How to prevent technostress at the digital workplace: a Delphi study.

Technostress is a rising issue in the changing world of digital work. Technostress can cause severe adverse outcomes for individuals and organizations. Thus, organizations face the moral, legal, and economic responsibility to prevent employees' excessive technostress. As technostress develops over time, it is crucial to prevent it throughout the process of its emergence instead of only reacting after adverse outcomes occur. Contextualizing the Theory of Preventive Stress management to technostress, we synthesize and advance existing knowledge on inhibiting technostress. We develop a set of 24 technostress prevention measures from technostress inhibitor literature, other technostress literature, and based on qualitative and quantitative contributions from a Delphi study. Based on expert feedback, we characterize each measure and, where possible, assess its relevance in addressing specific technostressors. Our paper contributes to research by transferring the Theory of Preventive Stress Management into the context of technostress and presenting specific measures to prevent technostress. This offers a complementary view to technostress inhibitors by expanding the theoretical grounding and adding a time perspective through the implementation of primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention measures. For practice, we offer a comprehensive and applicable overview of measures organizations can implement to prevent technostress.

Spanish Validation of the Technostress Creators Scale / Validación Española de la Escala de Creadores de Tecnoestrés

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the way organizations operate, forcing many of them to opt for remote-working as an alternative to the face-to-face mode. This global phenomenon has increased the importance of studying the psychosocial risks linked to the use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs), such as technostress. This study aims to provide validity evidence for the Technostress Creators Scale in Spain and to test its measurement invariance in terms of gender. Method: We analyzed the psychometric properties of the scale, its factor solution, and gender invariance in a sample of 931 employees from Spain. Results: The Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) showed that the Spanish version maintained the five factors from the original version: techno-overload, techno-invasion, techno-complexity, techno-insecurity, and techno-uncertainty. The instrument demonstrated adequate reliability. The results of the Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) also replicated the five-factor structure of the English version. Additionally, measurement invariance tests indicated differences between genders. Conclusions: The resulting Spanish scale has 18 items, which is shorter than the original version. The implications and limitations of the Spanish version of the instrument are detailed in the discussion.(AU)

Antecedentes: La pandemia por COVID-19 ha cambiado la forma en que funcionan las organizaciones, obligando a optar por el teletrabajo como alternativa a la modalidad presencial. Este fenómeno ha mostrado la importancia de estudiar los riesgos psicosociales vinculados al uso de las Tecnologías de la Información y la Comunicación (TIC), como el tecnoestrés. Este estudio tiene como objetivo proporcionar evidencia de validez de la Technostress Creators Scale en España y analizar su invariancia en términos de género. Método: Analizamos propiedades psicométricas de la escala, solución factorial e invariancia de género en una muestra de 931 empleados de España. Resultados: El Análisis Factorial Exploratorio (AFE) de la versión en español mantuvo los cinco factores de la versión original: tecno-sobrecarga, tecno-invasión, tecno-complejidad, tecno-inseguridad y tecno-incertidumbre. Asimismo, las dimensiones demostraron una adecuada fiabilidad. En cuanto a los resultados del Análisis Factorial Confirmatorio (AFC), la estructura de cinco factores de la versión en inglés fue replicada. Por otra parte, el análisis de la invarianza de género arrojó diferencias entre los grupos. Conclusiones: La escala resultante cuenta con 18 ítems, siendo más corta que la versión original. En la discusión se detallan las implicaciones y limitaciones de la validación en español de este instrumento.(AU)

Validation of the Spanish version of the Technostress Creators Scale in Chilean Workers / Validación de la versión en español del Inventario de creadores de tecnoestrés en trabajadores chilenos

The purpose of this study was to adapt and validate the Spanish version of the Technostress Creators Scale (TCS). The scale was adminis-tered to 1.047 Chilean professionals. The internal structure of the scale was tested by conducting exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. The av-erage variance extracted (AVE) and the Fornell–Larcker criterion were used to examine convergent and discriminant validity, respectively. To in-vestigate concurrent validity, we focused on the relation between the TCS scale and role stress, which is a distinct, albeit conceptually related con-struct. Our findings supported a five-factor model consisting of 23 items distributed in five factors: techno-overload, techno-invasion, techno-complexity, techno-insecurity and techno-uncertainty. The Spanish version of the TCS had a high level of internal consistency, which was similar to the original scale. Appropriate evidence of concurrent validity was also shown. In addition, we conducted an international comparison of the re-search results with other relevant adaptations of the instrument reported in different cultural contexts. The results confirmed that the Spanish transla-tion of the TCS is a suitable instrument for measuring technostress and can contribute to an empirical examination of this phenomenon in Span-ish-speaking countries.(AU)

El propósito de esta investigación fue adaptar y validar al espa-ñol el Inventario de Creadores de Tecnoestrés (ICT). La escala fue admi-nistrada a 1.047 trabajadores chilenos. Para analizar la estructura interna de la escala, se aplicaron análisis factoriales exploratorios y confirmatorios. La varianza media extraída (AVE) y el criterio de Fornell-Larcker fueron utili-zados para examinar la validez convergente y discriminante, respectivamen-te. Para valorar la validez concurrente, se ha analizado la relación entre la escala ICT y el estrés del rol, que es un constructo distinto, aunque concep-tualmente relacionado. Nuestros resultados respaldaron un modelo que consta de 23 elementos distribuidos en cinco factores: tecno-sobrecarga, tecno-invasión, tecno-complejidad, tecno-inseguridad y tecno-incertidumbre. La versión en español del instrumento ofrece un alto nivel de consistencia interna, que es similar a la escala original. También se obtu-vieron evidencias de validez concurrente. Además, se ha realizado una comparación internacional de los resultados de la investigación con otras adaptaciones relevantes del instrumento reportadas en diferentes contextos culturales. Losresultados confirmaron que la traducción al español del ICT es un instrumento adecuado para medir el tecnoestrés y puede contribuir a un examen empírico de este fenómeno en los países de habla hispana.(AU)

Psychometric properties of the Polish adaptation of Technostress Creators and Technostress Inhibitors Scale.

BACKGROUND: The use of information and communication technologies by employees of organizations may cause technostress for their users. The sources of technostress in organizations are techno-overload, techno-invasion, techno-complexity, techno-insecurity, techno-uncertainty. An organization may also have technostress inhibitors that counteract the experience of technostress. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The purpose of this research was to determine the psychometric properties of the Polish adaptation of Technostress Creators and Technostress Inhibitors Scale. RESULTS: In the first study (N = 632), the 8-factor structure of the questionnaire was confirmed by the use of confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Furthermore, a high internal consistency of the adapted method was obtained. The second study (N = 451) confirmed the external validity of the adapted method by correlating it with the Perceived Stress Scale. The third study (N = 123) confirmed high stability at the time of results obtained in 2 measurements with the adapted scale. CONCLUSIONS: To conclude, it can be stated that the Polish adaptation of the Technostress Creators and Technostress Inhibitors Scale is characterized by good psychometric indicators and can be successfully used in various organizations in the diagnosis and reduction of technostress. Med Pr. 2022;73(4):277-93.

When and why telepressure and technostress creators impair employee well-being.

Objectives. This article describes the effects of two specific information and communication technology (ICT) demands (telepressure, technostress creators) on employee well-being, and investigates a mediating effect of detachment (Study 1) and moderating effects of technostress inhibitors on the effects of ICT demands on well-being (Study 2) and detachment (Study 3). Methods. Three quantitative studies with employees (Study 1, N = 296; Study 2, N = 142; Study 3, N = 316) were conducted. Results. The results support the negative effect of ICT demands on several well-being indicators. They also show how detachment mediates the effect of telepressure on well-being (Study 1) and how technostress inhibitors moderate the effect of technostress creators on well-being (Study 2). Technostress inhibitors further buffer negative effects of technostress creators on detachment (Study 3). Conclusion. Interventions to reduce negative consequences of ICTs by increasing the level of technostress inhibitors (e.g., technical support) or facilitating employee detachment (e.g., through communication policies) are derived. The findings confirm that general models explaining stress and well-being are applicable to new forms of job demands and extend existing empirical support for the effect of ICT demands on well-being. Future research should investigate the interplay between the studied variables within a moderated mediation model.

The Achilles Heel of Technology: How Does Technostress Affect University Students' Wellbeing and Technology-Enhanced Learning.

This study investigated the effect of technostress on university students' wellbeing and technology-enhanced learning (TEL) through the stressor-strain-outcome model. Interviews were first used to contextualize and inform the development of the survey instrument. Then, survey data from 796 participants were collected and analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling. The findings indicate that technostress creators, including techno-complexity, techno-insecurity, and techno-uncertainty, were significantly associated with students' burnout in TEL, which in turn was negatively associated with their self-regulation, learning agency, and persistence in TEL. Group comparison analyses based on gender, academic disciplines, and willingness to join TEL show that the negative associations between burnout and self-regulation, learning agency, and persistence in TEL were significantly stronger for male students than female students. Similar findings were also found for students joining TEL willingly and unwillingly, with the latter being more strongly affected by burnout. In addition, the positive association between techno-complexity and burnout was greater for students from social sciences than those from engineering and natural sciences. The findings of this study can inform future implementation decisions of TEL in higher education and strategies to preserve university students' wellbeing.