Fuhrer, Chantal
Decreasing technostress to increase absorption capacity?
- 2021.
70
This article investigates the impact of technostress—the stress generated by technology—on individual cognitive abilities. The aim of this empirical research is to assess the real impact of technostressors on users’ absorption capacity. To do this, we examine the use of digital tools through a theoretical framework, with a sociotechnical and cognitive focus. Our research model assumes that technostressors negatively impact users’ absorption capacity, while inhibitors of technostress have a positive impact. We test this model using the questionnaire responses of 339 users in a professional context. After processing using structural equations modeling, our results are nuanced. On the one hand, they confirm the triad of technology, individual, and organization as a necessary framework to understand this complex phenomenon. On the other hand, they show that technostress inhibitors can have a more varied effect on absorption capacity. While organizational support has an impact on the assimilation and transformation of knowledge, technical support is involved mainly in the integration and use of this knowledge. Our article concludes by discussing the findings of this research, its limitations, and avenues for future research.