health impacts, both mental and physical, of digital work.”
