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1 – 10 of 32Chia-Huei Wu, Matthew Davis, Hannah Collis, Helen Hughes and Linhao Fang
This study aims to examine the role of location autonomy (i.e. autonomy over where to work) in shaping employee mental distress during their working days.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to examine the role of location autonomy (i.e. autonomy over where to work) in shaping employee mental distress during their working days.
Design/methodology/approach
A total of 316 employees from 6 organizations in the UK provided data for 4,082 half-day sessions, over 10 working days. Random intercept modeling is used to analyze half-day data nested within individuals.
Findings
Results show that location autonomy, beyond decision-making autonomy and work-method autonomy, is positively associated with the perception of task-environment (TE) fit which, in turn, contributes to lower mental distress during each half-day session. Results of supplementary analysis also show that location autonomy can contribute to higher absorption, task proficiency and job satisfaction via TE fit during each half-day session.
Originality/value
This study reveals the importance and uniqueness of location autonomy in shaping employees' outcomes, offering implications for how organizations can use this in the work–life flexibility policies to support employee mental health.
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Kaja Indergård and Geir Karsten Hansen
The purpose of this paper is to map and describe the activities taking place in the academic workplace. It considers whether academic work is something completely different from…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to map and describe the activities taking place in the academic workplace. It considers whether academic work is something completely different from traditional knowledge work and identifies differences and similarities between the two.
Design/methodology/approach
The data was collected through in-depth interviews with thirteen academics from different disciplines at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology within a case study approach. A document analysis of the university’s disciplines was carried out in advance of the interviews.
Findings
Four important similarities between knowledge work and academic work and three distinctive features of academic work were identified. Balancing the need for interaction and concentration is most important for both knowledge work and academic work, and the most prominent differences are the academics’ constant alternation between supervision, teaching, concentration work and administrative tasks, as well as some academics’ close links to practice. Academic work is not completely different from knowledge work, and learning from experiences from other sectors can be valuable when designing workplaces for academic staff. It is necessary to understand the activities taking place in the academic workplace and at the same time plan for future flexibility.
Originality/value
This study contributes to the research on workplace design for academic staff to better understand the characteristics and variations of academic work and differences in academic cultures and traditions. This will contribute to a better understanding of how workplace design, work processes, technology and how the institution is organised can support the university’s visions and goals.
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This study aims to evaluate the suspicious transaction reporting (STR) as a financial intelligence tool to identify the potential strengths and limitations of STR and to come up…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to evaluate the suspicious transaction reporting (STR) as a financial intelligence tool to identify the potential strengths and limitations of STR and to come up with the criteria, which will make this tool an effective one in early detection of terrorist financing activities.
Design/methodology/approach
Considering the research aim, this research uses the funnelling method for identifying effectiveness criteria. Funnelling is a method of literature review that helps find pertinent literature by refining the search through filtering the available research (Ridley, 2008). Using this method, the researcher first applied the criteria of actionable intelligence to filter the financial intelligence tools to select the most promising and important tool (suspicious transaction reporting) for early detection of terrorist financing activities. The funnelling method was also applied to derive the effectiveness criteria from the operational features, and corresponding limitations, of the suspicious transaction reporting system. The funnelling method was also used to identify those operational features and limitations of suspicious transaction reporting that have the most direct relevance to the early detection problem of suspicious transaction reporting.
Findings
There are some operational features of STR that give rise to certain limitations that undermine its effectiveness in terms of early detection of terrorist financing activities. The limitations of STR necessitate a search for criteria that will make STR effective in early detection of terrorist financing activities. Based on the operational features and their corresponding limitations, effectiveness criteria for STR have been derived in this study. It is shown how these effectiveness criteria can remove the limitations of STR.
Research limitations/implications
The list of operational features and the corresponding limitations based on which the effectiveness criteria have been derived may not be exhaustive. There may have other operational features, and corresponding limitations that also make STR largely ineffective in the early detection of terrorist financing activities, and for which more effectiveness criteria should also be derived.
Practical implications
The limitations and the effectiveness criteria will pave the way for redesigning STR in such a way that will make it highly useful for detecting financing activities relating to imminent terrorist attacks.
Social implications
The society will experience fewer terrorist attacks that will make the society peaceful, happy and vibrant.
Originality/value
In this study, the effectiveness criteria of STR for early detection of terrorist financing activities have been derived in an innovative way by deducing them from the operational features of STR and the corresponding limitations.
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Sherly de Yong, Murni Rachmawati and Ima Defiana
This paper aims to identify aspects of how work-life interaction has changed in the post-pandemic situations and propose strategies of the security concept for living-working…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to identify aspects of how work-life interaction has changed in the post-pandemic situations and propose strategies of the security concept for living-working patterns in the post-pandemic interior as future disease prevention.
Design/methodology/approach
We conducted a systematic literature search and review to select previous research systematically and relate concepts by coding the data and synthesising the data critically. The systematic literature search and review considered 90 papers (35 were studied).
Findings
The findings identify three strategies: hybrid activity patterns, new layout for hybrid and changing behaviour and culture. Each strategy demonstrates the connection between the hybrid living-working interior spaces in the post-pandemic period and security-pandemic variables. The results on security design factors focused on interior control, detection and deterrence; connection to nature creates a safer environment to prevent further variables; and hybrid activity requires more elements to govern users' behaviour and culture.
Research limitations/implications
Limitations of this study are as follows: excluded papers that are not written in English/Bahasa or do not have gold/green open access; some aspects were not discussed (such as social distancing); the articles included in this review are up to April 2023 (and there is the possibility of recent papers). Future studies can be developed to update building certification for post-pandemic interiors or research with psychological, social equity or family vitality issues.
Originality/value
The study offers strategies and the holistic relationship between the post-pandemic concept and security-pandemic design variables within the built environment, especially in the users' culture and behaviour context.
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Chiara Tagliaro, Alessandra Migliore, Erica Isa Mosca and Stefano Capolongo
This paper aims to explore how the scientific literature and company reports have addressed inclusive workplace design and strategies to date.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to explore how the scientific literature and company reports have addressed inclusive workplace design and strategies to date.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper adopts a scoping review to answer the following question: To what extent is inclusion present in workplace design and related strategies? An analysis of 27 scientific papers and 25 corporate social responsibility reports of the highest-ranked companies in the Great Place to Work global ranking disentangles the main aspects related to workplace design and strategies for promoting inclusion.
Findings
This paper opens avenues for four macro-categories of diversity (psycho-physical aspects; cultural aspects; socio-economic conditions; and ability, experience and strengths) to support the development of inclusive workplace design and strategy. Besides, multiple spatial scales emerged as material and immaterial elements of the workplace encountering inclusion and diversity.
Originality/value
Nowadays, the workforce is becoming more diverse. Although diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) has become key to many organizations, it remains unclear how DE&I principles are applied in workspace design and strategies. This scoping review provides a novel perspective on the topic by integrating scientific knowledge and practice-based approaches which still address this matter independently.
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Combining two organizational change theories, life cycle and organizational development, this study examines how strategic change cycle has been adopted and implemented across…
Abstract
Purpose
Combining two organizational change theories, life cycle and organizational development, this study examines how strategic change cycle has been adopted and implemented across three different organizations, a public organization, an NGO and an intergovernmental organization toward achieving their goals.
Design/methodology/approach
This study triangulates three different qualitative research methods: open-ended semi-structured interviews conducted with UN Women Egypt's director, text analysis of the three organizations' websites and the discourse analysis of the Tri-County Foundation's leaders.
Findings
Strategic change cycle has been differently formulated, adopted and implemented by the three organizations based on their goals, resources and contexts. While Office Board of Investment adopted a comprehensive reactive change, Tri-County Foundation followed a partial proactive transformation and UN Women Egypt developed a partial reactive strategy. Henceforth, public organizations and nonprofit organizations can develop different strategies of change in function of needs, resources, goals and context.
Originality/value
This study advances a theoretical framework on organizational change by integrating two theories, life cycle and organizational development, presenting four patterns of change: comprehensive reactive, comprehensive proactive, partial reactive and partial proactive.
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Carmen Y.M. Tan, Rahimi A. Rahman and Yong Siang Lee
The health, well-being and productivity (i.e. WELL) of office building occupants are vulnerable to poor office environments. Therefore, this study aims to identify new features…
Abstract
Purpose
The health, well-being and productivity (i.e. WELL) of office building occupants are vulnerable to poor office environments. Therefore, this study aims to identify new features and concepts of office buildings in supporting occupants’ WELL. To achieve that aim, this study: explores new WELL features for office buildings, develops new WELL concepts for office buildings and examines the influence of the newly developed WELL concepts on existing WELL building standard (WELL v2) concepts.
Design/methodology/approach
The first phase involved ten experts to assign weightage for health, well-being and productivity. In the second phase, 206 questionnaire survey data were collected from office building occupants throughout Malaysia. Exploratory factor analysis established new WELL concepts for office buildings. Partial least-squares structural equation modelling examined the influence of the newly developed WELL concepts on the existing WELL v2 concepts.
Findings
Two new WELL concepts were developed: “space and services”, consisting of sufficient space, workstation privacy, office layouts, building automation systems, cleanliness and information technology (IT) infrastructure, and “building security”, consisting of security systems and safety at parking lots. Here, “space and services” influences all existing WELL v2 concepts, and “building security” influences the water, nourishment, mind and community concepts of WELL v2.
Originality/value
This study uncovers holistic WELL building concepts to support occupants’ health, well-being and productivity with additional new features and concepts for construction industry policymakers to establish holistic building assessment tools.
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Priyadharshini Vasudevan and L. Suganthi
The new ways of working (NWW), a contemporary work environment with temporal and spatial flexibilities, has become an enforced reality after the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted…
Abstract
Purpose
The new ways of working (NWW), a contemporary work environment with temporal and spatial flexibilities, has become an enforced reality after the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted workplaces. However, the understanding of how it impacts employee well-being perceptions is limited. Hence, the current study aims to examine how the NWW facets, namely, time- and location-independent work, management of output, access to organizational knowledge and flexibility in working relations relate to employees' life satisfaction, mediated by psychological capital.
Design/methodology/approach
A cross-sectional survey was designed to collect data from 459 Indian knowledge workers. Model fit and the hypothesized relationships were tested using IBM SPSS 25, AMOS and PROCESS Macro.
Findings
All four NWW facets positively relate to psychological capital, which in turn associates with life satisfaction. Except for the facet “management of output”, the other three facets associate positively with life satisfaction before accounting for the mediator. Indirect effects of all four facets on life satisfaction via psychological capital were established. Overall, the findings establish the important mediating role of psychological capital in relating the NWW facets with life satisfaction.
Originality/value
By examining the previously unexplored relationships between NWW, psychological capital and life satisfaction, this study provides novel insights into the role of personal resources in maximizing the beneficial effects of the NWW practices and is highly relevant in the current context where organizations are trying to identify coping mechanisms that help employees adapt to workplace transformations.
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Ridhima Goel, Jagdeep Singla, Amit Mittal and Meenal Arora
Work-from-home (WFH) has gained popularity over the past years. This study aims to conduct a bibliometric analysis to systematically review and synthesize scholarly literature on…
Abstract
Purpose
Work-from-home (WFH) has gained popularity over the past years. This study aims to conduct a bibliometric analysis to systematically review and synthesize scholarly literature on the complex interplay between WFH, employee well-being and performance.
Design/methodology/approach
The study incorporates analysis of the bibliometric including performance analysis, content analysis and scientific mapping that is applied to 497 Scopus papers. VOSviewer software was used to evaluate the data.
Findings
This study posits an imbalance between the count of documents and the citations earned by each author. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health was regarded as a leading journal with maximum citations and publications. The highest count of publications came from most Asian countries such as India, China, Indonesia and Japan. The investigation indicated that the writers with the maximum citations were predominantly the authors of the majorly cited papers. Further, the text mining through co-occurrence of keyword analysis generated five clusters and cocited references revealed three themes.
Practical implications
The current research might benefit both research groups as well as human resource professionals since it also reveals the research necessity and gaps in the WFH domain.
Originality/value
This research delves into unexplored facets of WFH beyond traditional studies over the past decade by examining remote work arrangements in today’s economy, revealing previously unnoticed dynamics affecting employee well-being and performance. This innovative viewpoint enhances the literature and provides an empirical foundation for strategic organizational decision-making and future study.
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Thomas Berker, Hanne Henriksen, Thomas Edward Sutcliffe and Ruth Woods
This study aims to convey lessons learned from two sustainability initiatives at Norway’s largest university. This contributes to knowledge-based discussions of how future…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to convey lessons learned from two sustainability initiatives at Norway’s largest university. This contributes to knowledge-based discussions of how future, sustainable higher education institutions (HEIs) infrastructures should be envisioned and planned if the fundamental uncertainty of the future development of learning, researching and teaching is acknowledged.
Design/methodology/approach
This study was submitted on 24 January 2023 and revised on 14 September 2023. HEIs, particularly when they are engaged in research activities, have a considerable environmental footprint. At the same time, HEIs are the main producers and disseminators of knowledge about environmental challenges and their employees have a high awareness of the urgent need to mitigate climate change and biodiversity loss. In this study, the gap between knowledge and environmental performance is addressed as a question of infrastructural change, which is explored in two case studies.
Findings
The first case study presents limitations of ambitious, top-down sustainability planning for HEI infrastructures: support from employees and political support are central for this strategy to succeed, but both could not be secured in the case presented leading to an abandonment of all sustainability ambitions. The second case study exposes important limitations of a circular approach: regulatory and legal barriers were found against a rapid and radical circular transformation, but also more fundamental factors such as the rationality of an institutional response to uncertainty by rapid cycles of discarding the old and investing in new equipment and facilities.
Research limitations/implications
Being based on qualitative methods, the case studies do not claim representativity for HEIs worldwide or even in Norway. Many of the factors described are contingent on their specific context. The goal, instead, is to contribute to learning by presenting an in-depth and context-sensitive report on obstacles encountered in two major sustainability initiatives.
Originality/value
Research reporting on sustainability initiatives too often focuses descriptively on the plans or reports the successes while downplaying problems and failures. This study deviates from this widespread practice by analysing reasons for failure informed by a theoretical frame (infrastructural change). Moreover, the juxtaposition of two cases within the same context shows the strengths and weaknesses of different approaches to infrastructural change particularly clearly.
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