Self-Preservation: Stress and Its Impacts on Digital Preservationists in Canada

This poster illustrates a few of the key findings of a research study that seeks to investigate the impacts role-based stress is having on the health and well-being of the digital preservationist community in Canada.  The purpose of the study is to identify and rank the common stressors facing digital preservationists; identify correlations between stressors, working conditions, and other demographics; and explore whether there is evidence to support the theory that the inherent challenges of digital preservation (e.g. volume of work, fragility/ephemerality of the materials, rapid technological obsolescence, lack of available resources, etc.) are contributing to burnout and/or anxiety/depression among digital preservationists.

A survey was distributed to the Canadian digital preservationist community asking respondents questions about the stressors related to the components of their digital preservation programs; stress related to their use of technology; the impacts of their roles as digital preservationists on their stress and anxiety levels; their satisfaction with their jobs; their susceptibility to burnout; and their perceptions of their levels of generalized stress and anxiety. Respondents were also asked to identify their mood as well as any symptoms related to anxiety/depression that may have recently resulted from the stress of their work. Additional questions pertaining to age, gender, employment, and working conditions were also posed to respondents.  The survey data was then analyzed, in part by University of Winnipeg Master’s of Development Practice (Indigenous Development) students in their Quantitative Research Methods class, to determine key findings of the study. 

This poster illustrates some key data visualizations of preliminary study findings such as the levels of stress experienced by digital preservationists, the degree to which respondents are experiencing negative health and mood symptoms, and the key stressors impacting digital preservationists in Canada. While the poster is particular to the Canadian environment, the data highlights a social concern that may be prevalent amongst the international digital preservation community.