Correlation of Technostress Creators with Employees’ Work-Life Balance in the Context of Journalists’ Use of Information and Communication Technology at Work: Moderating Role of Self-Efficacy

Abstract

Technical pressures otherwise known as “technostress” because of the use of work-related information and communication technology (ICT) are increasingly causing stressful experience to journalists in the newsroom. Existing research has shown that journalists’ attitudes and performance are adversely affected by technostress creators, and not much is understood about their effects on non-working lives especially in the Global South context. This study aimed to close this research void by examining the relationship between technostress creators and “work-life balance” with “job self-efficacy” as a mitigating factor. Employing a survey questionnaire, the data was collected from 300 full-time Nigerian and Vietnamese journalists. Key findings showed that (i) technostress creators were negatively associated with work-life balance; and (ii) the negative relationship was moderated by work self-efficiency. These findings enrich the technostress research by providing an insight into the influence of technostress creators on journalists’ work-life balance and highlight how to cope with technostress situations.