Extent of teleworking and work Stress: The role of information and communication technology and job-related demands and resources

Abstract

With over 41 million hybrid and high-extent teleworkers in Europe, the landscape of remote work has drastically transformed. Considering the teleworking extent, this study explores the relationships between information and communication technology (ICT) demands, ICT resources, social resources, job demands, and work stress among 1495 Estonian full-time employees engaged in telework and regular ICT use. Hybrid teleworkers reported higher work stress and ICT demands than high-extent teleworkers. In both groups, high e-communication demands, work requiring concentration, and email challenges were associated with increased work stress. Conversely, job resources such as concentration-enabling workplaces, information sharing and collaboration reduced stress. Hybrid teleworkers experienced elevated stress from ICT difficulties, while high-extent teleworkers were more affected by relationship maintenance. Feeling appreciated was related to lower stress for high-extent teleworkers. Moderation analysis revealed that collaboration and information sharing buffered stress from excessive e-communication only for hybrid teleworkers. Findings offer insights for improving telework practices.