Technostress [Hardcover]

Michelle M. Weil (Author), Larry D. Rosen (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1997

Are you Cyberphobic? Techno-crazed? If so, you're not alone . . .

"If all the hype about the Information Superhighway makes you want to take the next exit off it, you may be one of a growing subpopulation —people who are cyberphobic." —Los Angeles Times

"Technology has taken over, and there is only one way to stop it: take back control of your own life. Follow the suggestions in this book, and banish the TechnoStress from your life." —Donald A. Norman, Ph.D. Senior Technical Advisor, Hewlett-Packard author of Things That Make Us Smart

Nationally acclaimed Technotherapists Michelle Weil and Larry Rosen help you conquer your fears and frustrations. Among the helpful tips they offer . . .

Slow Down

People can't operate at the same speed as machines. "Rethink how you react to the new wizardry," says Larry Rosen. "Just because technology works at lightning speed does not mean you should."

Stay Connected

"Computer use can isolate people," says Michelle Weil. "In the electronic information age, it is particularly important not to rely solely on e-mail, faxes, and voicemail. Live communication enhances relationships."

Modern technology was designed to empower us and set us free. So why do we often feel more like its slaves than its masters? From pagers to Web sites, e-mail to fax machines, each new "technohelper" places greater demands on us.

If you've ever tried to juggle a steering wheel and a cell phone, or accidentally recorded an infomercial rather than the nightly news on your VCR —then you already know what TechnoStress feels like. In this, the first "must-have" book of the information age, psychologist Michelle Weil and educator Larry Rosen explain why technology makes people feel under the gun —and how to preserve your humanity and sanity in a digital world.

The authors draw on their sixteen years of research into the psychology of technology to show exactly how technology affects our bodies and minds, and the impact it has on our lives at home, at work, and at play. The fascinating vignettes they offer explain why we feel we are losing control to technology, or being hopelessly left behind.

But for all of the problems it identifies, TechnoStress is not another polemic against technology. In fact, the authors are proponents for technology. "Techno-therapist" Michelle Weil and researcher Larry Rosen have spent the past two decades showing people how to thrive in the age of high-tech. Rather than teaching you how to avoid technology, they show you how to make it work for you.

The trick is to learn to make technology dance to your tune —not vice versa. Whether you are a technophobe or a technofan, you'll find the proven stress-reducers in this book insightful and empowering.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Authors Weil and Rosen are concerned about the large number of people--perhaps as much as 30 to 40 percent of the population--who are excluded from the benefits of online life and cyberculture. It's not economics or geography that keeps them away but computerphobia or other aspects of technostress. Weil and Rosen point out how only 10 to 15 percent of people are eager to adopt new technologies. About another 50 to 60 percent need to have its value proven first. The rest are resistant--even fearful--of new technology.

Unfortunately, the means used to attract these people often end up repelling them instead. They are told that things are easy when they are only intuitive for those with related experience. Personal help, whether from classes or friends, almost always comes from the 10 percent who are technophiles and don't know how to communicate with the technophobic. In addition, too many manuals and books are poorly constructed or designed for enthusiasts.

However, Weil's and Rosen's experience is that even computerphobes can become confident computer users in just five hours or less when taught with appropriate techniques. In Technostress, the authors look at where stress due to technological advance comes from and how it can be overcome. They examine the problems caused by conflicting learning styles. They also discuss the stresses computers can cause in the home, where suddenly it's the child rather than the parent who's always right, or in business, when machines that are put in place to aid productivity cause stress-related problems instead. Weil and Rosen offer a variety of solutions to these problems based on realistic approaches to education and training, as well as an understanding that not every new technology is necessary for everyone.

Review

TechnoStress, by Michelle Weil and Larry Rosen, is essentially a self-help book for people who panic at the sight of computers. The authors are clinical psychologists and experienced computer users who, despite their frequent criticisms of computer products and their impact on our lives, are not Luddites. Think of them as comparable to Clifford Stoll (hacker, MSNBC commentator and author of Silicon Snake Oil)--but not as funny. Despite some excesses, most of the book stays on level ground, providing tips for making life easier in the information age. These include online etiquette; how to develop an online ego; how to place limits on the intrusion of pagers, cell phones and remote e-mail into your personal life; how to develop a policy for the use of technology by your children; and how to decide when to upgrade products based on your needs rather than vendors' push to sell. -- Upside, Eric Nee

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: Wiley; 1 edition (September 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0471177091
• ISBN-13: 978-0471177098
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.8 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #587,395 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Educational & Practical, July 30, 2000

By 

Roger E. Herman (Greensboro, NC USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Technostress (Hardcover)

Remember the simple life, before technology? That was a long, long time ago. Technology, in various forms, has been in our lives for many years. More recently, however, technology has combined with an increased velocity in the pace of our lives, causing considerable stress: technostress.

Who better to write about this phenomenon than a technology consultant and a psychologist-turned-researcher? What a team for the topic! The integration of their work was obvious and appropriate throughout the book. Weil and Rosen explain in understandable phrasing the origins of our technostress at work, at home, at play and in society overall. But, they don't stop there. The authors also explain in careful steps what to do to control technostress to lead more comfortable, yet productive, lives.

Weil and Rosen help us understand that 80-90 percent of us are not embracing all this technology as rapidly as we all think we (everyone else) are. "Because technology is being thrust upon them at a pace and volume greater than they desire, this vast majority of the populace is also experiencing technostress."

It is easy to see how technology has taken over our lives, the authors observe, as they note that technological intrusion has come from more than the ubiquitous computer. While addressing e-mail issues, they also acknowledge the impact of the microwave, television, the VCR, hand-held poker games, calculators, electronic fish-finders, and automated doggie door openers that respond to a signal from the dog's collar.

Boundaries become critically important in this technology-charged environment. We long for the "good old days" when work stopped at a predetermined hour and we were able to move into our personal and family lives. Now technology has allowed, even encouraged, intrusions into all aspects of our lives-from the other aspects. Pagers chirp interruptions from work during family time; family phone calls or e-mails find us during our work time. The authors remind us that "people have a clear need for their role boundaries to be respected if they are to maneuver successfully through their complex lives." Then, they provide their readers with advice and counsel about how to make that happen. We need to reclaim our space to reduce our technostress.

I'm writing this review on a cross-country airplane trip-conscious that I'm using technology (my laptop computer) to exercise my efficiency. Yet, at the same time, I'm enjoying the serenity of freedom from ringing telephones, insistent pages, unwanted noise (I don't have to use the headphones), and the siren song of e-mail. I'm in control!

We have become technodependent. "We [even] invade our own space by making check-in calls to our equipment. We don't feel safe without electronic connection-even though the process is disruptive and can be irritating." We send messages, then wait for return messages. If we don't get prompt responses from voicemail or e-mail messages, we become anxious . . . even paranoid. Are we being ignored? Did the message get through? Is the recipient all right? Angry with us? And here comes the psychological teaching-"we are missing the two main ingredients for successful communication: connection between two people and exchange of accurate information." We don't get closure and that causes technostress.

The demands of unmanaged technology-the technology that manages us-can easily surround us 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. There's no relief, no opportunity to get needed "downtime. "Our nervous systems are perpetually excited. It's like being in a constant state of red alert. Humans need downtime, internal peacefulness, and uninterrupted sleep. The body needs to heal, rejuvenate, and keep its immune systems operational in order to fend off illness. Without these things, people become sick, cranky, depressed, anxious, distracted, and technostressed. This said, the authors again remind us that we control our lives-we control technology and its impact on is.

The authors also raise the issue of privacy, now a much greater concern in our lives. E-mail, cellular phone conversations, our buying patterns can all be monitored without our knowledge-are we ever safe? We can reduce our technostress. As the authors counsel, "Empowered by knowledge, we can make choices." This book is full of helpful and practical knowledge. It made a difference for me, and it can make a difference for you.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Solutions for "TechnoStress", April 21, 2002

By 

Sandra Wu (Honolulu, HI United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Technostress (Hardcover)

Thirteen years before Weil and Rosen's "TechnoStress" published, Craig Brod (1984) defined "TechnoStress" as "a modern disease of adaptation caused by an inability to cope with the new computer technologies in a healthy manner" in his book which was also entitled "TechnoStress" (with the subtitle: the Human Cost of the Computer Revolution). This definition is further refined and completed in Weil and Rosen's "TechnoStress" in which "TechnoStress" is defined as any negative impact on attitudes, thoughts, behaviors, or body physiology that is caused either directly or indirectly by technology. Technology came into our world with an implied promise that our lives would be better (such as relaxing lives with time-saving devices); however, ironically, we not only never have enough time to relax but also were demeaned by the hyper-production and hyper-distribution of the technology, which surpassed human processing ability and suppressed us with the "TechnoStress".

This book provides an innovative theoretical and empirical explanation of the modern technological revolution, and offers a useful starters guide to the technologically challenged individual and professional. What I like the most about this book is its honest and practical examples that seem so real and similar to our own situations. Although the authors claim that we have become "technodependent", they also provide solutions to conquer "TechnoStress". Various tips and suggestions are made to cope with "TechnoStress" and to overcome the escalating problem of information flow, which is the most well-documented form of "TechnoStress". As a seeker for the solution of information overload, I benefit a lot from the book and am sure you will too.

I agree with many others that this book is not only a 'must have' for all of us who can't separate our lives from technology, but also should be a `must read' for those who design high-tech products so that they would know how to make their products more humane and still enjoy harvesting the benefits of technology.