Managers' Information Overload the impact of coping strategies on decision-making performance

There seem to be sufficient evidence that the efficiency of information processing at the individual and at the organizational levels does not only determine the wellbeing of organization in short-term but also has a significant effect on long-term success. In this thesis, we develop analytical approach to look at the problem of information overload. We believe that there are three groups of factors that cause information overload, i.e. human–related, task-related, and context–related factors. While all three define it differently, none of them seems covers the entire complexity of the phenomenon. Therefore, the need for the interactionist perspective is advocated. Within this perspective, information overload is treated as the product of human-related, task-related, and context-related factors in interaction. We demonstrated that research on information overload and related issues implies contextuality.  Information overload can only be defined within a certain context and through this context. We further introduce the concept of coping. We defined coping rules and resources that an individual employs to deal with information overload, claiming that coping is not a random deviation path or an error but a patterned, adaptive response of human being to a problematic situation. We outlined three types of coping using, i.e. human-enabled, technology–enabled, and organization-enabled coping, and provided practical examples of each. We further suggested that instead of sticking to one type, individual apply a mix. Three qualitative case studies are presented in the thesis. A framework for the information overload diagnoses is offered.

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Olgo Novikova

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