Word Spy - e-mail fatigue

(EE.mayl fuh.teeg) n. Mental exhaustion caused by receiving a large number of email messages each day.

Example Citation:

"Robert Cavalier, philosophy professor at Carnegie Mellon University, is experiencing 'e-mail fatigue.' Originally Cavalier responded to his e-mail the moment he got to his office. Due to an explosion in the number of e-messages, he has redesigned his schedule to answer e-mail at noon."
—"DL Changes Learning," Education Technology News, November 11, 1998

Earliest Citation:

Some 2.7 trillion e-mails will have been sent by people around the world by the end of this year alone. If you feel the majority of them are ending up in your in-box, you're not the only one. E-mail fatigue has become a common business complaint. Increasingly, co-workers seem to figure there's no point in walking 10 feet to a colleague's desk and having a brief conversation when a 300-word e-mail mini-essay will do.
—"Pop guide to beating e-mail fatigue," The Irish Times, December 12, 1997

Notes:

Direct marketers also refer to a form of fatigue related to receiving a steady flow of ad pieces each day. The terms they use are mail fatigue, direct mail fatigue, and junk mail fatigue:

"Everyone has heard of compassion fatigue. Now it seems there is also appeal fatigue, junk mail fatigue, and a mounting sense of annoyance on the part of donors at the insensitive behaviour of some charities. Indeed, most charities are now reporting a strong negative reaction to junk mail, particularly from their own supporters."
—Judy Hirst, "Relationship Fundraising," Investors Chronicle, October 30, 1992

Categories:

E-mail
Diseases and Syndromes

Posted on February 13, 2001