The Role of Personal Resources in Buffering College Student Technostress during the Pandemic: A Study Using an Italian Sample

Emanuela Ingusci, Enrico Ciavolino, Fulvio Signore (), Margherita Zito, Vincenzo Russo and Chiara Ghislieri
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Emanuela Ingusci: Department of Human and Social Sciences, University of Salento, Studium 2000, Building 5, Via di Valesio, 73100 Lecce, Italy
Enrico Ciavolino: Department of Human and Social Sciences, University of Salento, Studium 2000, Building 5, Via di Valesio, 73100 Lecce, Italy
Fulvio Signore: Department of Humanities, Letters, Cultural Heritage and Educational Studies, University of Foggia, Via Arpi 155/176, 71121 Foggia, Italy
Margherita Zito: Department of Business, Law, Economics and Consumption, Faculty of Communication, IULM University, 20143 Milan, Italy
Vincenzo Russo: Department of Business, Law, Economics and Consumption, Faculty of Communication, IULM University, 20143 Milan, Italy
Chiara Ghislieri: Psychology Department, University of Turin, Palazzo Badini, Via Verdi 10, 10124 Turin, Italy

Social Sciences, 2023, vol. 12, issue 9, 1-16

Abstract: Given the upheavals that characterize the world of higher education and the recent literature on the subject, the examination of what can improve student well-being has become critical. The JD-R model, originally developed to explain the implementation of motivational processes and the simultaneous unfolding of mechanisms that impact health, is used to contextualize the processes that occur in higher education systems. Objective. The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of personal resources such as optimism and self-efficacy in increasing academic engagement and as protective factors against technostress. Method. A SEM model was implemented using MPLUS 7 and Jamovi on a sample of 421 university Italian students. They completed an online self-report questionnaire during the height of COVID-19 (May–November 2021) while taking online courses and were predominantly female (64.4%) and full-time academic students (87.6%) with a mean age of 24.6 years. Direct and indirect effects were estimated, accounting for the mediating role of academic engagement. Results. The results indicate that both self-efficacy and optimism have direct and negative effects on technostress. Self-efficacy, in turn, significantly increases academic engagement, whereas optimism has no effect on it. Finally, academic engagement appears to reduce the impact of technostress on the lives of students involved in the study, confirming its mediating role in reducing technostress. Conclusions. This study provides numerous important clues and insights into improving academic performance and well-being, as the use of personal resources can have important implications for avoiding the negative consequences of technology.

Keywords: JD-R model; self-efficacy; optimism; academic engagement; technostress; university (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: A B N P Y80 Z00 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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