Cross-cultural impact of information anxiety on employee mental health in digital workplaces: a comparative study between Chinese and Western contexts.

BACKGROUND

Digital workplace transformation has created new psychological challenges for employees, particularly information anxiety encompassing information overload, fear of missing out (IFoMO), technostress, and digital presenteeism. However, cross-cultural research on these phenomena remains limited.

OBJECTIVE

This study examines how information anxiety affects employee mental health across Chinese and Western contexts, testing the mediating role of job stress and moderating effects of job autonomy and organizational support.

METHODS

We conducted a cross-sectional comparative study using large-scale datasets (N = 7,773; China n = 2,936, West n = 4,837) from technology workers. Validated scales measured information anxiety dimensions, job stress, mental health outcomes (anxiety, depression, wellbeing), and work resources. Data were analyzed using hierarchical regression, mediation analysis, moderated regression, and multigroup structural equation modeling with measurement invariance testing.

RESULTS

Chinese employees reported significantly higher information anxiety (d = 0.38-0.60) and worse mental health outcomes compared to Western counterparts. Information anxiety explained 19%-26% of mental health variance. Job stress mediated 35%-39% of these relationships. Job autonomy (β = -0.12) and organizational support (β = -0.15) significantly buffered negative effects, with moderation effects present in both cultural groups; organizational support showed stronger buffering in Western samples, while job autonomy effects were numerically larger in the Chinese sample. Multigroup SEM revealed culturally-specific patterns: anxiety-stress relationships were stronger in China, while protective effects of work resources were more pronounced in the West.

CONCLUSIONS

Information anxiety represents a universal but culturally-moderated occupational health risk. Organizations should implement culturally-adapted interventions: proactive information management and enhanced support in collectivistic cultures, while maintaining autonomy and organizational support in individualistic contexts.