11 research outputs found
Examining conscientiousness as a key resource in resisting email interruptions : implications for volatile resources and goal achievement
Within the context of the conservation of resources model, when a resource is deployed, it is depleted - albeit temporarily. However, when a 'key', stable resource, such as Conscientiousness, is activated (e.g., using a self-control strategy, such as resisting an email interruption), we predicted that (1) another, more volatile resource (affective well-being) would be impacted and that (2) this strategy would be deployed as a trade-off, allowing one to satisfy task goals, at the expense of well-being goals. We conducted an experienceâsampling field study with 52 email-users dealing with their normal email as it interrupted them over the course of a halfâday period. This amounted to a total of 376 email reported across the sample. Results were analysed using random coefficient hierarchical linear modelling and included cross-level interactions for Conscientiousness with strategy and well-being. Our first prediction was supported - deploying the stable, key resource of Conscientiousness depletes the volatile, fluctuating resource of affective well-being. However, our second prediction was not fully realized. Although resisting or avoiding an email interruption was perceived to hinder well-being goal achievement by Conscientious people, it had neither a positive nor negative impact on task goal achievement. Implications for theory and practice are discussed.
Practitioner points:
It may be necessary for highly Conscientious people to turn off their email interruption alerts at work, in order to avoid the strain that results from an activation-resistance mechanism afforded by the arrival of a new email.
Deploying key resources means that volatile resources may be differentially spent, depending on one's natural tendencies and how these interact with the work task and context. This suggests that the relationship between demands and resources is not always direct and predictable.
Practitioners may wish to appraise the strategies they use to deal with demands such as email at work, to identify if these strategies are assisting with task or well-being goal achievement, or whether they have become defunct through automation
Workplace stress from actual and desired computer-mediated communication use:a multi-method study
The use of computer-mediated communication applications can lead to workplace stress for employees. However, such stress is influenced not only by how individuals actually use computer-mediated communication applications but also how they desire to use them. This article examines how the individual's actual and desired use of communication tools together influence his or her workplace stress. It does so across a range of computer-mediated media (e.g. email or instant messaging) and workplace stressors (e.g. workload or work relationships). This investigation is conducted using a multi-method research design. The quantitative study found that desired and actual use together influenced workplace stress, mostly for email, but not for other media. The qualitative study further showed that such influence depends on organisational conditions such as available media or co-workers preferences. The findings emphasise the importance of considering the individualsâ desired use of CMC media and their subjective appraisals of different media
Email overload: Exploring the moderating role of the perception of email as a âbusiness criticalâ tool
The management of email remains a major challenge for organisations. In this article, we explore the extent of the perceptions of email as a business critical tool within an organisation and how the level of such perceptions may moderate the level of email overload experienced by individuals within the organisation. Data from a sample of 1100 employees of a multinational technology firm are analysed using multivariate techniques. The results suggest that without a clearly stated code of email practice within an organisation, there are likely to be large variations in what is perceived as âbusiness-criticalâ email and, as a result, a substantial amount of email generated within the organisation may not be âbusiness-criticalâ, potentially increasing the level of âemail-overloadâ experienced by individuals within the organisation.Research highlightsⶠWe explore links between email overload and its efficacy as a business communication tool. ⶠData is obtained from a sample of 1100 employees of a multinational technology firm. ⶠFindings highlight need for a clearly stated code of email practice within firms