Can ChatGPT Ease Digital Fatigue? Short-Cycle Content Curation for University Instructors

Digital fatigue is pervasive among university instructors, yet rigorous evidence on whether generative AI improves well-being is scarce. We conducted an eight-week staggered multiple-baseline AB–AB reversal with eight lecturers at a private Peruvian university. In intervention phases, participants replaced full readings with a daily ≤200-word ChatGPT summary plus three discussion questions (“content-curation sprint”). Outcomes were self-reported digital fatigue (FDU-24) and automatically logged screen time; analyses were carried out using trend-corrected Tau-U and paired-phase Cohen’s d. Across two intervention cycles, screen exposure fell by about 122 min per day (~29% of baseline) and digital fatigue scores decreased by ~22%. Effects were large and replicated (aggregate Tau-U = −0.79; d = −1.5 to −2.2). Treatment fidelity averaged 96%, and post-study technology acceptance was high. These findings provide preliminary experimental evidence that a brief, low-friction ChatGPT workflow can simultaneously reduce screen time and alleviate digital fatigue in higher-education faculty, suggesting a dual productivity-and-well-being dividend and positioning generative AI as a Job Demands–Resources “resource” rather than a stressor. Multi-site randomized trials with active controls, longer follow-up, and cost-effectiveness analyses are warranted. Practical implications for faculty development are immediate.