L9: Technology & Boundary Management Flashcards
(34 cards)
what are new ways of working (nww)?
- no fixed work schedules
- no fixed workspaces
- faciliated by new media technologies
-> work design in which employees can control the timing & place of their work while being supported by electronic communication
what are flexible work arrangements?
- flextime = control of working hours (adjusted start & end times, compressed work weeks, etc)
- flexplace = policies that enable employees to complete their work from locations outside the physical workplace (remote work, working from different company locations)
how do flexible work arrangements affect employee health?
- overall flexible work arrangements (time & place mixed) are positively related to physical health, neg to absenteeism & somatic symptoms & not sig related to exercise
- the form of flexibility (time place) does not moderate the relationship betwseen flexible work arrangements & physical health
- flextime was associated w experiencing less somatic symptoms than general flexible practices
what is telepressure?
preoccupation & urge
thinking about info & communications technologies (ICT) messages and experiencing an overwhelming urge to respond
- asynchornous vs synchronous communication
what is asynchronous communication vs synchronous communication?
- asynchronous: mail, texts, notification
- synchronous: phone calls, videocall
what is psychological detachment?
the strategy of not thinking about work & work related events / being able to mentally disengage in from work during off-work time
ability to unwind
what is the effort recovery model?
- psych & physiological systems activated during the day return to a baseline value during a break from work IF the conditions are optimal
which effect does telepressure / work related smartphone use have on employee health & well being?
- effect on prioritization -> failure to take recovery periods between tasks
- psych detachmenet: predicts emotional exhaustion
what is van laethems RQ on smartphone use?
how daily work related smartphone use (during & after work hours) affects:
1. psych detachement after work
2. work engagement during work
3. and how workplace telepressure influences these relationships
what is van laethems hypotheses on telepressure & smartphone use?
workplace telepressure: main predictor, increases:
1. daily smartphone use after & during work
2. the relationship between daily smartphone use after work & psych detachment (worsen detachment when using smartphone after hours)
2. the relationship between daily smarpthone use during work and work engagement (worsense work engagement when using a smartphone at work)
what was van laethems method for studying smartphone use at work?
- 116 professionals as participatans
- duration: 5 workdays (diary study)
- measures:
- pre study: telepressure, segmentation preference (wanting to keep work/home separate), workload
- daily: smartphone use (during/after work), work engagement, and detachment
what were Van laethems results on smartphone use?
- H1 supported: high telepressure predicts more frequent smarpthone use both after & during work
- workplace telepressure was not directly related to work engagement and psych detachment from work during free time
- H2 rejected: telepressure does not directly influence relationship between smarthpone use after work & detachment. more smartphone use after work -> less detachment regardless of telepressure, so smartphone use alone is the problem, not just pressure to respond
- H3 partially supported: work related smartphone use during work was neg related to work engagement, but only for participants who reported very high levels of workplace telepressure. for others smartphone use during work was not directly related to daily work engagement
what were the conclusions from Van laethems study on telepressure & smartphone use?
- smartphone use after work hurts your ability to unwind (psych detachment), even if u dont feel telepressure
- during work, your engagement suffers only if ur feeling pressured to respond quickly
- employees who prefer to separate work/home were actually better at detaching
what are personal predictors of telepressure?
- conscientiousness
- public self consciousness (“im concerned about the way i present myself”)
work environment factors
what are work environment predictors of telepressure?
- techno overload (“i am forced by this tech to do more work than i can handle”)
- descriptive norms (“most ppl in my workgroup respond quickly”)
- prescriptive norms (“im expected to respond asap”)
what is the relationship between telepressure, stress, health, and recovery?
telepressure -> burnout: physical & cognitive (i feel tired + my thinking process is slow)
- increases absenteeism
- deteriorates sleep quality
what are practical implications of research on telepressure?
orgs should help employees set boundaries, including setting orgs norms and policies around technology responsiveness
what were Barbers key findings on telepressures effect on wellbeing & recovery?
- telepressure -> more after hours tech use
- telepressure -> poorere recovery (lower detachment, poorer sleep, higher exhaustion)
- tech use itself isnt the villain, telepressure is
what was Barbers RQ on telepressure?
how workplace telepressure is related to
- workplace tech use outside work hours
- employee recovery experiences like: psych detacment, sleep quality, emotional exhaustion
what are 3 indicators of recovery after work?
- psych detachment: mentally switching off from work
- sleep quality: how restful & uninterrupted your sleep is
- emotional exhaustion: feeling mentally drained or burnt out
what are boundary management tactics?
unofficial techniques & activities employees may use to segment their work & nonwork roles
what are some examples of boundary management tactics?
- physical space tactics (“i use a dedicated workspace to do my work”)
- digital space tactics (related to use of tech to manage work & nonwork spaces “i use separate devices for work vs pleasure”)
- temporal tactics (relating to controlling ones work time “i set times in my calendar for start and end of my work day”)
- communication tactics w private contacts (“i avoid interacting w ppl from my private life while working”)
- communication tactics w work contacts (“i share expectation about when & where i work w colleagues)
how are boundary management tactics related to age? generally results from Scheibes research on boundary management tactics
- age is pos related w BMT - older employees engage more in BM (particularly communicataoin tactics (private & work contacts), & physical space tactics, and temporal tactics: clearn comm about availability, structured workspace & structured work hours)
- ppl who used more boundary tactics reported a better boundary fit
- better boundary fit = well being (lower work home conflict, higher job satisfaction, lower emotinoal exhaustion)
- no direct age well being link (it works through boundary tactic use & fit)
what is meant by “boundary fit”
how well a persons preferred boundary management matches their actual experience
