Stress in the Workplace by Danaa Ross Original written 8/03, revised 2/04.

Assignment:

I was asked to prepare a paper addressing how the increased use of technology has impacted workplace stress, using an internet article as a base for my reference. In addition, I was asked to discuss ethical issues inherent with such a topic.

Stress in the Workplace

Danaa Ross

Management 331

Cliff Madison Jr., MAOM

February 26, 2003

Introduction to Workplace Stress

The concept of technology increasing workplace stress is not new, however; it has received a considerable amount of attention in recent years. I was asked to prepare a paper addressing how the increased use of technology has impacted workplace stress, using an internet article as a base for my reference. In addition, discuss ethical issues inherent with such a topic. There have been several studies done on the effects technology has on stress in the workplace.

Kensington Technology Survey

Kensington Technology Group, a San Mateo, CA based company, released a survey in August of 1999 titled, "The Impact of More Stress On-The-Job".

English: Availability of 4 Mbps-Capable Broadband ...

English: Logo of the U.S. Food and Drug Administra...

Workplace stress caused by an unsuitable work envi...

Kensington is the first to admit that technology increases productivity, yet at the same time, they also admit that technology increases the stress levels of many workers. The survey "...queried 501 adult U.S. full-time, traditional and home-office workers..." (www.kensington.com) Kensington found that "the possibility of losing documents due to computer crashes..." caused workers to experience an increase in stress. (www.kensington.com) Furthermore, Kensington found, "The demands of e-mail and voicemail have also contributed to an overall increase in stress in the last year..." (www.kensington.com)

Increased Stress in Other Industries

These results are typically in line with what other companies have found in terms of technology increasing stress in the workplace, however; Kensington's survey focused on office workers as opposed to other industries that also experience increased stress levels due to technology advancement. For example, construction workers use...