Factors Influencing Teacher’s Technostress Experienced in Using Emerging Technology: A Qualitative Study

Abstract

In this era of rapid technology growth, many countries have begun to adopt emerging technologies into their educational systems to improve learning outcomes. The aim of this study is to explore the factors influencing teachers’ experiences of technostress while using new technology in academic classrooms and how it might be mitigated. Prior research has not focused on how technostress develops among individuals over time or how it can be mitigated in an individual context; the intention of this study is to contribute to the technostress literature in these particular areas. To address the research gap, we conducted a qualitative study that collected data through the use of an open-ended question questionnaire. Seventy teachers of different backgrounds and locations responded to the survey. We used thematic analysis to analyze their responses and reveal how lack of school support and their professional identities influence their levels of technostress. Technology characteristics, including the complexity and the benefits of a given technology, and privacy concerns play a crucial role in teachers’ experiences of technostress. Moreover, we found that colleague support in using new technology and open educational resources each contributed to mitigating teachers’ technostress levels. Our study extends technostress research to examine a new learning environment and context. This focus allowed us to highlight the need to develop open educational resources and better social support structures for teachers and to rethink the professional identities of developing teachers to mitigate their levels of technostress. Suggestions for further research that resulted from this work include using a mixed methods research approach in future studies and including more teachers in future work to determine the relationships among the factors identified by this study.

Digital Competencies and Techno-Stress in Teachers at a Public University in Ancash, Peru

“…Consistent with Khlaif et al (2023), technology features and their complexity and benefits, along with privacy concerns, significantly shape techno-stress experiences. In addition, peer support and open educational resources mitigate techno-stress.…”

“…Likewise, the positive association between overload and job performance is reflected in the fact that fatigue, although moderate, shows a more positive association with performance compared to anxiety (Li & Wang, 2021). Regarding skepticism and inefficacy, low levels suggest a positive adaptation that was not present during the pandemic period (Khlaif et al, 2023). Furthermore, the presence of a low level of skepticism can be attributed to the importance given to factors such as digital literacy and participation, which positively influence job performance and, therefore, could act as mitigators of skepticism towards technology (Nascimento et al, 2023).…”

Technology integration skills, technostress, and self-efficacy of selected public elementary teachers in District III of Batangas city

“…Teachers' experiences of technostress are greatly influenced by technology characteristics, including the benefits and complexity of a particular technology. Additionally, we discovered that open educational resources and peer support for using new technology each helped to reduce teachers' technostress levels (Khlaif et al, 2022). In addition, Efilti & Coklar (2019) found in their study that the level of technological stress among teachers was discovered to be a significant predictor of their psychological capital.…”

Navigating techno-stress: A qualitative exploration of university faculty's experiences and perspectives in the Peruvian context amidst the return to classes and the post-COVID-19 era

“…Additionally, it is important to mention that the emerging concepts are also presented in Figures 2,3,4,and 5.…”