Mental Workload in the Modern Workplace: Applying ISO 10075

Employees face growing cognitive demands as they navigate overflowing inboxes, back-to-back meetings, constant notifications, and increasingly complex digital tools. Although technology can improve productivity, potential concerns include reduced attention, particularly when technology encourages constant multitasking and repeated shifts in attention, as well as impacts on sleep, social interaction, and cognitive development. Mental workload is therefore an important consideration in workplace ergonomics. The ISO 10075 – Mental Workload Package brings together three international standards—ISO 10075-1:2017, ISO 10075-2:2024, and ISO 10075-3:2004—that provide a framework for understanding, designing, and assessing mental workload.

Understanding Mental Workload vs. Job Stress

Mental workload and job stress are closely related but describe different aspects of the work experience. Mental workload refers to the cognitive demands required to complete a task, such as processing information, maintaining attention, making decisions, or managing multiple priorities. Job stress, meanwhile, can occur when workplace demands exceed a worker’s perceived ability, resources, or capacity to cope with those demands.

A high mental workload does not always result in job stress. Manageable challenges boost workplace engagement and performance by sparking motivation, focus, and skill growth; however, excessive or prolonged job demands can lead to chronic fatigue, severe stress, and full burnout.

Mental Workload According to ISO 10075-1:2017

ISO 10075-1:2017 establishes terminology related to mental workload, including mental stress and mental strain. These terms are defined as:

Mental stress: the total of all assessable influences impinging upon a human being from external sources and affecting
Mental strain: the immediate effect of mental stress within the individual depending on their current condition

The standard treats mental workload as an umbrella term rather than assigning it a single standardized technical meaning.

The Impact of Mental Workload on Workplace Performance and Well-Being

Mental workload can become particularly important when workers must simultaneously manage large amounts of information, frequent interruptions, complex decisions, or competing priorities. Microsoft’s 2025 Work Trend Index found that employees were interrupted by meetings, emails, or chats every two minutes during the 9-to-5 workday. That level of interruption can make sustained attention more difficult. In another finding from the same research, 48% of employees and 52% of leaders said their work felt chaotic and fragmented.

Mental workload also has implications beyond productivity. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 15% of working-age adults had a mental disorder in 2019, while depression and anxiety are estimated to result in 12 billion lost working days each year, costing approximately $1 trillion annually in lost productivity. WHO identifies excessive workloads and low job control among workplace factors that can pose risks to mental health.

These findings underscore the importance of designing work environments that balance productivity with the cognitive demands placed on workers, helping support sustained attention, well-being, and overall performance.

Designing Work with ISO 10075-2:2024 to Support Human Capabilities

Structuring tasks, tools, and environments to match human cognitive and physical limits helps people perform well without feeling overwhelmed. ISO 10075-2:2024 provides guidance on designing work systems, including tasks, equipment, workplaces, and working conditions. The standard incorporates technical, organizational, and social factors, and it aims to support health, safety, well-being, performance, and effectiveness while preventing both mental overload and underload.

Using ISO 10075-3:2004 to Measure and Assess Mental Workload

Designing an appropriate work system requires understanding whether the resulting workload is appropriate. ISO 10075-3:2004 establishes principles and requirements for measuring and assessing mental workload and specifies requirements for measurement instruments. Methods can include task analysis, performance assessment, subjective ratings, and psychophysiological measurements. The standard also provides information for selecting appropriate assessment methods.

ISO 10075 for Better Workplace Ergonomics and Mental Workload

The ISO 10075 – Mental Workload Package provides organizations with a comprehensive framework for addressing mental workload and supporting effective workplace ergonomics, helping align work demands with human capabilities to promote employee well-being, safety, and performance. By connecting terminology, design principles, and assessment methods, the Standards Package can help organizations better understand how work affects people—and use that understanding to design work systems that support health, safety, well-being, performance, and effectiveness.