|
E-Stress in Australian Universities
"Our vision is to provide deeper insights into digital communication and employee well-being and for the first time, explore top-down factors like psychosocial safety climate (PSC), and the experiences (including sleep and recovery) of employees which may assist policy development both in universities and other complex organisations" |
|
Digital Communication and Work Stress in Universities:
A Multilevel Study In the Australian higher education sector, high email volumes and increasing levels of psychological strain (work stress) can affect employees' health and well-being. These pressures are likely to have additional direct consequences on the recruitment and retention of high quality academic staff and the teaching of future professionals with implications for future GDP. As Australia’s public university sector contributes nearly $25 billion per year to the national economy, its workforce is vital for the sector to contribute effectively to the national innovation and science agenda and deliver high quality research and teaching to over one million enrolled students. Digital communication facilitates contact and collaboration between academic staff, students and industry. However, digital communication also encompasses negative and pervasive elements to workers and organisations which include interruption to concentration, work flow disruption, 24/7 connectivity, and work-family conflict. In turn, digital communication is often associated with work-related stress. The project uses a multilevel approach to examine how organisational factors such as university digital communication protocols and the climate for psychological health (Psychosocial Safety Climate [PSC]) influence individual email load and work pressure, health, sleep and recovery using a national longitudinal design and innovative diary research. The project will also examine how university employees proactively shape their own digital communication activities (job crafting) to improve their health and work engagement. It will address a gap in research by including casual employees, so that the findings benefit all occupational groups within universities. Expected outcomes include policy frameworks to manage digital communication practices within the Australian public university sector and other knowledge intensive industries. Aims
|
|
|
Conceptual Framework
|
|
Studies
|
|
|
|
|
Impact
|
|
The lost productivity cost of depression among employees is estimated to cost Australian employers $6.3 billion per year. In addition to assisting university management to attain healthier work environments, the project is likely to have translational importance for other Australian workers, communities and industries in three ways:
1. Benefits to workers Provide empirical evidence of current levels of PSC experienced by personnel across universities which can be compared against national surveillance standards. 2. Benefits and significance to Australia’s higher education sector Provide participating HR Directors with statistical information that compares their university across universities which will facilitate the translation of this new information into new protocols and practices to advocate for effective digital communication policies, stronger PSC, and higher levels of employee well-being. 3. Benefits to industry and value for money Supply new insights for industries, particularly sectors that employ knowledge workers, so that best practices can be implemented. |
|
Research Team
|
|
Chief Investigators
Advisory Group
Publications
|
"Understanding and reducing the shackles of digital communication
should yield benefits for employees and organisations through
reducing the negative aspects of digital communication and
creating more time to achieve substantive work goals"
should yield benefits for employees and organisations through
reducing the negative aspects of digital communication and
creating more time to achieve substantive work goals"
How to cite this website:
Centre for Workplace Excellence (CWeX) (2019) StressCafé [Promoting healthier, happier, safer, and more productive work environments]. Retrieved from https://www.stresscafe.com.au/ Website Editor: Prof. Maureen Dollard Publications officer: Dr Ali Afsharian |