Stress by technology: employees see is only the tip of the iceberg. Abstract.

Introduction Technological disruptions keep advancing, with almost unlimited applications for our daily and working life. Associated with this development is the increasing opposition of criticasters, pointing out that technology may have enabled us, but it has also enslaved us. A broad understanding is needed on how to manage technology, communication, and the changing demands this poses on workers’ availability and capacities. Therefore this exploratory study aimed to (1) describe a relatively new construct named technostress and (2) to assess the impact of “technostress” on the Dutch working population. Methods This study used several methods to gather information. After an apprehensive literature study, interviews were conducted with a group of employees. During the interviews, participants were asked about their knowledge of technostress, the effects of technology on their daily lives and how they used technology in the workplace. Lastly an interview with a group of Dutch experts on the subject of technostress was broadcasted live to raise awareness. Results During this study, it became clear that technostress is an intricate construct, manifesting itself in various ways depending on the situation and use of technology. Therefore, to describe technostress as a whole, not one but multiple themes were extracted from the data. These themes describe the different ways in which technostress can be experienced by individuals. The themes are mentioned below, including a short explanation. 1. Dealing with technology: Stress that arises from dealing with faulty technology or being unable to keep up. 2. Distractions, stimuli and the fear of missing out: Stress that results from the constant use of a smartphone and missing certain messages or events. 3. Work-life balance: Stress that results from being able to work at any time or place. 4. Expectations and organizational culture: Stress that arises as a result of not being able to set boundaries and being available at all times. The first theme describes what most individuals associate with the term technostress. However, when participants in our study were asked to more thoroughly describe other instances of feeling stressed due to the use of technology, the other themes were always mentioned. The latter three themes seem to influence our stress-levels in a more detrimental way. However, this influence is often less noticeable and not immediately associated with use of technology. Conclusions and/or implications The majority of the participants in this study were either (1) not aware that technostress existed or were (2) under the impression that technostress referred to stress that arises from working with faulty technology (telepressure). This, as we now know, is only the tip of the iceberg. Therefore the most important finding was that more awareness and interventions on technostress are required, particularly in the areas of: (1) developing ways of dealing with the constant stream of distractions and stimuli, (2) maintaining a good work-life balance despite being able to work everywhere and at all times, and (3) changing the organizational culture surrounding the need for constant availability of employees.