Im aktuellen Heft von  SCM - Studies in Communication and Media haben  Cordula Nitsch und  Susanne Kinnebrock (AB Öffentliche Kommunikation) einen Beitrag zum Forschungsprojekt ForDigitHealth (Digitaler Stress in den Medien) publiziert. Basierend auf den Befunden von qualitativen Leitfadeninterviews skizziert der Beitrag „Well-known phenomenon, new setting: Digital stress in times of the COVID-19 pandemic“, welche Folgen die pandemiebedingten Veränderungen für die Wahrnehmung von digitalem Stress haben.

Abstract:

Digital stress caused by the proliferation and omnipresence of digital media has been attracting scientific interest for several years. The physical contact restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic have further increased the importance of digital media in peo-ple’s professional and private lives. This article investigates the consequences of this new situation for people’s perceptions of digital stress. It applies a lifeworld perspective and considers several individual and situational factors. Our study was based on semi-struc-tured interviews with German adults. Five key findings emerged: (1) during the pandemic, digital stress was predominantly caused by home office work; (2) already-known stressors were amplified in home offices; (3) digital devices contributed to the dissolution of bounda-ries between work and private life; (4) people experienced multiple stressors simultaneously, both digital and analog; (5) the private use of digital media was not associated with stress but perceived as saving social connections. Furthermore, the results show that the experi-ence of digital stress is highly dependent on situational contexts and individual lifestyles.

Keywords: Digital stress, digital media use, health and well-being, COVID-19 pandemic, semi-structured interviews

Zitation:

Nitsch, C. & Kinnebrock, S. (2021). Well-known phenomenon, new setting: Digital stress in times of the COVID-19 pandemic. SCM – Studies in Communication and Media, 10(4), 533–556. doi: 10.5771/2192-4007-2021-4-533