Digital Work Overload Increases Technostress and Negative Well-being
The design and implementation of digital work platforms, particularly in the gig economy, can inadvertently increase technostress and negatively impact worker well-being due to factors like technology complexity and information overload.
Internet Research · 2023
Key Findings
- 01Specific online labour market characteristics are linked to worker strain.
- 02Technology complexity is associated with work overload in online labour markets.
- 03Feedback in online labour markets is positively associated with work overload and job insecurity.
- 04Technostress directly influences workers' negative affective well-being and their intention to leave the platform.
Application
Design takeaway
Design digital interfaces and work systems to minimize cognitive burden and information overload, thereby reducing technostress and improving user well-being.
How to apply
When designing digital platforms, conduct user research to identify potential sources of technostress, such as complex workflows, unclear instructions, or overwhelming data streams, and iteratively refine the design to mitigate these issues.
Project actions
- 01Consider the psychological impact of your design choices on users.
- 02Investigate how users interact with technology and identify potential stressors.
- 03Use qualitative methods to understand user emotions and experiences.
Method & Evidence
Variables
Strengths & Limitations
Strengths
- +Empirical validation of technostress antecedents and consequences in a novel work context.
- +Application of established theories (person-environment fit, job characteristics) to a new domain.
Limitations
It can be challenging to objectively measure psychological states like stress. User self-reporting may be subjective.
Reliability & validity
The use of structural equation modelling provides a robust statistical framework for assessing the reliability and validity of the proposed model. However, the reliance on self-reported data may introduce common method bias.
Think critically
How might the design of feedback mechanisms on digital platforms be optimized to provide useful information without contributing to overload or insecurity?
Design Principles
"Design for cognitive ease: Minimize complexity and information overload in digital interfaces to support user well-being and performance."
Understanding the psychological toll of digital work environments is crucial for designing more supportive and sustainable systems. Designers and engineers must consider how interface complexity, information flow, and performance demands contribute to worker stress.
What This Means for Your Design
Working on online platforms can be stressful because the technology can be complicated and there's often too much information, which makes people feel bad and want to leave.
How to use in your project
- 1.Use this research to justify the importance of user well-being in your design process.
- 2.Cite findings on technostress when discussing the psychological factors influencing user interaction with your design.
Add to My Project
Quick Cite
(2023). Examining technostress and its impact on worker well-being in the digital gig economy. Internet Research. https://doi.org/10.1108/intr-03-2022-0214 Retrieved from https://designdex.org/study/d6284987-df47-4961-adb7-e37e3c9f56a8/digital-work-overload-increases-technostress-and-negative-well-being
Paragraph starter
This study by Umair, Conboy, and Whelan (2023) demonstrates that the design of digital work environments, particularly in the gig economy, can significantly impact user well-being by inducing technostress. Findings indicate that factors such as technology complexity and information overload contribute to negative affective well-being and a desire to discontinue work. This underscores the importance of designing digital systems with user psychology and cognitive load in mind.
Source
Internet Research
Examining technostress and its impact on worker well-being in the digital gig economy
journal · 2023
View sourceQuestions about this research
- What does the research say about digital work overload increases technostress and negative well-being?
- Design digital interfaces and work systems to minimize cognitive burden and information overload, thereby reducing technostress and improving user well-being. Evidence: Internet Research (2023).
- Why does "Digital Work Overload Increases Technostress and Negative Well-being" matter for design?
- Understanding the psychological toll of digital work environments is crucial for designing more supportive and sustainable systems. Designers and engineers must consider how interface complexity, information flow, and performance demands contribute to worker stress.
- How can designers apply this research?
- Design digital interfaces and work systems to minimize cognitive burden and information overload, thereby reducing technostress and improving user well-being.
- What were the main findings?
- Specific online labour market characteristics are linked to worker strain.. Technology complexity is associated with work overload in online labour markets.. Feedback in online labour markets is positively associated with work overload and job insecurity.. Technostress directly influences workers' negative affective well-being and their intention to leave the platform.
- What research method was used?
- Quantitative research model testing using structural equation modelling. with 366 participants.
- How strong is the evidence?
- Evidence strength is rated Strong effect, based on a 2023 journal from Internet Research.
- What should I do differently in my next project?
- When designing digital platforms, conduct user research to identify potential sources of technostress, such as complex workflows, unclear instructions, or overwhelming data streams, and iteratively refine the design to mitigate these issues.
- What are the limitations?
- The study focuses on a specific type of online labour market, and findings may not generalize to all digital work environments. The cross-sectional nature of the data limits causal inferences.
- Is there evidence that work affects design outcomes?
- The study found that characteristics of online work platforms, such as complex technology and excessive feedback, can lead to work overload and job insecurity, ultimately causing negative emotional well-being and a desire to quit. Understanding the psychological toll of digital work environments is crucial for designin Source: Internet Research (2023).
- Where does this digital work research apply?
- Digital gig economy, online labour markets It sits within human factors research on designdex.org.
Related research topics
work design research · evidence on work · does work improve design outcomes · digital work studies for designers · work and digital work findings · human factors research evidence