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Technostress aus einer neurobiologischen Perspektive

Systemabsturz führt bei Computerbenutzern zu einem Anstieg des Stresshormons Kortisol

Technostress from a Neurobiological Perspective

System Breakdown Increases the Stress Hormone Cortisol in Computer Users

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WIRTSCHAFTSINFORMATIK

Zusammenfassung

Trotz des positiven Einflusses von Informations- und Kommunikationstechnologien (IKT) auf einer Individual-, Organisations- und Gesellschaftsebene (z. B. verbesserter Zugang zu Informationen, erhöhte Effizienz und Produktivität) zeigen sowohl die wissenschaftliche Forschung als auch Einzelberichte aus der Praxis, dass die Mensch-Computer-Interaktion zu beträchtlichen Stresswahrnehmungen bei Benutzern führen kann. Diese Art von Stress wird als Technostress bezeichnet. Eine Analyse der Fachliteratur zeigt, dass die meisten Studien bislang Fragebögen verwendet haben, um die Eigenschaften, Ursachen und Auswirkungen von Technostress zu untersuchen. Trotz des Erkenntniswerts dieser vielen Fragebogenstudien nehmen wir eine andere konzeptionelle Perspektive ein, nämlich jene der Neurobiologie. Wir berichten über ein Laborexperiment, indem wir die Auswirkungen eines Systemabsturzes auf die Veränderungen im Kortisolspiegel von Benutzern untersuchten – Kortisol ist ein bedeutendes Stresshormon im menschlichen Körper. Die Ergebnisse unserer Studie zeigen, dass der Kortisolspiegel signifikant ansteigt, wenn ein System bei Ausführung einer Mensch-Computer-Interaktionsaufgabe abstürzt. Auf Basis dieses Ergebnisses ergeben sich bedeutende Implikationen für Forschung, Entwicklung und Management von IKT, und nicht zuletzt auch für die Gesundheitspolitik. Wir bestätigen den Erkenntniswert eines Forschungsansatzes, der bislang in IKT-Disziplinen weitgehend vernachlässigt wurde (insbesondere in der Wirtschaftsinformatik sowie in der Information-Systems-Disziplin (IS)). Wir argumentieren im Beitrag, dass die zukünftige Forschung im Bereich der Mensch-Computer-Interaktion die neurobiologische Perspektive als erkenntnisfördernden komplementären Ansatz zu den traditionellen Konzepten betrachten sollte.

Abstract

Despite the positive impact of information and communication technology (ICT) on an individual, organizational, and societal level (e.g., increased access to information, as well as enhanced performance and productivity), both scientific research and anecdotal evidence indicate that human-machine interaction, both in a private and organizational context, may lead to notable stress perceptions in users. This type of stress is referred to as technostress. A review of the literature shows that most studies used questionnaires to investigate the nature, antecedents, and consequences of technostress. Despite the value of the vast amount of questionnaire-based technostress research, we draw upon a different conceptual perspective, namely neurobiology. Specifically, we report on a laboratory experiment in which we investigated the effects of system breakdown on changes in users’ levels of cortisol, which is a major stress hormone in humans. The results of our study show that cortisol levels increase significantly as a consequence of system breakdown in a human-computer interaction task. In demonstrating this effect, our study has major implications for ICT research, development, management, and health policy. We confirm the value of a category of research heretofore largely neglected in ICT-related disciplines (particularly in business and information systems engineering, BISE, as well as information systems research, ISR), and argue that future research investigating human-machine interactions should consider the neurobiological perspective as a valuable complement to traditional concepts.

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Danksagung

Wir bedanken uns bei den Teilnehmern des Gmunden Retreat on NeuroIS 2011 (http://www.NeuroIS.org) für ihre nützlichen Kommentare zu einer früheren Version dieses Manuskripts. Darüber hinaus schätzen wir die Unterstützung durch das Auslandsbüro der Universität Linz, das eine Präsentation zum gegenständlichen Forschungsprojekt von René Riedl an der HEC Montréal gefördert hat. Weiter bedanken wir uns bei den wissenschaftlichen Mitarbeitern des Department of Information Technologies an der HEC Montréal, die Vorschläge unterbreitet haben, die zur Verbesserung des Artikels beigetragen haben. Schließlich wollen wir uns beim verantwortlichen Herausgeber, Armin Heinzl, sowie drei anonymen Gutachtern für ihre exzellenten Kommentare bedanken, die Möglichkeiten zur Verbesserung des Manuskripts aufgezeigt haben.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institut für Wirtschaftsinformatik – Information Engineering, Johannes Kepler Universität Linz, Altenberger Str. 69, 4040, Linz, Österreich

    René Riedl

  2. Fakultät für Management, Fachhochschule Oberösterreich, Wehrgrabengasse 1-3, 4400, Steyr, Österreich

    Harald Kindermann &  Andreas Auinger

  3. Abteilung für Neurologie und Psychiatrie, Allgemeines Krankenhaus Linz, Krankenhausstrasse 9, 4021, Linz, Österreich

    Andrija Javor

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  1. René Riedl
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  2. Harald Kindermann
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  4. Andrija Javor
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Correspondence to René Riedl.

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Angenommen nach zwei Überarbeitungen durch Prof. Dr. Heinzl.

This article is also available in English via http://www.springerlink.com and http://www.bise-journal.org: Riedl R, Kindermann H, Auinger A, Javor A (2012) Technostress from a Neurobiological Perspective. System Breakdown Increases the Stress Hormone Cortisol in Computer Users. Bus Inf Syst Eng. doi: 10.1007/s12599-012-0207-7.

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Riedl, R., Kindermann, H., Auinger, A. et al. Technostress aus einer neurobiologischen Perspektive. Wirtschaftsinf 54, 59–68 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11576-012-0314-6

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