Tuesday, September 9, 2008

3.2 Technology and stress related?

On page 358, the textbook mentions that a study at Carnegie Mellon indicated that regular Internet users are more stressed than non-users.  I think it's true; technology has made life very stressful.  My boss and usually expects a response to his email within a few hours even on weekends and holidays and does not ever hesitate to call me on my cell phone.  It's like anyone can contact you anytime and this just feels like constant pressure sometimes.  If I don't answer my cell phone or respond to email, people actually get worried!  And I agree with the book in that new technology never replaces anything; it just adds another layer.  Most people email and then call anyways to follow up.    

It is also extremely difficult to learn and keep up with all these new technologies.  I think the discussion in Box 12.8 is fascinating because it points out that machines are designed for people and not the other way around.  I don't think I have been really "trained" on using anything we have at work.  I have mostly just figured things out on my own and this can be extremely time consuming.  So this also adds pressure and often these "new advanced systems" are never user-friendly and can be so complicated.  So although technology is supposed to make our lives easier, I wonder if it really does?

3 comments:

Janet S. said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Janet S. said...

I completely agree with your sentiments. My own boss is hooked to the computer. She gets about 20 emails per hour and constantly complains about her work load. She knows technology quite well and thus assumes the highest responsibility for many important projects.

That's why I'm hired as her assistant... to help her deal with the vast amounts of work she receives every day. It's sad that no one realizes how hard she works because she has a private office with minimal face-to-face interaction.

The problem is that she wants to work faster and harder with new technology. This is the curse of technology: To always aspire to be better, but knowing you will never achieve it.

Ibirapuera said...

Somehow I believe that technology has made life more stressful than necessary. The example you used about people who email and call to follow up is so true! One of my co-workers, for instance, sends emails and right after sending, she comes by my desk to inquiry if I opened her message already. It is stamped on my face how much I hate when she acts like that. Not totally happy, she wants to go over the entire email with me, as if I was not able to do that on my own. I ask myself: is this really necessary? Surely, no!
The company I currently work for is the only one which provided training on how to use the main system, SAP. However, my former employers let me learn Oracle, ADP, AS400 and other systems on my own. My point is: whenever we think we dominate some technology, it is time to learn something else. It is wonderful to learn new things, but sometimes we barely had enough time to process the information, and it is time to move on. It is very hard to keep up with so much in such a short time. The concept showed in Box 12.8 applies more in a perfect world, instead of in the real one. Carnegie Mellon's idea makes all sense, once non-users do not experience same level of stress experienced by regular Internet users.