Software: my co-worker, my photo-and-movie editor, my favourite Sunday playlist. Your presence is so ubiquitous, yet so invisible that I often forget that we are constantly in a state of interaction.

I truly enjoy exploring new software tools, testing apps, making silly experiments just to see how things work. However, recently I experienced some of the most frustrating experience ever, because of it.

How it happened

About two months ago, I got a work assignment that would require me to set-up an internal intranet system — a kind of a website, but only accessible within the organisation. My job was to figure out the template on which all elements would be placed. No coding was required — only knowledge of the SharePoint software.

But exploring this system was far from fun. Frustration, resistance, procrastination were only part of my first feelings. Despite my love for software, I caught myself annoyed, complaining, anxious and angry at the tool and its creators.

What was going on?

I decided to go academic about the issue and started digging into available research. I found out that I was experiencing what scholars define as computer anxiety or its milder version: frustration.

The topic seems to be well-explored by academics of information sciences, among which I came across a great research done by Jonathan Lazar and colleagues*. In this research, the scholars study the effect of frustration caused by computers at the workplace. I was quite surprised to read that people waste on average 42-43% of their time on the computer due to a frustrating experience.

What is actually frustration?

This emotional state was analysed by Sigmund Freud and Lazer et al. present it in the following summary:

Frustration occurs when there is an inhibiting condition which interferes with or stops the realization of a goal. All action has a purpose or goal whether explicit or implicit, and any interruption to the completion of an action or task can cause frustration. For Freud, frustration included both external barriers to goal attainment and internal obstacles blocking satisfaction (Freud, 1921).

Simply put: Goal + interference=frustration

The more important the goal, the higher the level of frustration.

With regards to software at work (which was my case), it’s getting even more interesting. First of all, working with new software at work can be a requirement, thus the stress level can be pretty high. Second, software is two-folded with regards to goals. On the one hand are the users who need to do their work as quickly as possible. On the other hand are the creators of the tool. We've got the user’s intentions and expectations and the logic, embedded in the tool. In large software tools, we talk about logic, embedded by not just one single programmer, but at least a dozen experienced people, negotiating for months how the user should navigate the tool to achieve a certain goal.

Based on this, it can be suggested that a new software and the user will be at first in a stage of negation of how things should be done, which causes frustration.

How to overcome software frustration

What I found particularly interesting in the research I read was the role of self-efficacy on our emotional state. Self-efficacy is the inner believe and trust in one’s own capabilities to succeed in achieving the goal. Thereby, the less self-efficacy we have the more stress we will experience when we need to cope in difficult situations.

Few tips, based on my experience:

1. Get to the real-work with the tool as quickly as possible. Don’t leave it as the last thing before going home. Give yourself a good block of time in which you will have the time to experiment. The faster you get to this phase, the sooner you’ll feel comfortable working with the tool.

2. Get a training and read the manual. Training sessions are really useful for the initial impression of the tool, but their effect often lasts too little, especially if you watch a demonstration on a tool you haven’t yet explored yourself. If you face an issue — don’t hesitate to check the manual or watch tutorials. There is a great chance that your goal will be explained and you’ll save valuable time (and good mood).

3. Trust in your capabilities. Self-efficacy, as mentioned earlier, is key in solving any kind of difficulties. So if you don’t know how to achieve your goal, remember that you need to understand its logic. Usually, even very complex tools have few main principles on which the rest of the operations are based upon. Once you get a grasp of them, the tool becomes easier and predictable, your stress will diminish and you’ll manage your job fast.

Most importantly, you’ll feel happy and relaxed about the software tool and you will be able to focus back on your own goals.

References
*Lazar, Jonathan et al. 2004. Social and Psychological Influences on Computer User Frustration. In Media access: Social and psychological dimensions of new technology use. http://www.academia.edu/2900523/Social_and_psychological_influences_on_computer_user_frustration