Porcelain Publishing / JCHRM / Volume 17 / Issue 2 / DOI: 10.47297/wspchrmWSP2040-800504.20261702
ARTICLE

Information Overload and Burnout in Genz Employees: Implications for Effective Workplace Training and Development

Hai Ho Tran Quoc1* Huyen Nguyen Le Thanh2 Toan Dao Quoc3 Hanh Pham Hong3
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1 Faculty of Business Administration, Ho Chi Minh City University of Law, Vietnam
2 The University of Social Sciences and Humanities National University Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
3 University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City, UEH College of Economics, Law and Government, Vietnam
Published: 1 June 2026
© 2026 by the Author(s). This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)
Abstract

This study examines the effects of information overload on burnout and personal performance among generation Z employees in Ho Chi Minh City. Drawing upon Cognitive Load Theory, Communication Accommodation Theory, and the Job Demands– Resources model, the research investigates how information overload is influenced by two primary information sources, namely cyber-based information and place-based information, and how information overload subsequently affects burnout and personal performance. Using a quantitative method with data from 400 Gen Z employees in the technology sector, structural equation modeling reveals that both cyber-based information and place-based information positively contribute to information overload. Moreover, information overload significantly increases burnout and reduces personal performance, with burnout mediating the relationship between information overload and personal performance. These findings underscore the psychological mechanisms by which information overload undermines employee functioning and highlight the need for targeted human resource management interventions to manage information flow and support Gen Z’s well-being and productivity in the digital workplace.

Keywords
Information overload
Burnout
Personal performance
Genz employees
Digital workplace
Human resource management
Vietnam
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Journal of Chinese Human Resources Management, Electronic ISSN: 2040-8013 Print ISSN: 2040-8005, Published by Porcelain Publishing