The Digital Toll: A Cross-Cultural Study on Technostress and Digital Fatigue among K-12 Students during Hybrid Learning
Indonesia Indonesia Indonesia 
Philippines 
Abstract
Background. The rapid expansion of hybrid learning has intensified K–12 students’ reliance on digital technologies, creating growing concerns regarding technostress, digital fatigue, academic engagement, and school-related well-being across diverse cultural and educational contexts.
Purpose. This study aimed to examine how digital learning demands contribute to technostress and digital fatigue among K–12 students, investigate their academic and psychological consequences, identify potential protective factors, and determine whether these relationships vary across cultural settings.
Method. A cross-cultural quantitative design was employed involving K–12 students participating in hybrid learning environments. Survey data were analyzed using measurement-invariance testing, multilevel analysis, and structural equation modeling to examine relationships among digital learning demands, technostress, digital fatigue, academic engagement, school-related well-being, and protective factors at individual and contextual levels.
Results. The findings showed that technology overload, platform complexity, task fragmentation, connectivity problems, and expectations of continuous availability significantly predicted higher levels of technostress. Increased technostress subsequently intensified digital fatigue and was associated with lower academic engagement and poorer school-related well-being. Digital self-efficacy, teacher support, and adequate recovery opportunities buffered several adverse relationships.
Conclusion. The findings demonstrate that the digital toll of hybrid learning is shaped more strongly by the intensity and organization of digital demands than by screen duration alone. Sustainable hybrid education therefore requires manageable digital workloads, coherent platform ecosystems, responsive teacher support, equitable technological conditions, and meaningful opportunities for recovery.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Namira Faradila, Ahmad Ta'rifin, Mansur Chadi Mursid, Nestor P. Penalver
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