THE IT WORKER SMART PHONE CONUNDRUM:
HOW WORK EMAIL ON SMART PHONES AFFECTS STRESS LEVELS OF
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY PROFESSIONALS IN IT SERVICES
By
Alison Virag-McCann

A THESIS
Submitted to
Michigan State University
in partial fulfillment of the requirements
for the degree of
Telecommunications, Information Studies and Media – Master of Arts
2013

ABSTRACT
THE IT WORKER SMART PHONE CONUNDRUM: HOW WORK E-MAIL ON SMART
PHONES AFFECTS STRESS LEVELS OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
PROFESSIONALS IN IT SERVICES
By
Alison Virag-McCann
Information Technology Professionals can often be under a lot of pressure, especially in the
department of IT Services. Many IT Services employees have smart phones they use to
download work email so that they are available to provide support at any time. This may result in
high stress levels from expectations related to multitasking and better productivity. To explore
the impacts of using personal smart phones for IT work several IT Professionals were
interviewed about their smart phone usage. Interviewees were asked the same set of questions,
but they were prescreened and chosen as participants if they fit one of two profiles: whether they
like using their smart phones for work email or dislike using their smart phones for work email.
The results showed that how the IT Professionals used their smart phones and their reasoning for
using their smart phones appeared to be associated with their stress level. Overall, those who
dislike using their smart phones reported experiencing less stress than those that did those who
liked using their smart phone for work email.

Dedication
To my dad, who left me a with a family legacy;
To my mom, who taught me the value of education;
To my husband, who made many meals for us and never stopped supporting me.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

LIST OF TABLES .................................................................................................................................................vi
LIST OF FIGURES.............................................................................................................................................. vii
INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................................................................................1
THE PROBLEM ..................................................................................................................................................1
WHY THIS MATTERS ....................................................................................................................................1
LITERATURE REVIEW ......................................................................................................................................3
WHAT OTHERS HAVE DONE ....................................................................................................................3
SMART PHONES ............................................................................................................................. 3 
MULTITASKING AND PRODUCTIVITY .................................................................................. 5 
CONSTANT CONNECTIVITY AND ACCESSIBILITY .......................................................... 8 
WORK OVERLOAD ...................................................................................................................... 13 
MY APPROACH ...............................................................................................................................................15
METHOD.................................................................................................................................................................17
SAMPLE TECHNIQUE ..................................................................................................................................17
LIKE AND DISLIKE SMART PHONE WORK EMAIL COMPARISONS .................................17
QUESTIONS ......................................................................................................................................................18
RESULTS ................................................................................................................................................................21
QUESTION: Reason for buying a smart phone........................................................................................21
SUMMARY ........................................................................................................................................................21
DETAILS .............................................................................................................................................................21
INSIGHT ..............................................................................................................................................................21
QUESTION: Smart phone ownership .........................................................................................................22
SUMMARY ........................................................................................................................................................22
DETAILS .............................................................................................................................................................22
INSIGHT ..............................................................................................................................................................22
QUESTION: Kind of smart phone ...............................................................................................................23
SUMMARY ........................................................................................................................................................23
DETAILS .............................................................................................................................................................23
INSIGHT ..............................................................................................................................................................23
QUESTION: Smart phone importance in profession ..............................................................................24
SUMMARY ........................................................................................................................................................24
DETAILS .............................................................................................................................................................24
INSIGHT ..............................................................................................................................................................25
QUESTION: Check email on smart phone during work hours ............................................................25
SUMMARY ........................................................................................................................................................25
DETAILS .............................................................................................................................................................25
INSIGHT ..............................................................................................................................................................26
QUESTION: When smart phone checks email .........................................................................................26
SUMMARY ........................................................................................................................................................27
iv

DETAILS .............................................................................................................................................................27
INSIGHT ..............................................................................................................................................................27
QUESTION: Times when email is not checked .......................................................................................27
SUMMARY ........................................................................................................................................................28
DETAILS .............................................................................................................................................................28
INSIGHT ..............................................................................................................................................................28
QUESTION: Check emails outside of working hours ............................................................................28
SUMMARY ........................................................................................................................................................29
DETAILS .............................................................................................................................................................29
INSIGHT ..............................................................................................................................................................29
QUESTION: Use smart phone to multitask during work hours ..........................................................30
SUMMARY ........................................................................................................................................................30
DETAILS .............................................................................................................................................................30
INSIGHT ..............................................................................................................................................................31
QUESTION: Stress over work.......................................................................................................................31
SUMMARY ........................................................................................................................................................31
DETAILS .............................................................................................................................................................31
INSIGHT ..............................................................................................................................................................31
QUESTION: Triggers that cause stress.......................................................................................................32
SUMMARY ........................................................................................................................................................32
DETAILS .............................................................................................................................................................32
INSIGHT ..............................................................................................................................................................33
QUESTION: Impact smart phone has on stress........................................................................................33
SUMMARY ........................................................................................................................................................33
DETAILS .............................................................................................................................................................33
INSIGHT ..............................................................................................................................................................34
QUESTION: Strategies for using smart phone .........................................................................................34
SUMMARY ........................................................................................................................................................34
DETAILS .............................................................................................................................................................35
INSIGHT ..............................................................................................................................................................35
DISCUSSION .........................................................................................................................................................37
APPENDICES ........................................................................................................................................................41
APPENDIX A: Interview Questions ............................................................................................................42
APPENDIX B: Research Questions and Answers ...................................................................................43
BIBLIOGRAPHY .................................................................................................................................................48

v

LIST OF TABLES

Table 1: Not responding to work emails outside normal work hours ............................................. 9 
Table 2: Check email during meals .............................................................................................. 10 
Table 3: Time without a phone ..................................................................................................... 10 
Table 4: Times mobile device is checked ..................................................................................... 12 
Table 5: Locations of phone while sleeping ................................................................................. 12 
Table 6: Take mobile device instead of lunch .............................................................................. 13 
Table 7: Characteristics of each group.......................................................................................... 18 
Table 8: Main reason for getting a smart phone ........................................................................... 21 
Table 9: Smart phone important in profession.............................................................................. 24 
Table 10: Checking email during work hours............................................................................... 25 
Table 11: When phone checks email ............................................................................................ 27 
Table 12: Times email is not checked........................................................................................... 28 
Table 13: Checking email outside working hours ........................................................................ 29 
Table 14: Using smart phone to multitask .................................................................................... 30 
Table 15: Feel stressed about work ............................................................................................... 31 
Table 16: Triggers that cause stress .............................................................................................. 32 
Table 17: Smart phone impact on stress ....................................................................................... 33 
Table 18: Adopted strategies ........................................................................................................ 34 
Table 19: Research Questions and Answers ................................................................................. 43 

vi

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure 1: Ownership in years ........................................................................................................ 22 
Figure 2: Kind of smart phone ...................................................................................................... 23 

vii

INTRODUCTION
THE PROBLEM
IT Services departments at large universities support many of the most important IT applications
and systems for the university. There are multiple teams within the unit, each having their set of
responsibilities for maintaining those applications and systems. These are the IT Professionals of
IT Services, including help desk, networking, and server staff. Many of these individuals are
given tasks that require them to be available not only during the workday, but outside of the
workday. They have different devices to keep them in touch with what is going on at work,
including smart phones. IT Professionals often have the latest and greatest technology, especially
when it comes to communication devices. Smart phones are one of the fastest growing
technologies and have been for several years. In order to support clients, IT Professionals need to
be available around the clock, which pushes them to get smart phones and configure their work
email on the phones. This allows them to check email and use other functions of their phone with
constant connectivity. They find it more convenient to multitask, leading to higher productivity.
When others in the university know people in the department have this device and ability, it can
become an expectation of coworkers and management, making it difficult to turn off. This leads
to the stress of always being accessible.

WHY THIS MATTERS
IT Services hosts many applications and systems that are available at all times, or expected to be.
That means that if something does fail, the IT Professionals are expected to be available to fix it.
Sometimes it is not a system failure, but something simple like a password reset. Either way,
there is usually a department employee available to assist with the issue. This might be expected
1

or assumed with clients of IT Services, but IT Professionals may not always want to be available,
and can find it difficult to step away from work when their email is so readily available on their
phones. This kind of stress can cause issues not only in their work life, but also in their personal
life, pushing them to have work overload. This is very dangerous for any person, but having
work email on smart phones may increase the chances of stress due to that strain. The employee,
management, and coworkers should all be aware of this issue and supportive if they see it
happening. Many other health issues can arise if a person is under too much stress for too long.
IT Professionals in IT departments need to be able to get away from constant communication and
work and understand that the tasks will be there when they return. Limiting the use of smart
phones is important to encourage healthier employees. The question is does having work email
on smart phones seem to influence the stress level of IT Professionals in IT departments. To
examine this, six people volunteered for interviews to be asked a series of questions based on
their smart phone usage.

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LITERATURE REVIEW
WHAT OTHERS HAVE DONE
SMART PHONES
From back in the early 1980s, mobile penetration has grown significantly. In the late 1990s, half
the world still had never made a phone call (Jordan, 2012). In 2002, there were an estimated
15.57 mobile phones per 100 people worldwide (Gans, King, & Wright, 2005). Due to 3G
technology, phones have become more efficient for email services (Gans, King, & Wright, 2005)
and other functionality. This has lead to a widespread amount of smart phone ownership. In July
2011, there were 82.2 million smart phone subscribers in the U.S. (Yelton, 2012). More than
90% of adults between the ages of 18 and 46 own cell phones (Zickuhr, 2011), 67% of adults
between the ages of 18 and 24, 71% of adults between 25 and 34, and 54% between 35 and 44
own smart phones (Smith, 2012). It is no longer a matter of if someone will get a smart phone
but when. Yelton (2012) states the cost of a smart phone is no longer a barrier to device
ownership. People can get good prices or they really do not care about the price to begin with.
Ownership of mobile devices has increased dramatically over the years. In a study done by
Dearman and Pierce (2008), the average device collection was 5.96 per person. This represents
any mobile device with internet access. According to Jordan (2012), there are 5 billion mobile
phones for about 6.8 billion people. With all those phones, millions of people now have email
access instantly, and increased levels of stress. New technologies, such as smart phones, means
new stressors (Losyk, 2005).

Information Technology is a major part of everyday life, especially mobile phones. Years ago,
email capabilities became available on smart phones. This has led to interesting changes in our
3

behavior, specifically our amount of stress. Professionals that work in the IT field are some of
the most affected by this technology. Stress is lead by the presence of email (Price, 2010) and IT
Help Desk Professionals can often feel compelled to check work email. Smart phones increase
anxiety by the need to check email constantly (Allen & Shoard, 2005). Expectations have
changed for employers and employees on how often to communicate. Technology is driving in
new understandings and expectations including time, intimacy, productivity, work, location and
choice (Jordan, 2012). Employees are now available at any time, and employers often expect
that. It is the responsibility of both parties to respect that even with the technology, time away is
still needed and required to reduce stress. Assuming that the majority of smart phone users have
email setup on their phone, checking it constantly or getting email constantly is a major source of
stress. According to a report done by King (2013), 44% of 250 million emails recorded opened in
June 2013 were on smart phones. Smart phones have created a fine line between when it is work
time and personal time. The devices have made an incredible impact on concepts of work and
working hours (Karlson, Iqbal, Meyers, Ramos, Lee, & Tang, 2010).

Any job can be stressful, whether it is enjoyable or not. IT Professionals often have a lot to
handle no matter what they do, so stress can become inevitable. Work related stress is estimated
to affect at least one-third of the workforce in any one year (Williams & Cooper, 2002). While
that might not seem like a large amount, it is more than it should be. Even those that take time
off, find that stress is a large factor in enjoying that time. When people are stressed, the period
before time off is taken, they are very unlikely to perform at their best (Williams & Cooper,
2002). Employees often find themselves in a routine between work and personal time. Because
of that routine, the exciting time is when it is broken, such as taking vacations. They think about

4

it for weeks in advance and when it comes close, they are so stressed they can feel that vacation
has already started and consequently productivity is greatly decreased.

Stress can also lead to high turnover rates. If people are not happy or feel too much pressure,
they are more inclined to leave the position or company. High rates of staff turnover is one of the
clearest organizational signs of stress (Williams & Cooper, 2002). Losyk (2005) also mentions
that stress takes a toll not only on the worker, but detracts from the health of the organization. In
other words, this can be dangerous for both the organization and the employees. According to
Losyk (2005), 40% of job turnover is from stress. It is a serious condition and needs to be
handled at the source. Stress matters because it damages people (Williams & Cooper, 2002). It
can cause other issues mentally, emotionally, and perhaps physically . There are many causes of
stress and sometimes it may not just be one thing. Employees and employers need to be aware of
signs of stress so it can be prevented as soon as possible. One thing that can cause stress often is
pressure, such as checking email constantly. Pressure leads to stress and the demands placed
upon people exceed our ability to cope (Williams & Cooper, 2002). This is why people need to
be cautious when dealing with stress. We need to learn to not be available at all times and know
it is okay to take time off. Smart phones often prevent us from doing this because of the
connectivity and accessbility.

MULTITASKING AND PRODUCTIVITY
Past studies review the impact of not only smart phones, but also mobile devices. These studies
have been done with large companies, small companies, IT and non-IT employees. The result is
often that people become so involved with constant connectivity and having email on their smart

5

phones, they cannot focus on anything. One study questioned what was achieved by having
multiple devices instead of just one (Oulasvirta & Sumari, 2007). People often feel that having
email on smart phones is a good way to multitask and be more productive when, in fact, studies
have shown the opposite. There is an illusion of productivity when it is actually
counterproductive (Richtel, 2009). Even though we feel like we can do more, we may be doing
less. According to Clifford Nass, “the brain is fundamentally built to unitask” (Richtel, 2009). If
we are trying to be productive by multitasking, this can cause stress whether it works or not.

Multitasking
People use different devices and often switch between them for multiple tasks. In a report by
Oulasvirta and Sumari (2007), they reflect on employees switching between devices in intervals
of less than five minutes. Not only are people multitasking to be more productive, but they are
using multiple devices to multitask. This can be incredibly stressful, especially for IT
Professionals who often have three or more devices they use daily. Multiple devices can each
have their own purpose, sometimes crossing over into each other. This can often happen if
employees want to keep work and personal life separate. For multitasking, employees might
have one device for personal use and dedicate another for work use (Oulasvirta & Sumari, 2007).
These two devices might have the same functionality but they are used for different areas,
pushing an employee to multitask. While management might be a large factor in supporting this,
often times the employee pushes himself themselves towards it. According to Richtel (2009),
white-collar employees often self-impose pressure to multitask. Although it can be the
employee’s fault at times, it is still a problem having multiple devices to multitask. Separating
work and personal life can be challenging. One study showed this is exactly what people try to

6

do and use their smart phone to get work done faster and multitask (Bomber, 2010). The
intentions are good but people have difficulty doing so in practice (Dearman & Pierce, 2008).

Productivity
Multitasking is thought to be a way of being productive. Instead of doing one thing at a time, do
multiple things at a time. While this might seem like a good idea, it might not produce as much
in the end. When an employee is given more technology with the possibility to do more, that
might lead management to expect productivity to increase (Kakabadse, Porter, & Vance, Winter
2007). Part of the issue is that if the technology is good enough, it should be able to keep the
employee’s attention long enough to complete one task. Technology facilitates immersion that a
person can become so involved with a task that nothing else matters (Kakabadse, Porter, &
Vance, Winter 2007). That does not really support multitasking, but it does support completing a
task sufficiently. Another take on productivity is that increasing power and portability of mobile
devices can boost productivity, but can also lead to pragmatic difficulties in management and
resuming tasks across multiple devices (Karlson, Meyers, Jacobs, Johns, & Kane, 2009). While
mobile devices can attempt to increase productivity, one still has to be able to manage everything
to be productive.

Being productive and still being efficient can lead to higher stress levels for any employee. One
study showed that even though email made it possible to do more work, the work was not done
more productively (Mano & Mesch, 2009). A balance now needs to be found in order to do work
well, still maintaining everything else, including emails. When we move from our “stretch” zone
(doing just over what we are comfortable with) to the “strain” zone (signs of anxiety) our

7

productivity declines (Williams & Cooper, 2002). People who push themselves or allow
themselves to be pushed will not only decrease their productivity, but may end up hurting
themselves. Having a smart phone to increase productivity may seem like it is a good idea, but
could also end up causing more stress. Not only does this impact the employee, but also the
employer and people around the employee. Stress can adversely affect everyone’s performance,
not just the person experiencing it (Williams & Cooper, 2002). Email can be considered one of
the most stressful things a person deals with at any time, especially if they have to be doing other
things as well. Although employees often try to be as productive as possible, email can actually
cause problems. Email abuse is one of the issues that hinders productivity (Dawley & Anthony,
2003). While employees might feel that it assists, it often does not, causing one to be more
stressed out over not getting things completed.

CONSTANT CONNECTIVITY AND ACCESSIBILITY
Not only do IT Help Desk Professionals feel a need to check email, but not being able to check
email can cause stress. If a user cannot check email, it can induce stress, causing the balance of
work and life to erode (Price, 2010). This is often a major issue because IT Professionals can
often feel that they never leave work, having emails come in on their smart phones no matter
where they are. Due to the responsibilities they have during work hours, that feeling of constant
connectivity follows them outside of working hours. This leads to email on smart phones
affecting the quality of life (Price, 2010). We use our phones more than we actually need to, and
we do not need them as much as we think we do (Richtel, 2009).

8

Constant Connectivity
Connected everywhere all the time is what makes smart phones so popular (Bomber, 2010). In
addition, constant connectivity implies a person always being “available, reachable and able to
process information” (Grauers & Wall, 2012). This can cause major stress for users. Grauers and
Wall (2012) mention that constant connectivity has lead to health effects like stress. Despite
these increases, smart phones are still a widely and heavily used mobile device. They are often
used because of the ease of access, instead of other devices. In one study it was found that an
employee preferred his smart phone over his laptop for viewing his calendar because the laptop
was too much to setup (Oulasvirta & Sumari, 2007). It is not just about pressures of checking
email when you have a smart phone but the constant connectivity. People feel pressure to always
be “on” (Perlow, 2012). In a report by Bomber (2010), it was stated that smart phones lead to
frustration and annoyance by always being connected. Separating work and personal life has
become more difficult than ever with the constant connectivity. Because of technology we are
always able to be contacted (Losyk, 2005). It no longer matters where we are, we are always
connected. Working hours is no longer a term meaning eight hours a day. With smart phones you
are available twenty-four hours a day. Below is a poll taken internationally regarding people
checking their email outside working hours.

People that said they feel guilty if they don’t
promptly respond to work-related messages
26%
outside normal work hours
Table 1: Not responding to work emails outside normal work hours
Poll from 10 Ways Mobile Technology is Changing Our World (Scherer, 2012)
Because the smart phone provides accessibility to email, not checking it at any time can be
difficult. Of these respondents, 26% said they feel guilty if they do not check their email. For the
remaining, it may be that they do not feel guilty, or they just do not check their email outside
9

working hours. Another study showed that 48% of employees check email on weekends and
51% check on vacation (Perlow, 2012). Although people get time off from their work, many still
feel obligated to check email for whatever reason. Below is another poll from the same group on
how they use their phone while spending time with others during a meal.

Respondents that said they check their phone at
17%
every meal regardless of whom they’re dining
with
Table 2: Check email during meals
Poll from 10 Ways Mobile Technology is Changing Our World (Scherer, 2012)
These two polls show that many people put their phone at a higher priority than what is going on
around them. Whether is it after hours or meal times, they feel that checking their phone is
important for whatever reason. Being connected is one of the most important features of a smart
phone, or any mobile device. In a study done by Karlson et al. (2009), one participant was
recorded leaving for lunch at 11:30am, checking his email at 11:35pm and again at 11:43am,
then had a web surfing and email triage until 11:53am. This occurred again from 12:04pm until
12:15pm when he returned to his desk (Karlson, Meyers, Jacobs, Johns, & Kane, 2009).

Survey for how long people can go without their phones (U.S.)
1 hour
Several hours
1 day
1 week
11%
34%
29%
19%
Table 3: Time without a phone
Poll from 10 Ways Mobile Technology is Changing Our World (Scherer, 2012)
Above is another poll that reflects how long people can go without using their phones. There is
quite a range of lengths, with 11% saying one hour, while 19% say one week. One would expect
these numbers to go down as the time length goes up, but that is not the case. In another case
done by Bomber (2010), people reported that if their phone was lost, they had a feeling of panic.
This may depend on whether the phone is used for work or personal reasons.

10

Accessibility
Depending on the service provider, smart phones have a vast amount of coverage for service that
allows email to be downloaded to their devices at any time. This encourages IT Professionals to
check email at any time, increasing stress. Smart phone flexibility allows users outside working
hours to add to existing drivers of stress (Price, 2010). Because the smart phone is so easy to use
and has better accessbility than other devices, users can feel more compelled to check email
outside their working hours. Another component for IT Help Desk Professionals is their
customer base. Price (2010) suggests that the size of the organization may have a relationship
with email-induced stress. For IT Professionals at a Big Ten university, that might be a factor for
email use on smart phones. Not only do they have access with their smart phone, but also any
other portable device provides them with access. Portability was reported as the “best thing”
about working with multiple devices (Dearman & Pierce, 2008). The devices allow people to
make every minute matter in terms of communication. Smart phones are incredibly useful during
smaller portions of time, such as in between meetings, allowing a user to be more accessible
(Perry, O'Hara, Sellen, Brown, & Harper, 2001).

Part of owning a smart phone is people like coworkers knowing you own a smart phone and have
access to email. They will be more inclined to email you at all times. If you stop emailing,
colleagues will still email you (Perlow, 2012). This might also cause problems with management
emails as well. Often times, being accessible is a sign of responsibility and dedication to your
job, which leaves a good impression on management. Many people are afraid of not being
available because it could hurt their chances of promotion. Stopping long hours and being

11

accessible could allow others to pass you on the way to a better career (Perlow, 2012). Bomber
(2010) agrees with this by saying employees often struggle to keep up with their job and email
but do it at the risk of being unsuccessful or not getting promoted. Mills (2012) also mentioned
in a study that those employees not wanting to check their smart phones as often might appear
less committed to work. This can be a huge dilemma in any job market.

How often do people check their mobile device (U.S.)?
Less than every 5 minutes
10 minutes
Every 30 minutes Once an hour Few time a day
4%
14%
19%
17%
38%
Table 4: Times mobile device is checked
Poll from 10 Ways Mobile Technology is Changing Our World (Scherer, 2012)
This poll demonstrates the frequency of smart phone checking for the respondents. The
percentages are smaller in the smaller intervals and then make a slight jump to 38% for a few
times a day. This could mean that people have other devices they check, especially for email, or
something else. One study showed that higher frequency of email checking increased work
effectiveness, but also showed higher stress levels (Mano & Mesch, 2009). Despite these
numbers, other studies have found that people find it faster and easier to check email on phones
even while sitting near their PC (Karlson, Meyers, Jacobs, Johns, & Kane, 2009).

Where people place their mobile device while sleeping at night
In the car Bedroom
Next to the
Different room than where they are
bed
sleeping
1%
16%
68%
13%
Table 5: Locations of phone while sleeping
Poll from 10 Ways Mobile Technology is Changing Our World (Scherer, 2012)

Other/varies
2%

Millions of people check email constantly throughout the day, leaving only time to sleep. The
above poll shows the different places people leave their phone during that time, with the majority
having it right by their bed. Smart phones allow instant accessibility so having their phone next
to them at all times is the best way to ensure that. Research done by Karlson et al. (2009) found
12

that the smart phone is the most valuable role for accessing email and that it was the first thing
people checked when waking up. About 90% of the younger generation, Generation Y, has been
reported to check their smart phone before they get out of bed (King, 2013). Another study
showed that 70% of workers check their smart phone within an hour of getting up, and 56% did
within an hour before going to bed (Perlow, 2012). Mills (2012) also reports that in a company
study, 70% of employees checked their smart phone right after waking up and 56% did before
going to bed. In addition, about 26% of those employees sleep with their phones (Mills, 2012).

Respondents that said they would take their wireless
66%
mobile device to work instead of their lunch
Table 6: Take mobile device instead of lunch
Poll from 10 Ways Mobile Technology is Changing Our World (Scherer, 2012)
Many people work through lunch as it is, but according to this poll, many of them take their
phone to work over their lunch. It is probably easy for most people to order in or go out to lunch,
but this poll shows how much more important a phone is than lunch.

WORK OVERLOAD
Many IT Professionals have work email on their smart phones so they can always know of issues
or information they need to be aware of. Users worry over what is being communicated which
leads to over checking of email and induced stress when not able to check email (Price, 2010).
Too much information can cause an information overload. This can be defined as email that a
person goes through to get it to a manageable level (Dawley & Anthony, 2003). Technology can
be useful to perform a job, but can also cause an employee to become overwhelmed. Despite
those that deny it, many professionals suffer from “email overload” (Bellotti, Ducheneaut,
Howard, Smith, & Grinter, 2005). Due to so many mobile technologies available, there is an

13

increasing amount of information at one’s disposal (Allen & Shoard, 2005). Some do argue that
email capabilities on smart phones increases productivity. According to Dawley & Anthony
(2003), productivity increases but overload can still happen. Another argument is how smart
phones manage workloads. Using smart phones helps manage workloads and eases pressure of
work (Allen & Shoard, 2005). Overload can be dangerous if one is trying to be productive
because it can cause stress despite having the information needed.

Information and email overload covers many components. Email overload is more than the
quantity (Bellotti, Ducheneaut, Howard, Smith, & Grinter, 2005), but also quality. In a study
done by Allen & Shoard (2005), email was considered the primary cause of information
overload. Being able to access it through their smart phone, computer, or any other mobile
device can be overwhelming especially if one receives a lot of email. Messages pile up in the
Inbox and the time it takes to review it increases, causing a person to become easily
overwhelmed (Bellotti, Ducheneaut, Howard, Smith, & Grinter, 2005). Sometimes the
information received can be so overloading that the message does not matter. It may be that the
employee does not care about the email, but wants to make sure they get recognition for
checking the email and responding (Allen & Shoard, 2005). Getting recognized for checking
email, even outside working hours, can become more important than the dangers of overload.
Simply responding and acknowledging might be what many people use their smart phones for,
rather than giving a detailed response. In one study, employees enjoyed the ability to look at
emails and decide whether they wanted to react right away or not (Bomber, 2010). This might be
an approach many people use rather than using the phone for a full email.

14

While it might not seem that information overload is dangerous, it can cause serious stress
issues. Often the amount of data received exceeds an individual’s cognitive ability (Allen &
Shoard, 2005), and that person can become too overwhelmed to be effective. Employees need to
be able to process information before they can use it efficiently. Even though avoiding overload
is necessary, people still tend to check their email often. This may be that they feel they can
handle more information, or they do not realize they are not actually processing it all. Either
way, people should understand their limits because stress from anxiety is easily caused by
overload. According to Allen & Shoard (2005), anxiety may be increased if one is continually
checking their email.

MY APPROACH
This research focuses on IT Professionals within an IT department, looking at both users that like
using email on their smart phone, and those that do not. My research aims to find out if using
work email on smart phones can be stressful for IT Professionals, specifically at a university.
The campus is operating 24/7, encouraging employees to be working within and outside their
shift hours.

The interview questions attempted to obtain information about many aspects of the interviewees
and usage of their smart phones. I wanted each question to identify ways their smart phones
affected their stress level. Participants read an agreement prior to the interview, assuring that
their identity was confidential and the information recorded was for a research paper under
supervision.

15

Questions ranged from why the participant purchased a smart phone and how long they have
owned one to how it the smart phone is utilized during and after work hours. Other questions
asked about how their smart phone affected their work. Things like the ability to multitask, and
increased or decreased productivity. There were also questions about stress and the impact that
smart phones had on stress levels. The different range helped to identify how each person
handled the stress of their job and if their smart phone affected that stress.

The hypothesis is that having work email on smart phones can increase stress levels in both work
and personal life for IT Professionals. People often buy smart phones to have constant
connectivity, but what happens if a person starts feeling obligated to do that? What if owning a
smart phone and having work email always available pushes people to higher stress levels? The
point of the interview questions is to find out how some IT Professionals handle that pressure.

16

METHOD
SAMPLE TECHNIQUE
I collected the sample of interviewees in several steps. At first, I began to ask numerous people
within IT Services if they had a smart phone. If they did, I asked if they had their work email
configured on it. This helped to narrow down those I could ask instantly because I wanted
employees that had both and I was able to eliminate several people in this process. The next step
was to profile those that liked having their email setup and those that did not like having their
email setup on their smart phones. Once I gathered a purposive sample list of about five or six
per group, I sent an email to these employees and blind carbon copied all those that I had
profiled, and emailed it to myself. This kept participation confidential and private -- no one knew
the people asked to participate. Every person provides some type of IT support to his or her
organization, such as server, desktop, or application.

LIKE AND DISLIKE SMART PHONE WORK EMAIL COMPARISONS
One goal of this research was to examine how feelings toward work email on IT workers’ phones
associated to their stress level. The hypothesis was if a person does not like using email on the
smart phones, they are more inclined to have higher stress levels versus those that liked having it.
One might feel more of an obligation to use the phone for work purposes. If they do not like
doing it, that may be more of a stress factor. Asking the same questions to both groups developed
an understanding of how each used the phone differently, and their stress level.

17

Characteristics of each group
Interviewee Like

Amount of
Phone
Time at
Years
Age (Years)
email use
Ownership desk
Employed
Chris
Yes
Heavy
3 years
Mostly
6
35-40
Charlie
Yes
Heavy
5 years
Even
30+
55-60
John
Yes
Heavy
6 years
Mostly
2
20-25
Bill
No
Light
3 years
Even
6
45-50
Mary
No
Heavy
5 years
Rarely
2
25-30
Alex
No
Light
1.5 years
Mostly
25+
35-40
Table 7: Characteristics of each group
For interpretation of the references to color in this and all other figures, the reader is referred to
the electronic version of this thesis.

Figure 1 above shows different characteristics of each group. While some of them are very
similar, the one major difference appears to be amount of usage between them. The employees
that liked having email on their phones used the phone the most, while those that did not used it
the least. I will define heavy use in more detail during the results section of this paper. Another
interesting difference is that the group that like using their phone have, on average, had their
phone for longer. In both groups, only one person had an iPhone, only one person did not push
email automatically, and only one had more time that they did not check their email than just
when sleeping.

QUESTIONS
The first set of questions was about why they purchased their smart phones (as opposed to a
dumb phone or no phone at all). My intent was to identify the purchase motivation because this
could have a significant impact on their usage and feelings towards the phone.

18

The second question related to how they used their smart phone at work, or during their normal
shift hours. This helped to identify whether they felt compelled to use their smart phone in
addition to their work computer or other devices, even during the workday.

The third question asked about their usage outside of their working hours. This is important
because IT Professionals might often feel obligated (or not) to check their email even when they
are not assigned to be working.

The fourth question investigated their multitasking predilections with the smart phone. This
helped to identify if they not only used their phone during the workday, but how. IT
Professionals may feel that if they are only doing one task, they are not being productive.

This leads to another set of questions on how the interviewees felt their smart phones affect their
productivity. Any profession requires you to be productive and the smart phone has enough
capability and functionality to complete many tasks. However, this can mean more tasks with
less completed work.

Another set of questions focused more on stress and if they felt the smart phone impacted their
levels of stress. This is especially important because if the phone itself causes stress, there is a
desire to understand why they use the phone anyway.

19

The final question was about management of their smart phones and strategies each person had
for usage of their phones. This helped to understand how their phone affected them and how they
managed the usage of it.

20

RESULTS
QUESTION: Reason for buying a smart phone
The first questions are about your smart phone. What was the main reason you decided to get a
smart phone?
SUMMARY
Interviewee

Get
email
X
X

GPS

Internet

Other

Chris
X
Technology was changing
Charlie
Supposed to be cool
John
X
Bill
X
X
Text
Mary
X
Always be connected
Alex
Old phone died
Table 8: Main reason for getting a smart phone
DETAILS
Two employees, John and Bill, responded that they got smart phones for navigational purposes,
such as GPS. Chris responded that he upgraded because “technology was changing” and he
wanted to keep up and have access to the internet and email, and have mobility. Charlie noted
that he thought it was “supposed to be cool” to have a smart phone. He also wanted work email
to be accessible. Alex reported that his flip phone died, so he just needed a new phone.

INSIGHT
Technology seems to be a big part of the response for this question. Not only did they want to
keep up with the technology, but also see a value in having their work email accessible to them
at any time.

21

QUESTION: Smart phone ownership
How long have you owned a smart phone?
SUMMARY
8
6
4
2
0

Likers
Dislikers

Figure 1: Ownership in years
DETAILS
Figure 3 illustrates how many years the employees have owned their smart phones. John seemed
most enthusiastic about when he purchased his phone. His response was “since the 1st iPhone in
2007.” The other employee responses simply included them counting back and adding up the
years. The average years of ownership for the Likers is 4.7, the average for the Dislikers is 3.2.

INSIGHT
It was interesting to hear the differences in ownership, from John with 6 years, to Alex with only
1.5 years. Those that had their phone for several years seemed more inclined to use them. They
may have had more time to become familiar with their phone or it may be another reason. Those
that like their phones also seem to have been the first to purchase smart phones. Perhaps those
who waited did not want the email access to begin with and didn’t like the concept from the
beginning.

22

QUESTION: Kind of smart phone
What kind of smart phone do you currently use?
SUMMARY
2.5
Motorola Razr
2

Motorola Razr
Max
iPhone 5

1.5
1

Samsung Galaxy
S4
iPhone 4

0.5
0
Figure 2: Kind of smart phone
DETAILS

Chris and Bill both had the Motorola Razr and Charlie had the Motorola Razr Max. John and
Alex both owned a version of the iPhone, while Mary had a Samsung Galaxy S4. While it seems
models of the Motorola Razr was most popular with both profiles, there does not seem to be any
definitive reason that any of these phones would affect the stress level of the employees. Every
phone is different so it may be that each employee chose a phone that they were most
comfortable with but it was not related to the email usage on the phone.

INSIGHT
While it is important for employees to choose a phone they can be comfortable with, it does not
necessarily affect their usage of email on the phone. The variation of models and manufacturers
just shows that everyone has their own style.

23

QUESTION: Smart phone importance in profession
Do you feel your smart phone is important in your profession? Why?
SUMMARY
Interviewee
Yes No
Chris
X
Charlie
X
John
X
Bill
X
Mary
X
Alex
X
Table 9: Smart phone important in profession
DETAILS
All the Likers agreed that their smart phone and the email capabilities were important to their
profession. Chris stated he needed “to be able to keep up with technology.” Charlie and John
both mention that work email on smart phones allowed them to know what was going on at any
time. Charlie liked how his phone “extends availability” and John said he was rarely at his desk
so he is “able to check email all the time” and that is important for him. Although Mary dislikes
email on her phone, she had a similar response and said that she is “all over the place all the
time” so it allows easy contact.

Bill and Alex were both in agreement that email on their smart phone was not needed for their
profession. Bill mentioned he didn’t use his email very much for his employer because it was not
paid for by the employer. Alex stated that it was “not necessary, but helpful” for when something
breaks and people need to get a hold of him. Although a smart phone is not needed, he likes that
he can “take calls in a timely fashion.”

24

INSIGHT
All three of the Likers said their smart phone was important in their profession, while most of the
Dislikers said it was not. This indicates those that like their phones are more inclined to check
emails and use their phone more frequently than those that dislike their phones. The other
important point made by the responses is that many of the employees are away from their desk
often making their smart phone their main device for contact. This may be related more to the
job responsibilities than the employees just wanting to use their phone more often. Overall it
appears that those that like work email on their smart phones feel it is more important for their
job functions.

QUESTION: Check email on smart phone during work hours
Please describe whether you use your smart phone to check work emails during working hours.
If you do not do so, why not?
If you do so, when, how often, and how do you decide when to use it?
SUMMARY
Interviewee
Yes
No
Chris
X
Charlie
X
John
X
Bill
X
Mary
X
Alex
X
Table 10: Checking email during work hours
DETAILS
Chris, Charlie, John, and Mary all checked their phone constantly throughout the workday. Chris
uses it a lot if he is in meetings or out of the office during the day. He also tries to keep in touch
using his phone if he knows his team is short-staffed. Charlie said he uses it all the time,
25

checking it “about every 30 minutes, 20 times/day.” John has his smart phone setup so that he
gets a notification pop up on his screen that tells him when new mail comes in, and he uses it all
the time because of the amount of email he receives. Mary’s job responsibilities require her to be
away from her desk often, so her usage was more frequent then, but she still uses it “all the
time.”

Bill and Alex were the two that rarely used their phones during work hours. Bill stated that he
used his “once in a great while” and if he was expecting something. His view was that his
employer does not pay for the service, so he does not feel he should use it during work. Alex
usually sits at a computer during the day, so he did not need to use his phone for work email.

INSIGHT
Those that like using their phone were much more inclined to use it during the workday. Only
one of the dislikers, Mary, used their phones heavily during the workday. This might be
attributed to their job responsibilities or it could be the likers just enjoy using their phones and
therefore do it more.

QUESTION: When smart phone checks email
How often is your phone configured to automatically check email?

26

SUMMARY
Interviewee

Every hour

Chris
X
Charlie
John
Bill
Mary
Alex
Table 11: When phone checks email

Every 5 Automatically push
minutes

X
X
X
X

DETAILS
Most of the interviewees had their phones set to synchronize their email automatically. The most
infrequent was Chris even though he was a Liker. Bill was less infrequent with every 5 minutes.
Alex stated he had two accounts setup for work email because one does not forward to the other.
His departmental account is set to push automatically, but his university email is set for manual
updates.

INSIGHT
In my experience, most users automatically synchronize email using the “Push” method, or as
items arrive. Smart phones generally have settings to check email every five minutes to once a
day, or completely manual. Based on these settings, there is a big variation between Chris and
rest of the group, and those that dislike email on their phones do not seem to mind the frequent
updates they receive. This could mean it is not how often emails are received, but how many
there are received at a time that affects employees.

QUESTION: Times when email is not checked
Are there hours of the day when you DO NOT check email?
27

SUMMARY
Interviewee

Sleeping

When at home

Personal
activities
X

X

Chris
X
Charlie
X
John
X
Bill
X
X
Mary
X
Alex
X
Table 12: Times email is not checked

Weekends

X

X

DETAILS
Two out of three in both groups both mentioned they do not check email when they are sleeping.
Several of the interviewees said they do not check email while on personal time, like weekends.
Charlie and Bill said they do not check their email once they are home, and only check emails on
the phone when expecting something, respectively.

INSIGHT
There is definitely a mix of usage between the interviewees for when they do not use their phone.
The Dislikers do not seem to be any more or less likely to not check their phones than the Likers.
It seems that both groups have employees that do not mind checking their email at any time, and
employees that want to have time to themselves.

QUESTION: Check emails outside of working hours
Please describe whether you use your smart phone to check work emails outside of working
hours. If you do not do so, why not?
If you do so, when, how often, and how do you decide when to use it?

28

SUMMARY
Interviewees
Yes No
Chris
X
Charlie
X
John
X
Bill
X
Mary
X
Alex
X
Table 13: Checking email outside working hours
DETAILS
Everyone said they check email outside of working hours except for Bill. Chris stated that if he
knows “there are important events” he will check his email. He will do it randomly and it
“depends on what’s going on.” Charlie checks his email “all the time” and “if the phone is with
me, I check it.” John was even more enthusiastic and said he uses his phone all the time and is
“usually able to respond” to any email that comes in. He uses his phone because it allows him to
“see what’s important and prioritize tasks” and that makes a difference in his job duties. Mary
checks her email every 1 or 1.5 hours until going to bed. When she is gone, this lets her know
“what will need to be dealt with the next day” and she is able to prepare better. Alex checks his
email to know about problems at work or he gets help desk calls. He also stated that it is helpful
when he is “alone for job duties” and his team members are not available.

INSIGHT
Using email on smart phones does not appear to stop once the workday is over. The majority of
employees all check their email outside working hours, many until going to bed. This could have
a significant impact on stress level as employees might feel more obligated to check email if they
have easy access through a smart phone.

29

QUESTION: Use smart phone to multitask during work hours
Please describe whether and how you use your smart phone to multitask help desk work during
working hours (in other words, using your smart phone for work-related tasks at the same time as
you are doing other work-related tasks).
SUMMARY
Interviewee

Email
Look up
Access
during
information all email
meetings

Chris
X
Charlie
X
X
John
X
Bill
Mary
Alex
Table 14: Using smart phone to multitask

Email
when
helping
other
clients

Find
location of
meetings

Be available
at all times

X
X
X

DETAILS
Those that like using their smart phones appear to use them much more to multitask. Both Chris
and Charlie used their phones during meetings to be able to email, instant message or look up
things if needed. Charlie also stated that he used his smart phone in meetings to email himself
ideas and thoughts. He often used both his PC and smart phone to send two emails at a time.
John used his smart phone for every feature he could, including email and text, and he always
has his phone with him. He downloads all his email and stated his phone allows him to “check
old email faster than the PC” so he prefers it when searching for older material. Mary said that if
she is helping a client, she can still check email. This helps her “respond to other requests that
have come in at the same time” especially if she knows no one else is available on her team.

Bill and Alex do not use their phone at all to multitask. Bill mentioned he would occasionally use
it to “check locations of meetings only.”
30

INSIGHT
All three of the Likers used their smart phones to multitask during the workday and only one of
the Dislikers used their phones. Overall, it appears that those who like using their smart phone
trend more towards using it for multitasking, while those that do not like using their phones do
not see the value or do not need to multitask.

QUESTION: Stress over work
Do you ever feel stressed about your IT Help Desk work?
SUMMARY
Interviewee
Yes
Chris
X
Charlie
X
John
Bill
Mary
X
Alex
X
Table 15: Feel stressed about work

No

X
X

DETAILS
Half of the employees admitted feeling stressed, with one employee feeling sometimes stressed.
Even though John seemed to be most enthusiastic about using his phone, he was not under stress,
and Mary who did not like using her phone but did anyway, felt stress. Chris and Charlie both
said they felt stress and use their phone often. Bill uses his phone infrequently and felt no stress.

INSIGHT
Even though Mary does not like using her phone, she uses it heavily and feels stressed about her
work. Bill and Alex both use their phone infrequently and stated little to no signs of stress. Chris

31

and Charlie both use their phone heavily, and feel stressed about their work. These responses
could show that having a smart phone with email can increase chances of feeling stress. More
detail of this stress is answered in the next question.

QUESTION: Triggers that cause stress
How often, and can you describe triggers that cause stress?
SUMMARY
Interviewee

Important
events/syste
ms go down

Management
decisions

No
email
for a
while

Chris
X
Charlie
X
John
Bill
Mary
Alex
Table 16: Triggers that cause stress

Team
Absent
emails get
manager
no response

Juggling
tasks

X
X
X

X

DETAILS
These responses varied greatly. Chris felt stress over important events or systems going down,
while Charlie and Alex felt pressure from management. Charlie did not like decisions made
while Alex often felt “upper management wanting answers” and he had to give them. John felt
more stress about his email and he felt it necessary to check if he had not received any in awhile.
Bill reported no stress and no triggers. Mary often felt stress when she would see emails come in
and no one would respond, forcing her to respond whether she was busy or not. Alex would get
worried and feel stress when his supervisor was gone or multiple issues happened while at work.
He felt pressure when having to juggle tasks and still be able to fix everything.

32

INSIGHT
Overall, despite the reasons, it seems that the majority of the employees felt stress at some point
over their work duties. John and Mary both mentioned feeling stress over their emails, while
others mention management and events causing stress. Although some of these might not be
related to email on their phones, having the notification that something is wrong on their phones
would probably affect their stress level as well.

QUESTION: Impact smart phone has on stress
What impact, if any, do you believe that your use of the smart phone has on the amount and
nature of stress you experience related to IT Help Desk work? Why?
SUMMARY
Interviewee
Some
None
Chris
X
Charlie
X
John
X
Bill
X
Mary
X
Alex
X
Table 17: Smart phone impact on stress
DETAILS
Although most of the employees reported little to no stress, many of them had comments on the
actual stress they felt. Chris stated that he “would rather hear about issues, smart phone or not”
and that having the smart phone available “can reduce stress.” Charlie commented that it caused
some stress because he checks email after hours and issues arise. He mentioned that he has had
to go into work outside his normal hours and that raised his stress. John did not clarify whether
he was stressed but said he felt “obligated to check email” because of his smart phone. He felt
that there should be some type of compensation for all the work done outside working hours
33

because it is extra work. Bill had no stress because he did not use his smart phone often, and is
not the primary way he keeps in touch. Mary felt a “small portion” of stress and added it “does
put more stress on personal life.” Alex stated his stress was minimal and not related to his smart
phone but his PC. Since his primary device is his computer, the smart phone is not a concern to
him.

INSIGHT
Many of the interviewees stated that they had little to no stress, however many did report some
stress depending on the situation. It may be that they do not see the smart phone itself being the
cause of stress but rather the knowing that it will give them more work to do. Every time their
phone rings indicating another email, means the chance of them having another task to complete
is a real possibility. They just need to check their email on their smart phone.

QUESTION: Strategies for using smart phone
What are some strategies that you have adopted related to how, when, and why you use your
smart phone for IT Help Desk work?
SUMMARY
Interviewee

Stay on top of
things/stay in
touch
X

Chris
Charlie
John
X
Bill
Mary
Alex
Table 18: Adopted strategies

Creates
mobile
office

Pushes Urgent
Helps
Easy
Helps
safety
need scheduling contact career
only

X

X
X
X
X
X

34

DETAILS
This was an interesting array of answers. Some of their strategies were to use the phone more,
and others just used it less. Chris mentioned he was often primary contact for important issues in
his position so having the smart phone allows him to check on things. If he is gone, the phone
allows him to follow up easily. Charlie stated that he forces himself to be safer using the phone.
He takes fewer calls while driving, but still tries to be effective. He considers his smart phone a
“mobile office” and it has helped him do more than he could do before. John agreed with Chris
on being able to stay on top of things and keep in touch, but he also felt the phone helps with his
career because he “appears dependable and reliable.” He can acknowledge emails and then
respond back with more information later.

Bill continued to mention that he only uses his smart phone when expecting something or he has
an urgent need for email. As John stated in the previous question, Bill felt that if his employer
wants him on standby, he should receive some type of compensation/be provided that means.
Mary used her smart phone to schedule her day better, not just for emails. She can view her
calendar and not be at her desk all the time. Alex focused more on the voice function of his
phone and said that his strategy was to forward his desk phone to his smart phone. This allows
easy contact and accessibility. He also liked the fact that his phone provides stress relief with
other things like games.

INSIGHT
It appears that despite many people reporting stressful times with their phones, that they have
also found a way to use the phones to their advantage. The most common factor among them all

35

was the phone allows them to keep in touch or stay accessible. While this may cause them stress,
it also relieves their anxiety about knowing what is going on without them.

36

DISCUSSION
The introduction of smart phones and having constant access to email continues to be a very
popular use of mobile devices. Now billions of smart phones are available around the world,
including in the IT community. More University IT Professionals are setting their phones up for
work email, accompanied by an increase in stress levels. Smart phones have created an
expectation of constant connectivity and accessibility, and IT Professional smartphone owners
attempt multitasking in order to increase productivity. While this may seem like the perfect way
to work every day, it may also cause higher stress levels

IT work is never done, it is a 24/7 job and IT Professionals are expected to respond at any time.
Despite the attempts at being available, there are studies that show this is actually
counterproductive and unhealthy. We are not on constantly, even though our phones might be.

The results of the interviews were not as expected, possibly because many users did not purchase
their smart phones for email accessibility, but for other reasons as detailed in the results. The
expectation was that the employees who did not like using their phone would have more stress
than those that liked using their phones. Two of the three interviewees that liked using their
phone and used their phone heavily also had higher stress levels. Two of the three interviewees
who did not like using their phone and were not heavy users stated they rarely had stress over
work email on their smart phone. In other words, frequent use of smartphones for work email
was associated with more stress. We do not know whether the lower stress workers would have
higher stress levels if they used their smart phones more or that the highly stressed workers

37

would have less stress if they reduced their smart phone usage. It does seem that frequent
smartphone use certainly does not reduce stress.

Reviewing the answers, the research can show that if an employee has work email on their phone
and uses it heavily, it can cause higher levels of stress. During interviews, each user described
their definition of heavy use. Then they described how that use affected them. Many heavy users
checked their email several times a day and responded often. Many were also more inclined to
carry their smart phones with them for accessibility. For many of them, the only time they did
not check email was while they were sleeping. Half reported higher stress levels because of the
nature of their work and their smart phone usage. Two of the participants that liked having email
on their phone had higher stress levels, and one participant who disliked having email on her
phone had higher stress levels. Light users only used email on their phone if they were expecting
something or there was an issue happening at work, and had lower tendencies to have stress.

Why Reducing Smart phone Usage Is Important
Employees who have higher stress levels can often perform poorly on the job or have severe
medical issues. They may also have issues in their personal lives. Employees need to be
encouraged by employers that work is not required at all times and constant connectivity may not
be healthy. This can be difficult considering the nature of IT work and needing to be available,
but a healthy employee is happier and can work better than an employee will with higher stress
levels. Although the results of this research are not entirely conclusive, there was some
interesting observations and outcomes found.

38

The research findings did not support the original hypothesis. It stated that IT Professionals
would have higher stress levels if they used their phone for work emails, and disliked having
work emails on their phones. From the group interviewed, instead of having higher stress levels
from disliking the email availability, the results demonstrated that those who disliked having
work email on their phone were less inclined to use it. The participants that liked having work
email on their phones and used it heavily were more likely to report high stress levels. Perhaps if
workers who used their smartphones to check work emails frequently, and were highly stressed
could adopt more judicious and limited pattern of checking of work email, their stress levels may
lower. Or perhaps those individuals are more prone to experiencing stress.

Thus, one thing learned from this research is that users who feel they experience more stress
from their smart phones might want to consider reducing their usage. The impact on productivity
and stress is not certain. It may help with reduced stress levels. Because IT Professionals can
have high-pressure jobs and responsibilities, limiting smart phone usage for work email may help
avoid unwanted stress. This applies whether one likes or dislikes their work email on their smart
phone.

As an IT Professional who uses her smartphone frequently to multitask and check work email, I
am wondering whether I should experiment with limited behavior, and pay attention to my stress
and productivity. Perhaps I will do so gradually, at first limiting myself to once an hour.
IT Professionals need to keep in mind that no matter how important the job is, there is life
outside of work. Ideally, managers will let employees know that taking time away is good and
encouraged. The last thing an employer wants or needs are for an employee to have such high

39

stress levels that the job cannot be completely correctly and efficiently. Limiting smart phone
usage for work email could be a great way for IT Professionals to get away or avoid unnecessary
high stress levels.

40

APPENDICES

41

APPENDIX A: Interview Questions
1. The first questions are about your smart phone. What was the main reason you decided
to get a smart phone?
How long have you owned a smart phone?
What kind of smart phone do you currently use?
Do you feel your smart phone is important in your profession? Why?
2. Please describe whether you use your smart phone to check work emails during working
hours. If you do not do so, why not?
If you do so, when, how often, and how do you decide when to use it?
How often is your phone configured to automatically check email?
Are there hours of the day when you DO NOT check email?
3. Please describe whether you use your smart phone to check work emails outside of
working hours. If you do not do so, why not?
If you do so, when, how often, and how do you decide when to use it?
4. Please describe whether and how you use your smart phone to multitask help desk work
during working hours (in other words, using your smart phone for work-related tasks at
the same time as you are doing other work-related tasks).
5. Do you ever feel stressed about your IT Help Desk work?
How often, and can you describe triggers that cause stress?
6. What impact, if any, do you believe that your use of the smart phone has on the amount
and nature of stress you experience related to IT Help Desk work? Why?
7. What are some strategies that you have adopted related to how, when, and why you use
your smart phone for IT Help Desk work?

42

APPENDIX B: Research Questions and Answers
Table 19: Research Questions and Answers
Question 
  

Answer 
Chris (Likes) 

  
Charlie (Likes) 

  
John (Likes) 

What was the main 
reason you decided to 
get a smart phone? 

Technology was 
changing. To get 
internet, mobility, all 
email 

To get email, work 
email. Supposed  
to be cool 

Directions, finding places 
in unfamiliar  
locations 

Since 2008 

Since 1st iphone in 2007 

Droid Motorola Razr 
Max 

iPhone 5 

How long have you 
owned a smart 
phone? 
What kind of smart 
phone do you 
currently use? 
How often is your 
phone configured to 
automatically check 
email? 

3 years 

Motorola Razr 

Every hour 
Automatically push 

Do you feel your smart 
Yes, he needs "to be 
phone is important in 
able to keep up with 
your profession? 
technology" 
Why? 
Please describe 
whether you use your 
smart phone  
to check work emails 
during working hours.  
If you do not do so, 
why not?  
If you do so, when, 
how often, and how 
do you decide when to 
use it? 

Yes, let's you be 
aware of problems  
sooner. Extends 
availability 

Yes, if in meetings, out 
of office during the day, 
or if he knows his team 
is shortstaffed 

Yes, all the time, 
about every 30  
minutes, 20 
times/day 
Once he gets home, 
the phone is left in 
Are there hours of the 
Sleeping, doing personal  another room and 
day when you DO NOT 
after 8:30pm or so 
activities 
check email? 
does not look or 
answer 

43

Automatically push 
Yes, he is able to check 
email all the time.  
Never sitting by 
computer so it has 
convenience 

All the time, he gets lots 
of email and has a  
notification pop up on his 
screen that tells him  
when a new email comes 
in 

When sleeping 

Table 21 (cont’d)
Please describe 
whether you use your 
smart phone  
to check work emails 
outside of working 
hours.  
If you do not do so, 
why not?  
If you do so, when, 
how often, and how 
do you decide when to 
use it? 
Please describe 
whether and how you 
use your smart phone  
to multitask help desk 
work during working 
hours  
(in other words, using 
your smart phone for 
work‐related tasks  
at the same time as 
you are doing other 
work‐related tasks). 
Do you ever feel 
stressed about your IT 
Help Desk work? 
How often, and can 
you describe triggers 
that cause stress? 
What impact, if any, 
do you believe that 
your use of the smart 
phone  
has on the amount 
and nature of stress 
you experience 
related to IT Help Desk 
work? Why? 
What impact, if any, 
do you believe that 
your use of the smart 
phone  
has on your IT Help 
Desk productivity?  

Yes, if he knows "there 
are important events" 
It's random and 
depends on what's 
going on 
Yes, check all the 
time.  
If phone is with him, 
he checks it 

Uses all the time, he is 
usually able to respond.  
He checks it all the time, 
allows him to see  
what's important and 
prioritize tasks 

When he is in 
meetings, he can still 
If in meetings and need 
answer email, text, 
to check email or instant 
and send emails to 
messaging 
himself. Can look 
things up, often does 
two emails at a time 
using smartphone 
and PC 

Gets emails, text and 
always have it. He is 
reachable at all times. 
Phone also allows him to 
check old email faster 
than PC and he is able to 
download all email 

Yes 
Yes 

No 

If he does not receive an 
email for a while, triggers 
Bad management 
him to check email 
decisions,  
people micromanage  anyway 

Important events or 
when systems go down 

None, "would rather 
hear about issues, 
smartphone or not" 
"can reduce stress" 

Some stress, because 
he checks emails  
after hours. He has 
had to go into work  
before and that 
raises his stress 
It helps, allows him 
to stay on top of  
things. Makes him 
"more mobile,  
more productive" 

Small percentage, other 
ways to access what is 
needed. "It's nice to 
have, more convenient" 

44

Feel obligated to check 
email. Feel like they 
should be paid more for 
all work outside working 
hours because it is extra 
work 

Allows him to play games 
which hinders and helps 

Table 21 (cont’d)
Why? 
What are some 
strategies that you 
have adopted related 
to how, when  
and why you use your 
smart phone for IT 
Help Desk work? 

Doesn't do as much 
on calls (voice) and  
tries to be safer (i.e. 
while driving) but  
still be effective. His 
smart phone is a  
"mobile office" and 
has helped him do 
more 

Stay on top of things. If 
primary person 
available, makes it easy 
to know to check on 
things. If he is gone for 
periods of time, allows 
him to follow up 

Helps him stay in touch. 
Also helps with his career 
because he appears 
dependable and reliable. 
He is able to 
acknowledge emails 
without giving detail, and 
respond with more 
information later 

Questions & Answers continued
Question 
What was the main reason 
you decided to get a smart 
phone? 

Mary 
Bill (Dislikes) 
(Dislikes) 
Do email, maps, text. Have  Convenience 
access to read and respond  of always be 
connected. 
to email.  
Have primary personal and  Access to 
emails 
personal business email 

How long have you owned 
a smart phone? 
3 years 
What kind of smart phone 
do you currently use? 
Motorola Razr 
How often is your phone 
configured to automatically 
check email? 
Every 5 minutes 

Do you feel your smart 
phone is important in your 
profession? Why? 

Please describe whether 
you use your smart phone  
to check work emails 
during working hours.  
If you do not do so, why 
not?  
If you do so, when, how 
often, and how do you 
decide when to use it? 

5 years 
Samsung 
Galaxy S4 

Alex (Dislikes) 

Old one died, it was a flip 
phone 
1.5 years 

No, don't use it very much 
for employer‐related work. 
It is not paid by employer 

iPhone4 
Push exchange email, 
Automatically  Manual for university 
email 
push 
Yes, she is all 
over the 
place all the 
"Not necessary, but 
time so it 
makes it 
helpful" In case 
easier for her  something breaks can get 
to be in 
a hold of him, can take 
contact 
calls in a timely fashion 

Once in a great while. If he 
is expecting something, he 
will use it. Employer is not 
paying for service, he does 
not need to extend the 
courtesy 

All the time, 
it is more 
frequent 
when she is 
away from 
her desk 

45

No, usually sitting at a 
computer and don't need 
it 

Table 21 (cont’d)
Are there hours of the day 
when you DO NOT check 
email? 

Normally don't check 
When 
unless expecting something  sleeping 
Checks every 
1 or 1.5 
Please describe whether 
you use your smart phone  
hours until 
to check work emails 
going to bed. 
outside of working hours.  
When she is 
If you do not do so, why 
gone, let's 
not?  
her know 
If you do so, when, how 
what will 
often, and how do you 
need to be 
decide when to use it? 
Does not use outside 
dealt with 
working hours 
the next day 
If she is 
Please describe whether 
helping a 
and how you use your 
client, can 
smart phone  
still check 
to multitask help desk work 
email, 
during working hours  
allowing her 
(in other words, using your 
to respond to 
smart phone for work‐
other 
related tasks  
requests that 
at the same time as you are 
have come in 
Do not use, have used to 
doing other work‐related 
check location of meetings  at the same 
tasks). 
time 
only 
Do you ever feel stressed 
about your IT Help Desk 
work? 
No 
Yes 
Relatively 
often about 
1‐2/week. 
When she 
How often, and can you 
checks email 
describe triggers that cause 
and others 
stress? 
haven't 
responded 
and should 
have 
  
What impact, if any, do you 
believe that your use of the 
Small 
smart phone  
portion, does 
Doesn't add any stress, 
has on the amount and 
put more 
don't use often. Not 
nature of stress you 
stress on 
primary way to keep in 
experience related to IT 
touch 
Help Desk work? Why? 
personal life 

46

Sleeping and weekends 

Yes, to check for 
problems or when he 
gets help desk calls, or is 
on his own for job duties. 
He also forwards his desk 
phone to his smartphone 

Not at all 

Sometimes 

When the boss is 
away/multiple things 
going wrong. "Upper 
management wanting 
answers" and having to 
juggle tasks 

Minimal. Not related to 
smartphone but PC 

Increases it, 
can leave 
 
desk and take 
 
care of issues 
 
but not lose 
What impact, if any, do you 
connectivity 
believe that your use of the 
to email. 
smart phone  
Gives her 
has on your IT Help Desk 
Little to none, doesn't help  more 
productivity? Why? 
freedom 
or hinder 
Allows her to 
Only use phone if expecting  schedule the 
day better. 
something or there is an 
Can see her 
urgent need for email. If 
 
calendar and 
employer wants me to be 
doesn't need 
on standby, they should 
to be at desk. 
provide that means 

Table 21 (cont’d)

47

Little bit more accessible, 
don't get voicemails so 
people can reach him 
instead of a queue. The 
"phone is just available" 
He forwards his desk 
phone to his smartphone 
for easy access/contact. 
His phone provides stress 
relief because he can do 
other things like play 
games 

BIBLIOGRAPHY

48

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