Generation and regulation of workplace stress in digitally mediated work: An integrative review

Purpose - Organisations are investing substantial resources in employee well-being initiatives, yet workplace stress persists and intervention outcomes remain mixed. This review proposes an explanation by examining how digitally mediated work generates stress at the level of the work system and why individual-level regulation under-performs against it. Design/methodology/approach - The paper is an integrative review. A structured search of Scopus, Web of Science, PubMed, PsycINFO and Google Scholar identified theoretically salient studies, which were selected purposively and analysed through thematic synthesis. The analytical corpus comprises 88 sources. Findings - Traditional workplace stressors persist, but digital infrastructure extends their reach and intensity. Digital mediation generates stress through three mechanisms: continuity (sustained exposure and restricted recovery), opacity (limited access to decision-relevant information) and asymmetry (unequal influence over data and decisions). A misalignment between system-level stress generation and individual-level stress regulation is proposed as an explanation for persistent stress despite growing investment in well-being initiatives. Originality/value - The argument is formalised in three testable propositions that specify digital configurations of demands, resources and appraisal within the Job Demands - Resources, Conservation of Resources and Transactional frameworks. Implications follow for work design, governance of algorithmic management and digital leadership development.