Search results
1 – 10 of 294Peter Lindeberg, Minna Saunila, Pia Lappalainen, Juhani Ukko and Hannu Rantanen
Work environments are undergoing a transition and COVID-19 accelerated this change. Prior studies have associated various physical, digital and social work environment elements…
Abstract
Purpose
Work environments are undergoing a transition and COVID-19 accelerated this change. Prior studies have associated various physical, digital and social work environment elements with occupational well-being. However, holistic approaches to the social work environment to compare the effects of the different elements have received less attention. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship of various social work environment elements with hybrid worker well-being. The findings help organizations design their work environments and cultures for the post-COVID era.
Design/methodology/approach
The study builds on a quantitative survey with 1,057 respondents. The respondents were randomly selected, the answers were anonymous and the results were based on regression analysis.
Findings
The analysis indicated that working methods and practices, leadership and management practices, organizational communality and social interaction associate with hybrid worker well-being. Organizational values, reward systems and organizational structures yield no association with hybrid worker well-being.
Originality/value
The value of this paper is in that it investigates elements of the social work environment, presents a research model that examines the relationship of social work environment elements with hybrid worker well-being and provides new empirical data on their implications in a comparative manner.
Details
Keywords
Megan M. Walsh, Erica L. Carleton, Julie Ziemer and Mikaila Ortynsky
The purpose of this study was to examine whether remote work moderates the mediated relationship between leadership behavior (transformational leadership and leader incivility)…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study was to examine whether remote work moderates the mediated relationship between leadership behavior (transformational leadership and leader incivility), followers' self-control, and work-life balance.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors conducted a three-wave, time lagged study of 338 followers. Drawing on social information processing theory, a moderated mediation model was proposed: it was hypothesized that remote work strengthens the relationship between leadership behavior (transformational leadership and leader incivility), follower self-control, and subsequent work-life balance (moderated mediation). The theoretical model was tested using OLS regression in SPSS.
Findings
The results show that working remotely strengthens the mediated relationships between leadership behavior, self-control, and work-life balance.
Practical implications
Organizations need to consider the interaction between remote work and leadership. Leader behaviors have a stronger relationship with follower self-control and work-life balance when the frequency of remote work is higher, so it is important to increase transformational leadership and reduce leader incivility in remote contexts. Leadership training programs and respectful workplace initiatives should be considered.
Originality/value
This study demonstrates the importance of leader behaviors for followers' self-control and work-life balance in relation to remote work. This study is the first to examine the boundary condition of remote work in relation to leadership behavior, follower self-control, and work-life balance.
Details
Keywords
Shanu Jain, Sarita Devi and Vibhash Kumar
In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, remote working (RW) has emerged as a viable alternative to working employees in general and knowledge workers in particular. However…
Abstract
Purpose
In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, remote working (RW) has emerged as a viable alternative to working employees in general and knowledge workers in particular. However, previous researchers have worked on the concept, development and facilitation of RW since the 1970s. Therefore, this study aims to review the existing literature on RW to ascertain the evolution of the concept in the business and management domain and provide for requisite arguments to extend the settings for future research agendas.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors based this study on a bibliometric analysis of articles (n = 349) retrieved from the Web of Science database published between January 1990 and October 2021. The authors have used a bibliometric toolbox comprising performance analysis, science mapping and network analysis in various software namely, VOSviewer, Gephi and Biblioshiny package in R.
Findings
The study’s results accentuated important themes like work–life balance, strengthening digital infrastructure, performance and productivity, hybrid work models and well-being and clustered them under four heads with proposed future research questions.
Research limitations/implications
The study is based on a single database; the authors have used an extensive but not exhaustive list of keywords to retrieve the articles. The analysis employs certain threshold limits while using the science mapping technique.
Practical implications
This study would enable managers and academics to comprehensively understand remote work and offer logical implications to appreciate its nuances.
Originality/value
This study is unique as it recognizes the intellectual structure in the existing literature on RW and traces the advancements and exponential growth post-COVID-19. The authors recapitulated the literature as network analysis of the RW facilitation model comprising the antecedents, outcomes, mediators and moderators.
Details
Keywords
Siqin Yao, Jintao Lu, Hanying Wang, Joel John Wark Montgomery, Tomasz Gorny and Chidiebere Ogbonnaya
Using role stress theory, this study examines how work connectivity behavior (WCB) blurs the lines between employees' work and personal lives, thereby encouraging procrastination…
Abstract
Purpose
Using role stress theory, this study examines how work connectivity behavior (WCB) blurs the lines between employees' work and personal lives, thereby encouraging procrastination at work (PAW). The study also investigates the importance of role stress and remote work self-efficacy (RWSE) as mediating and moderating factors, respectively.
Design/methodology/approach
The study examines the direct and indirect relationships between WCB and PAW using hierarchical regression and data from 415 Chinese teleworkers. RWSE is also estimated as a second-stage moderator.
Findings
The findings indicate that WCB has a direct and indirect (via role stress) positive influence on PAW; however, these effects are weaker among employees with higher (vs lower) RWSE.
Practical implications
This study assists managers and organizations in developing more efficient ways of maximizing employee and organizational performance while minimizing the counterproductive behaviors associated with excessive technology use.
Originality/value
By investigating the links between WCB and PAW in the post-pandemic context, this study adds a new perspective on how excessive technology use for work and non-work purposes can be counterproductive.
Details
Keywords
Tuğçe Karayel, Bahadır Aktaş and Adem Akbıyık
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the cyber hygiene practices of remote workers.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to investigate the cyber hygiene practices of remote workers.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper used two instruments: first, the Cyber Hygiene Inventory scale, which measures users’ information and computer security behaviors; second, the Recsem Inventory, developed within this paper’s context, to evaluate the cybersecurity measures adopted by organizations for remote workers. It was conducted on remote workers to examine their information security practices. The instrument was administered to a sample of 442 employees reached via the LinkedIn platform. Analyses were performed with SPSS v26, Python programming language and Seaborn library.
Findings
The findings indicate a significant correlation between the security measures implemented by companies and their employees’ cyber hygiene practices. A sector comparison revealed a significant difference in cyber hygiene levels between public and private sector workers.
Research limitations/implications
This paper aims to provide policymakers with suggestions for enhancing the cyber hygiene of remote workers to facilitate compliance with corporate security protocols.
Originality/value
This paper’s conclusions highlight the importance of companies increasing their cybersecurity investments as remote work becomes more prevalent. This should consider not only corporate-level factors but also employees' information and computer security behaviors.
Details
Keywords
Omaima Hajjami and Oliver S. Crocco
The purpose of this study is to investigate the factors that influenced employee engagement in the context of remote work as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and compare them…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to investigate the factors that influenced employee engagement in the context of remote work as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and compare them with antecedents of employee engagement in traditional workplaces.
Design/methodology/approach
This study adopted an integrative literature review design of 27 empirical and conceptual peer-reviewed journal articles from a host of academic databases. Data were analyzed via a matrix and mapped onto individual and organizational antecedents of employee engagement.
Findings
This study identified 18 antecedents of remote work, which were categorized into individual antecedents, for example, mindfulness and digital literacy, as well as organizational antecedents, for example, job autonomy and supportive leadership. These findings were compared with antecedents of employee engagement in traditional workplaces to generate new knowledge about the impact of remote work on employee engagement as a result of the large shift to remote work in 2020.
Originality/value
This study synthesizes the most recent literature on antecedents of employee engagement in remote work settings as the result of the pandemic and contrasts these new approaches with previously identified antecedents of employee engagement in traditional workplaces.
Details
Keywords
Ángela Ximena Campos García, Victoria Eugenia Cabrera-García, María del Carmen Docal-Millán, Lina María Acuña Arango and Fernando Riveros Munevar
Remote work has been intensifying in organizations, and the recent pandemic forced an immediate increase in it, ignoring its effect on the family. The purpose of this study was to…
Abstract
Purpose
Remote work has been intensifying in organizations, and the recent pandemic forced an immediate increase in it, ignoring its effect on the family. The purpose of this study was to analyze the work and personal-family life balance of Colombian workers during the lockdown and the effects on post-pandemic times.
Design/methodology/approach
Quantitative correlational study with a non-probabilistic sample of 1,069 participants: 349 (32.64%) men and 720 (67.35%) women.
Findings
A total of 44.8% of the participants reported that their work interfered with their personal life; 61.6% reported that their work exceeded their habitual time; 72.2% felt comfortable with the remote work; and women perceived more affectation, as did participants with children. No interaction was present between these variables. There are more interruptions for workers with children younger than 12 years.
Practical implications
There is satisfaction with remote work. However, there are difficulties regarding work-personal life balance that must be addressed to improve quality of life, with an emphasis on women and workers with children, especially younger children.
Social implications
This study provides empirical evidence for the foundation of public and organizational policies aimed at managing remote work and the work-personal life balance to reduce the risk of loss of female labor force and effects on the quality of life of workers.
Originality/value
Studies on the work-personal life balance with Latin American samples are scarce. This research contributes to the literature about satisfaction with working from home modality and the work-personal life balance during COVID-19 confinement, with a look at the differences by gender and the evaluation of the family conditions of Colombian workers, contributing to a regional perspective.
Details
Keywords
Urmila Jagadeeswari Itam and Uma Warrier
Teleworking, working from home and flexible work have gained popularity over the last few years. A shift in policies and practices in the workplace is required owing to the…
Abstract
Purpose
Teleworking, working from home and flexible work have gained popularity over the last few years. A shift in policies and practices in the workplace is required owing to the COVID-19 pandemic accelerating current trends in work-from-everywhere (WFE) research. This article presents a systematic literature review of WFE research from 1990 to early 2023 to understand the transformation of the field.
Design/methodology/approach
The Web of Science database was used to conduct this review based on rigorous bibliometric and network analysis techniques. The prominence of the research studied using SPAR-4-SLR and a collection of bibliometric techniques on selected journal articles, reviews and early access articles. Performance and keyword co-occurrence analysis form the premise of cluster analysis. The content analysis of recently published papers revealed the driving and restraining forces that help define and operationalize the concept of WFE.
Findings
The major findings indicate that the five established and accelerated trends from cluster analysis are COVID-19 and the pandemic, telework(ing), remote working, work from home and well-being and productivity. Driving and restraining forces identified through content analysis include technological breakthroughs, work–life integration challenges, inequality in the distribution of jobs, gender, shifts in industry and sector preferences, upskilling and reskilling and many more have been published post-COVID in the restraining forces category of WFE.
Practical implications
A key contribution of this pioneering study of “work from everywhere” is the linking of the bibliometric trends of the past three decades to the influencing and restraining factors during the pandemic. This study illustrates how WFE could be perceived differently post-COVID, which is of great concern to practitioners and future researchers.
Originality/value
A wide range of publications on WFE and multiple synonyms can create confusion if a systematic and effective system does not classify and associate them. This study uses both bibliometric and scientometric analyses in the context of WFE using systematic literature review (SLR) methods.
Details
Keywords
Davit Marikyan, Savvas Papagiannidis, Omer F. Rana and Rajiv Ranjan
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has had a big impact on organisations globally, leaving organisations with no choice but to adapt to the new reality of remote…
Abstract
Purpose
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has had a big impact on organisations globally, leaving organisations with no choice but to adapt to the new reality of remote work to ensure business continuity. Such an unexpected reality created the conditions for testing new applications of smart home technology whilst working from home. Given the potential implications of such applications to improve the working environment, and a lack of research on that front, this paper pursued two objectives. First, the paper explored the impact of smart home applications by examining the factors that could contribute to perceived productivity and well-being whilst working from home. Second, the study investigated the role of productivity and well-being in motivating the intention of remote workers to use smart home technologies in a home-work environment in the future.
Design/methodology/approach
The study adopted a cross-sectional research design. For data collection, 528 smart home users working from home during the pandemic were recruited. Collected data were analysed using a structural equation modelling approach.
Findings
The results of the research confirmed that perceived productivity is dependent on service relevance, perceived usefulness, innovativeness, hedonic beliefs and control over environmental conditions. Perceived well-being correlates with task-technology fit, service relevance, perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, attitude to smart homes, innovativeness, hedonic beliefs and control over environmental conditions. Intention to work from a smart home-office in the future is dependent on perceived well-being.
Originality/value
The findings of the research contribute to the organisational and smart home literature, by providing missing evidence about the implications of the application of smart home technologies for employees' perceived productivity and well-being. The paper considers the conditions that facilitate better outcomes during remote work and could potentially be used to improve the work environment in offices after the pandemic. Also, the findings inform smart home developers about the features of technology which could improve the developers' application in contexts beyond home settings.
Details
Keywords
This study explored how organizational leaders at different hierarchical levels may communicatively enhance employees' health and well-being. Drawing on interdisciplinary…
Abstract
Purpose
This study explored how organizational leaders at different hierarchical levels may communicatively enhance employees' health and well-being. Drawing on interdisciplinary research, it proposed a model that connects health-oriented leadership communication at supervisory and executive levels with remote workers' self-care and stress levels during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Design/methodology/approach
Data collected through a survey of 363 full-time United States (US) employees were analyzed to test the model.
Findings
Results showed health-oriented communication at the two leadership levels directly influenced employees' self-care, which in turn reduced their stress levels. Further, executive leaders' health-oriented leadership communication indirectly impacted remote workers' self-care through its positive association with supervisors' health-oriented leadership communication.
Practical implications
This study offers much-needed guidelines for executive leaders, supervisors and communication practitioners seeking to meet employees' growing expectations for a healthy work environment in today's post-pandemic era.
Originality/value
Although the literature has established organizational leadership as a vital determinant for a healthy workforce, few studies have explored leaders' health-specific communication to enhance employee health. This study is the first to conceptualize health-oriented leadership communication at dual hierarchical levels and uncover its influence on employees. The results suggested the importance of health-oriented leadership communication across hierarchical levels in building a healthy workplace.
Details