Physical

Emotional

"We have more information available to us than ever before (and more reason to doubt the authenticity of much of the information) ... Far from reveling in the increased availability of texts and images, many of us feel overwhelmed by the flood and increasingly incapable of dealing with it" (Gorman, 2001, para 5).

Technostress – also known as computer-related stress – was already recognized as a “common problem for reference librarians in the 1990s” (Kupersmith, para. 1).  Much has been written about technostress, and definitions tend to revolve around the following:

“…a modern disease of adaptation caused by an inability to cope with new technologies in a healthy manner” (Brod, p. 16).

“…a combination of performance anxiety, information overload, role conflicts, and organizational factors” (Kupersmith, para. 1).

“…the physical, mental, or emotional strain felt by people faced with rapidly changing technology in the workplace” (Barlett, p. 226).

“…the challenge of keeping up with changing technology …” (Huwe, 2005, para. 1).