Information and communication technology use, work intensification and employee strain and distress

Abstract

Recent scholarship on work suggests that information and communication technology (ICT) use may be significantly altering job conditions in ways that are indicative of work intensification, which, in turn, contributes to employee strain and distress. This article uses structural equation modelling and OLS regression techniques to analyse 2002 survey data drawn from a nationally representative sample of US employees in order to assess the pathways through which ICT use may influence levels of employee strain and distress. It is found that use is linked to higher levels of employee strain and distress via a work intensification process that is indicated by faster-paced work and greater levels of interruptions and multitasking. However, there is also evidence that both work and personal ICT use may mitigate these influences. While the findings do suggest that ICT use can have negative implications for contemporary workers, as a whole the results support a more nuanced view that points to both costs and benefits associated with ICT use.

The Pressure-Status Nexus and Blurred Work–Family Boundaries

“…Expanded access to email, laptops, and "smart phone" tools-what Duxbury, Thomas, Towers, and Higgins (2004) refer to as "work extending technology"-can enhance flexibility and enable remote work, but these tools also foster permeability that intensifies pressure to accomplish tasks outside traditional workplace parameters (Kelliher & Anderson, 2010;Matusik & Mickel, 2011;Valcour & Hunter, 2005). As border theory predicts, these boundary-spanning demands blur the boundaries that separate work and nonwork life and require adjustments from workers (Boswell & Olson-Buchanan, 2007;Chesley, 2014;Kossek & Lambert, 2005;Voydanoff, 2005). This gives rise to the potentially problematic enactment of role-related activities beyond the usual spatial, temporal, or psychological parameters of work.…”

“…As the pace, intensity, and complexity of work expands over time (Green, 2007;Kelliher & Anderson, 2010;Maume & Purcell, 2007), these processes engender a normative intrusion of work contact, via proliferated communication technologies, which leads to an apt contemporary characterization of work as the needy institution. Chesley's (2014) depiction of this trend captures the downsides: "It is possible that the instantaneous nature of technologically facilitated communication and information tasks may be changing social expectations about acceptable response times at work and elsewhere in ways that outstrip the new efficiencies of these innovations" (p. 17). These processes and outcomes bring new challenges to what Moen (2015) calls "work-life quality.…”

“…According to Desrochers and Sargent (2004), behaviors and thoughts about work-related matters occur while at home in ways that challenge the separation of work and family domains. Ultimately, its potentially harmful implications for work-family conflict encourage analyses of the contexts that contribute to role blurring (Allen, Cho, & Meier, 2014;Chesley, 2014;Dex & Bond, 2005;Voydanoff, 2007).…”

Children and Adolescents and Digital Media

“…Because parent-child interactions during family routines are an important opportunity for emotional connection, have been shown to be protective of child health outcomes, such as asthma and high-risk behavior, 159 and are the primary driver of early childhood development of language, cognition, social skills, and emotion regulation, it is important to preserve them. Parents often report feeling that technology speeds up their lives and work demands 160 and that it is difficult to multitask between technology and childrearing, so pediatric providers can support their efforts to create boundaries and "unplugged" zones in their households.…”

Daily Fluctuations in Office-Based Workers’ Leisure Activities and Well-Being

“…Recent workplace changes such as increased use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and organizational downsizing have led workers to experience a faster-paced job and to feel the need to be more available to meet their employer's demands (Chesley, 2014;de Jong et al, 2016). Periods that were traditionally devoted to leisure such as evenings, work breaks, weekends, and vacations, are now also used for work-related activities, which is detrimental for workers' well-being (Chesley, 2014;de Jong et al, 2016). Leisure activities offer many opportunities to recover and to replenish personal resources (e.g., energy, concentration) spent to fulfill life role demands (e.g., working, childcare).…”