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The literature on coworking spaces (CSs) is growing fast; notably, this topic has attracted a wide range of contributions from various disciplines during the past years. Although CSs first appeared in major cities, small towns and rural areas are also becoming attractive. To date, no literature review has systematically studied the effects of such collaborative-flexible new working spaces proliferating in non-urban areas. Therefore, this paper aims to present a systematic literature review about the effects of coworking spaces located in peripheral and rural areas.

The methodological approach is based on the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses, also known as PRISMA. Following the PRISMA checklist items, this study provides different aspects and identifies indicators from various cross-studies published in 10 years (2011–2021).

Results show that, in the past decade, Europe has recorded the highest number of publications on the topic of coworking spaces (CSs); the main research focus was on spatial planning. CSs foster communities of specialized and high-skilled workers, attract businesses and venture capitalists and may accelerate urban revitalisation processes. The regeneration of spaces can positively affect the value of commercial properties in the vicinity and attract developers. Moreover, by establishing communities and networks beyond the working life, coworking was found to reduce depopulation and even foster the influx of non-urban areas.

The findings of this study can be transferred to policymakers to be considered in designing tailored policies in non-urban areas and also places-that-don't matter.

By date, this study is the first attempt to conduct a systematic review of the literature on the effects of coworking spaces in peripheral and rural areas. This is important since this typology of flexible-collaborative working space is gaining public attention, especially during the pandemic and the development of such spaces in non-urban areas.

The objective of this study is to explore the concept of rural coworking in the scientific literature and examine how it generates community narratives based on the value of space and business practices. This study aims to contribute to the understanding of rural coworking as a driver of participation and relationships among diverse stakeholders.

To identify and analyse trends and categories in rural coworking studies, understand the concept of rural coworking and how community narratives have been focused, the authors carried out a systematic literature review following the preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses (PRISMA) tool. The review was performed using Scopus, obtaining 22 papers.

The findings reveal that rural coworking is on definition, but it emphasises the role of community as a main actor in its consolidation. On the other hand, rural coworking is seen as an opportunity to create impactful new business strategies through space regeneration and revitalisation. Management perspectives prevail in this research field, highlighting the role of public administrations, entrepreneurs and policymakers, and their capacities to build a business environment to enhance coworking activity.

The paper establishes conceptual categories and research trends in the rural coworking literature, and how its actors have a strategic importance in defining their own practices and narratives. The interrelationship between coworking activity and local business development is continually seen as an opportunity for growth, so this paper will have value for rural coworking planners and consultants in non-urban areas.

The purpose of this study is to make the implementation of a recommended Web service that allows one to formalize the search for a suitable coworking according to individual preferences as a decision-making task, as well as find a coworking area in an optimized setting for both the individual employee and those who carry out collective professional activities from a large number of alternatives in a shorter time.

In the implemented system of each place category in coworking areas, a search will be carried out according to formalized parameters and with an individual approach. To find the set of the required services of the coworking zone, the target functions of maximizing the priority of the place and minimizing the cost are determined, between which the user can set the ratio. As a constraint, the general fund of financial expenses for the time to reach the zone from different locations is used. The results of problem formalization are presented in the form of a mathematical model.

The use of a problem-oriented solution can significantly reduce the laboriousness of finding a suitable workspace.

The development of coworking zone practices contributes to the development of a professional infrastructure of the city and minimizes the cost of equipping each enterprise with additional tools, as well as manages labor resources and tracks trends of both professional and novice workers’ needs.

This paper aims to review the concept and characteristics of coworking space, especially physical and operational characteristics and its objectives. The authors propose three models of coworking spaces, such as revenue, synergistic and customer contact, which organizations can use as a part of their corporate real estate strategies to build workplace flexibility and resiliency. This paper also addresses research gaps and a research agenda for future research.

This paper is a literature review of academic research focusing on coworking spaces. Because of the relatively limited existing academic literature on the topic, industry sources and white papers are also reviewed.

The authors categorized common threads of the existing literature on coworking spaces to emergence and growth trends, the types of users, the type of work to be completed in these spaces, characteristics of coworking spaces and the desired outcomes of coworking space models. Coworking spaces are expected to grow worldwide because of the increase in knowledge-based economy, the “digital nomad” lifestyle and mobile technologies, however, there is limited research on the relationship between spatial and operational characteristics of coworking spaces and users’ collaboration, social well-being and creativity. No research identified fully articulated the nuanced differences between the types of coworking spaces now found in the real estate ecosystem.

There is limited academic, empirical research focusing on coworking spaces. Thus, the search for literature itself is limited to a small number of papers. Although the authors extended the search to non-academic sources, the conclusion of this study is tentative because of the prematurity of the topic.

This paper urges the identification of research questions, considering the fast growth of coworking spaces and suggests future research directions based on newly proposed models. Industry practitioners, including building owners, managers, coworking space providers and corporate real estate practitioners, can consider using variations of coworking space concepts and characteristics, as they understand the importance of social needs and connectivity among users. By addressing the history of the coworking space as a concept and business model, and updating the types of models to include new coworking spaces, the authors provide further options to industry practitioners as to how to integrate coworking into their real estate.

Coworking-spaces are considered as a new formula to facilitate autonomy, creativity, self-efficacy, work satisfaction and innovation, yet they also might overburden their users who in that course intend to limit social interaction and collaboration in the workspace. Thus, the question is how coworking-spaces shape entrepreneurial ventures.

This study used an inductive research methodology based on data from three different data sources, including observations, archives and interviews from managers and entrepreneurs.

The findings suggest that the materiality in the form of spatial architectures (working, socialization and support structures) shared facilities and infrastructures (utilities, luxuries and specialties), and integrated digital technologies (applications and platforms) influence the flow of communication, internal and external linkages, as well as functional uniformity and distinctiveness. However, there exists an inherent dualism in sociomaterial assemblage in coworking-spaces, which can lead to instrumental and detrimental outcomes for entrepreneurs.

This study explains the role of sociomaterial assemblage on the working of entrepreneurs in shared workspaces.

Building on the existing literature and on a series of interviews conducted in very diverse coworking spaces, this article attempts at analyzing coworking by focusing on the historical evolution and heterogeneity of its interpretations, as well as the plurality of its realization in practice and prospective developments.

The theoretical framework adopted is Cultural Historical Activity Theory – a dialectical approach which allows the study of human activities as historically evolving and complex systems which change under the impulse of their inner contradictions. The analysis presented here starts with an overview of the history of the theoretical elaborations and discussions of coworking. The authors then focus on the experiences and interpretations of this phenomenon as conveyed by coworkers and coworking managers in the north of Italy – one of the most active coworking areas in Europe.

Coworking first emerged as a way of promoting forms of work and organization that require simultaneous, multidirectional, and reciprocal work, as understood in contrast to forms that incorporate an established division of labor, demarcated communities, and formal and informal sets of rules. However, with time, coworking has evolved toward novel directions, giving rise to heterogeneous interpretations of it. Inquiry constitutes a deeper investigation of the heterogeneity of coworking. The take-away message here is that the prefix co- in coworking can be interpreted, through a play of words, to evoke multiple positions and views conveying internal contradictions.

The historical overview of coworking shows a strong differentiation and multisided interpretation of this phenomenon along two dimensions of historical development, namely, social and business, and outward and inward. The qualitative analysis of the interviews traces the different lived interpretations and conceptions of coworking. The analysis confirms, on the one hand, the complexity and heterogeneity described in the literature, and on the other hand, it enriches the literature by depicting the contradictory nature of the phenomenon, including how the historical and inner tensions of coworking are dynamically evolving in the concrete experiences reported by the managers and users in the coworking spaces.

The purpose of this paper is to understand the motivations behind teleworkers’ role transitions in a coworking office and how these motivations shape role communication between independent workers in a shared office.

This paper draws upon observation, in-depth interviews (n=23) and temporary membership in the organization.

Self-enhancement and self-validation motivations work in concert to prompt individuals to capitalize on the networking opportunities that come with membership in this office and individuals strategically position an occupation-framed version of their identity in these networks.

Only one coworking office was studied. However, this is countered by the richness of the data.

Communication managers whose organizations employ teleworkers are encouraged to provide ongoing social and task-related support to their teleworkers; coworking site proprietors are encouraged to ensure members understand what is expected of them when they join a coworking office.

As teleworking is a widely-used flexible work arrangement, this study advances knowledge of teleworker management.

Scholars have not yet explored how individuals use coworking spaces and what motivates teleworkers to establish their role identities in mixed offices.

Coworking (shared flexible working spaces) grew exponentially before the COVID-19 pandemic. The crisis led to spaces closing but demand is likely to increase as homeworking/remote working levels remain permanently higher post-pandemic. Previous studies largely focused on ‘satisfied customers’ – freelancers and entrepreneurs in the urban core; but these are a poor guide to future preferences given an increasingly diverse set of potential users. Understanding these preferences is of significant value to future providers, investors and real estate operators.

The authors employ a mixed-methods approach, observing self-organised coworking sessions and online platforms, and a questionnaire of the coworking networks/groups. The authors address the research questions: i) how do individuals' make decisions about how and where to engage in shared working and ii) do they consider locational characteristics (beyond accessibility) and social and physical (environmental) aspects of coworking?

Proximity to home is a key result. Participants are mostly local and seek community, with a strong emphasis on effective work routines. Results stress the importance placed on social factors and in-space amenities, but affordability is also important. Coworkers experiencing both informal groups and organised spaces rate the informal experience as significantly more beneficial.

There are implications for the real estate element of future provision and funding models.

The authors contribute to the understanding of coworking preferences/motivations through addressing methodological limitations of previous studies. Rather than surveying individuals in coworking spaces, the authors study individuals who engage in coworking in various forms which will reflect the diverse (users, spaces, locations) demands for future coworking.

This study aims to explore how interorganizational coworking spaces (CWS) affect complexity, resilience, open innovation and knowledge cocreation.

This is a qualitative study using the exploratory design. Data are gathered through semistructured interviews and naturalistic observation in six different CWS.

In line with previous studies, the findings show that being in a CWS with professionals of various backgrounds and contained levels of diversity make people prone to communication and knowledge sharing. Differently from previous research about knowledge creation in CWS, this study discovered that knowledge cocreation was only averagely affected. Complexity and resilience were the most influenced dimensions with scores higher than average, followed by open innovation and knowledge cocreation.

Main limitations are related to the qualitative method itself which may not reach the data saturation and with the nonsynergistic analysis of all dimensions together. A further limitation arose because of the COVID-19 pandemic which contributed to downsizing the number of participants while restricting the options of the involved research instruments. The implications for research are related to a need for further studies using large-scale surveys to strengthen the reliability of research. Additionally, more research is needed to explore the multiple dimensions of open innovation, complexity and resilience in CWS.

For CWS providers, it is recommended to create thematic/clustered areas of collaboration based on specific professions. For early-stage businesses, freelancers and micro/entrepreneurial firms that do not wish to lease their own office, CWS provide an opportunity for value cocreation and open innovation.

CWS, either physical or virtual, can be used as a retreat approach and a socialization platform, especially for those in need to recover from post-traumatic stress due to the imposed isolation caused by COVID-19 pandemic.

Given the unexplored phenomena of complexity and resilience in CWS, the major contribution of this research is related to the impact of interorganizational coworking upon complexity and resilience.