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This study seeks to explain the interplay between chronological age and technology-related strain through techno-stressors and coping strategy choices in organizational settings. Grounded in Lazarus´ stress theory, theories of cognitive aging, the life span theory of control and socioemotional selectivity theory, this study argues that even though older workers are more prone to techno-stressors, aging is connected to gaining coping skills, which in turn reduce technology-related strain over time. Understanding these processes enables modifying employees’ coping strategy choices and mitigating negative outcomes of technostress at the workplace. Longitudinal data from 1,216 employees over a time period of 8 months were used to perform multilevel mediation modeling. The findings reveal that age was negatively related to technology-related strain. The link between age and technology-related strain was explained through behavioral disengagement, which older workers used less than younger workers. Active coping and social coping did not act as mediators of this relationship across time points. These relationships were stable after controlling for dependency on technology.

This dissertation addressed two major issues of our time: the proliferation of technologies and the aging of society. The overall goal of this dissertation was to better understand how age relates to the distinct parts of the technology adoption process: For one, the role of age was analyzed in relation to determinants of technology use (study 1) and for another, age was analyzed in relation to technostress and coping behaviors (study 2). Study 1 investigated how chronological age related to technology acceptance. A meta-analysis including 144 studies was conducted to integrate inconsistent results of previous studies. Results showed aggregated negative bivariate relationships between age and determinants of technology use (PEOU, PU, and ITU). However, a meta-analytic path model including all variables revealed that when indirect effects were taken into account, age was neither directly related to PU nor to ITU. Moderated mediation analyses revealed that age effects were moderated by type of technology. Bivariate relationships were stable over time and across mandatory and voluntary settings. Thus, this study helped to bring much needed closure to inconsistent findings on age and technology acceptance. Study 2 investigated the interplay between chronological age and technology-related strain mediated by techno-stressors and coping strategy choices in organizational settings. Longitudinal data from 1,216 employees over a time period of 8 months were used to perform multilevel mediation modeling. Age was negatively associated with technology-related strain. This relationship was mediated through behavioral disengagement, which older workers used less than younger workers. Active coping and social coping did not act as mediators of this relationship. Understanding these processes allows modifying coping strategy choices in employees and mitigate negative outcomes of technostress at the workplace. The results of this dissertation provide a base for a more comprehensive understanding of older adults as users and consumers of technology, especially in the work context and, furthermore, devaluate common age stereotypes.

Emotionsregulation hat einen wesentlichen Einfluss auf das allgemeine Wohlbefinden und die Gesundheit von Menschen. Dabei spielt es vor allem eine Rolle, welche Strategien zur Emotionsregulation angewendet werden. Das Ziel dieser Studie war zu untersuchen, ob sich Personen mit unterschiedlichen emotionalen Reaktionen auf positiv besetzte Stimuli auch hinsichtlich gewohnheitsmäßig eingesetzter Emotionsregulationsstrategien unterscheiden. Zur Messung der emotionalen Reaktion wurden die HRV, die Pulsfrequenz und der Affekt herangezogen. Als positiv besetzter Stimulus wurde die Anwesenheit eines Hundes eingesetzt. Darüber hinaus ob reale und virtuelle Hunde vergleichbare Auswirkungen auf die affektive und physiologische Reaktion des Menschen haben. Es wurden 145 Personen getestet, die zufällig zwei Versuchsgruppen (realer und virtueller Hund) und einer Kontrollgruppe zugeordnet wurden. Es konnten teilweise vergleichbare Effekte von virtuellen und realen Stimuli gefunden werden. Bezüglich der Emotionsregulationsstrategien konnten fast keine Unterschiede festgestellt werden., Emotion regulation is essential within the repertoire of social skills and its use has a significant impact on physiological health and psychological wellbeing. Dogs have been shown to be decrease cardiovascular activation and fear as well as to increase HRV and positive affect. Therefore 145 participants have been randomly assigned to either dog assisted groups (live and virtual) or to a control group (music). HRV, heart rate and affect have been measured during the presence of each stimulus to compare their psychophysiological impact. Comparable results could be found for virtual and live stimuli. However unexpectedly the presence of neither dog could decrease heart rate or increase HRV. Furthermore two commonly used emotion regulation strategies, cognitive reappraisal and suppression, have been examined in the context of affective and physiological reactivity in the presence of the live dog and the virtual dog. The results showed mostly no significant differences in the use of emotion regulation strategies depended on the activation of the autonomic nervous system. Thus the level of using either strategy was not influenced by the nature of the affective or the cardiovascular change.