Decisional style and self-reported Email use in the workplace

Inefficient or inappropriate Email use within the workplace can lead to lowered productivity of an organisation. Technological predispositions, decisional style, and self-esteem may potentially influence the extent to which people use Email whilst at work. Higher levels of Email use in the workplace could be predicted by avoidant decisional styles such as procrastination and buck-passing. To understand how decisional style influences Email usage, 90 participants completed an Email Use Survey, the Melbourne Decision Making Questionnaire and the Coopersmith Self-Esteem Inventory. Procrastination, buck-passing, vigilance, hypervigilance and self-esteem were employed within separate multiple regressions to predict types of self-reported Email usage. Better-educated procrastinators reported higher levels of total Email usage. Older procrastinators reported more work-related Email usage. Young, better-educated individuals tended to report engaging in more personal Email usage in the workplace. (c) 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.