Daily E-Mail Stress Mental pressure and falling productivity

E-mail communication is a stress factor for many employees
Communication by e-mail is now an essential part of everyday life for many people. But the facilitated communication also brings down the dark side. Thus, the constant retrieval of e-mails is a potential stress factor and in some people triggers frustration, fear and loss of productivity, British researchers report the "Future Work Center". In a comprehensive study, the scientists interviewed nearly 2,000 professionals from various industries about their e-mail communication and psychological stress.

Researchers at the Future Work Center have examined the impact of professional e-mail communication on the psyche and productivity of respondents in their latest study. They wanted to know if factors such as technology, behavior, age, job, personal life and personality impacted the perceived stress of e-mail communication. The scientists found that the perceived psychological pressure increases significantly if the emails are continuously retrieved automatically, for example by smartphone. Those who leave the e-mail program open all day are particularly stressed and also show productivity losses, the British researchers report. However, there are clear individual differences in susceptibility to e-mail stress.

Although emails facilitate communication, they can become a major stress factor. (Image: ra2 studio / fotolia.com)

Overloaded by too many emails
Since e-mail communication was invented in the 1970s, the modern form of communication has experienced unprecedented growth. People around the world can quickly and easily communicate via e-mail - across borders and time zones. Almost 200 billion e-mails were sent in 2014, more than half of them for professional reasons, according to British researchers. The volume will continue to rise in the coming years. Even today, however, many professionals have difficulty processing the daily e-mail inbox. They feel overwhelmed by the constant flow of news and are interrupted by e-mails in their work processes, resulting in reduced productivity and stress, reports the Future Work Center..

Automatic e-mail retrieval causes increased stress
In their investigation, the British researchers found that the automatic retrieval of e-mails is more stressful than a targeted active retrieval. Also, respondents who have the e-mail program open all day long have stated significantly more frequently that e-mails create stress on them. Increased stress was also noticeable among employees who checked their emails early in the morning and late in the evening. According to the British researcher managers, managers are particularly heavily burdened by constant e-mail communication among the occupational groups. However, the personality plays an important role in the perceived stress and the extent to which the emails disturb the work-life balance.

Apple users increasingly stressed by emails
The researchers also found that e-mail stress apparently also related to the technology used. Thus, the perceived stress is significantly higher among users of devices with the operating system Mac OS (Apple) than with users of Windows computers. For iPhones (iOS operating system), this was higher than for smartphones with an Android, Windows or Blackberry operating system. Why this is so, remain unclear at this time. "We do not say that Mac OS causes stress. It's just an interesting detail and could have many reasons like usability, familiarity, workplace design, the type of people, etc. ", the British researchers write. Further research is needed to understand the context and derive stress avoidance strategies for e-mail communication. (Fp)