Women at risk of 'digital overload,' new research reveals

New research led by Lancaster University has uncovered that women are at a higher risk than men of experiencing 'digital overload.' Women frequently juggle using information and communication technologies (ICT) in both their work and family lives, which increases their chances of burnout. This phenomenon, termed the 'digital double burden,' is exacerbated by the accelerated digitalization triggered by the pandemic.

The study, conducted by Professor Yang Hu from Lancaster University and Professor Yue Qian from the University of British Columbia, examined digital labor across 29 countries using data from the European Social Survey. It involved 6,654 working respondents aged 30-59, each with at least one child over 12 and one living parent, to assess their ICT usage.

Key findings show that women are 1.6 times more likely than men to manage high levels of digital communication for both work and family. Notably, while women are 31% less likely than men to engage heavily in work-only digital communication, they are 2.6 times more likely to focus on family-only digital communication.

In the UK, 42% of respondents faced a medium-high dual burden of work-family digital communication—a figure lower than the average of 48% across the surveyed countries. Particularly, UK respondents (30%) and Israeli respondents (31%) showed high proportions engaged in work-only digital communication. This reveals that in nations with higher internet usage and digital literacy, women suffer more from this 'digital double burden.'

According to Professor Hu, this study calls for gender equality considerations in efforts to enhance digital capacity globally. The rising trend of working from home, accelerated post-pandemic, highlights an urgent need for gender-egalitarian work-from-home policies. Although remote work offers flexibility, it also deepens gender inequalities in digital labor, placing excessive demands on women.

Professor Qian emphasized that improving women's digital literacy should not come at the expense of increasing their work-family digital burden. More attention and comprehensive policies are needed to balance these demands and promote digital equality effectively.

Earlier, SSP wrote that the newly-discovered star could provide new insights into the evolution of stars.