Impact of Technology of our Work and Family Lives

Headlines and Hot Spots: Work-Life
Research for the Non-Researcher
Judith Finer Freedman
Judi Casey
Ellen Galinsky

Impact of Technology on our
Work and Family Lives
Judi Casey, WFRN, Director

WWW.AWLP.ORG/FORUM 2012

Work-Life Research

 Tremendous amount of research
 Multi-disciplinary
 Global
 Diverse topics

See slides #20-33 for more Work-Life Research
information at the end of this slide deck.


Technology and Work-Life
How does the use of technology (computers, email,
Internet, cell phones, tablets, and MP3 players)
enhance or disrupt our work and family lives?
Examine:
1. The evolving and future world of work
2. How technology impacts work and blurs
boundaries between home and work
3. Addiction to technology and the inability to
disconnect
4. Impact of technology on attention, focus and
creativity

Evolving World of Work
7 key appliances of the information age
 85% cell phones (96% of 18-29 year olds)
 76% desktop or laptop computers
 47% mp3 players (iPod)
 42% game consoles (parents 64% more likely)
 Tablet computers and e-book readers: (Kindle) and
(iPad) were relatively new arrivals when survey done
 Not only gadgets – Internet and social media

Americans and Their Gadgets (2010): survey of
3,001 American adults (18+)

Evolving World of Work
 55% indicated that the future for the
“hyperconnected” will be positive:
 “…nimble, quick-acting multitaskers who count on the
Internet as their external brain and who approach
problems in a different way from their elders.”
 42% noted negative outcomes:
 “…thirst for instant gratification and quick fixes, a loss

of patience, and a lack of deep-thinking ability.”

2011 survey of 1,021 technology experts on the
Future of the Internet and its impact by 2020

Technology Blurs Boundaries
 10 different mobiles users, 5 “motivated by
mobility” (39% of mobile users) and 5 “stationary
media will do” (remaining 61%)
Mobile Difference, 2009: surveys in 2006 and 2007
on Internet access via mobile phones

 Tradeoffs to technology use: “…benefit of
increased connectivity and flexibility, while
mobiles have added stress and new demands”
Networked Workers, 2008: 2,134 adults in the
continental US

 “Technology permeates American households…”
 Technology allows families to connect when they
are apart
 Friends and extended family too
 Technology keeps families apart when they are
together

Networked Families, 2008: survey 2,252 adults, 18+


 More frequent use of technology (computer, email,
cell phones, Internet) results in:
 More effective at work, greater work load,
increased pace of work demands
 Different devices have different outcomes
Chesley, 2010: data from 2001-2, 2,214 employees

 WFRN working paper (Johnson & Chesley, 2012)
on ICT: 83% report increased productivity, 53%
increased stress levels
(sample from Networked Workers, 2008)


 “More likely to view the Internet as having a positive
impact on their ability to balance their work and home
lives” (more flexibility)
Wajcman et al, 2010: nationally representative sample
of Australian employees

 Use of ICT after hours resulted in more work to family
conflict for both employees AND their significant
other
Boswell & Buchanan (2007): 360 university staff

 More use of mobile email increased feelings of
work overload and had a negative effect on their
family lives
 Feelings of work overload had a negative impact
on organizational commitment
Turel et al., (2011): online survey of 241 mobile email
users in 3 North American organizations

 Eroding boundaries=double-edged sword for
organizations
Available all the Time, 2009 (Nancy Rothbard)

Technology Addiction

 Expected to be responsive and connected 24/7
 Addiction is:
 Linked to our need to feel wanted and important
 How we show that we are dedicated/available
(Carolyn Marvin):
 Perlow, 2009: time off benefits employees and
productivity at BCG
 Detachment from work during non-work hours is
important for employee wellbeing and productivity
Flipping the Switch, 2012

Technology and Attention
 Information overload can make people feel
anxious and powerless
 Multi-taskers produce more stress hormones
 Overload can reduce creativity
 Overload can lower productivity
The Economist, 2011
 Switch tasks every 3 seconds
 Distractions use as much as 28% of the average US
worker's day
 Productivity cost of $650 billion/year
Distracted, 2008

What Some Organizations Are Doing
 Volkswagen(Germany):deactivate emails during
non-work hours. Can only receive email ½ hr
before and ½ hour after the work day
 Deutsche TeleKom: pledged to not expect
workers to read email after business hours at
certain points during the week
 Lloyds Bank (UK) banned employee travel
during the 3rd week of every month
 Google installed energy pods for short breaks

Flipping the Switch, 2012

What Can Your Organization Do?
 Employer Guidelines?
 Employer Policies?
 Provide Employee Training?


Bibliography (1)

 Agger, B. (2011). iTime: Labor and life in a smartphone era. Time & Society, 20(1), 119-136.

 Allen, D. (2012, March 17) When office technology overwhelms, get organized. Retrieved from:

http://nyti.ms/FWz32g

 Anderson, J., & Rainie, L. (2012, February). Future of the internet: Millennials will benefit and suffer due to their

hyperconnected lives. Pew Charitable Trust: Washington, DC. Retrieved from:

http://www.pewinternet.org/Reports/2012/Hyperconnected-lives.aspx

 Boswell, W. & Olson-Buchanan. (2007). The use of communication technologies: The role of work attitudes and

work-life conflict. Journal of Management, 33(4), 592-610.

 Chesley, N. (2010). Technology use and employee assessments of work effectiveness, workload and pace of life.

Information, Communication and Society, (13)4, 485-514.


Bibliography (2)

 Friedman, Stewart (2008). Total leadership: Be a better leader, have a richer life. Boston, MA: Harvard Business

School Publishing.

 Horrigan, J. (2009, March). The mobile difference. Pew Charitable Trust: Washington, DC. Retrieved from:

http://pewinternet.org/Reports/2009/5-The-Mobile-Difference--Typology.aspx

 Jackson, M. (2008). Distracted: The erosion of attention and the coming Dark Age. Amherst, NY: Prometheus.

 Jackson, M. (2008). May we have your attention, please? Retrieved from: http://buswk.co/18dm3O

 Kennedy, T. et al. (2008, October). Networked families. Pew Charitable Trust: Washington, DC. Retrieved from:

http://pewinternet.org/~/media//Files/Reports/2008/PIP_Networked_Family.pdf

 Knowledge@Wharton. (2009, September 30). Available all the time: Etiquette for the Social Networking Age.

Retrieved from: http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article.cfm?articleid=2349


Bibliography (3)

 Knowledge@Wharton. (2012, February 15). Flipping the switch: Who is responsible for getting employees to take

a break? Retrieved from: http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article.cfm?articleid=2941

 Madden, M. & Jones, S. (2008, September). Networked workers. Pew Charitable Trust: Washington, DC.

Retrieved from: http://pewinternet.org/Reports/2008/Networked-Workers.aspx

 Perlow, L. & Porter, J. (2009) Making time off predictable &- required. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved from:

http://hbr.org/2009/10/making-time-off-predictable-and-required/ar/1

 Perlow, L. (forthcoming). Sleeping with your smartphone: How to break the 24/7 habit and change the way you

work. Boston, MA: Harvard Business Review Press.

 Schwartz, T. (2012, March 14). The magic of doing one thing at a time. Retrieved from HBR Blog Network:

http://bit.ly/FWyXIf


Bibliography (4)

 Smith, A. (2010, October). Americans and their gadgets. Pew Charitable Trust: Washington, DC. Retrieved from:

http://pewinternet.org/Reports/2010/Gadgets.aspx

 The Economist. (2011, June). Too much information: how to cope with data overload. Retrieved from:

http://www.economist.com/node/18895468

 Turel, O., Serenko, A., & Bontis, N. (2011). Family and work-related consequences of addiction to organizational

pervasive technologies. Information and Management, doi:10.1016/j.im.2011.01.004

 Wajcman, J. et al (2010). Enacting virtual connections between work and home. Journal of Sociology, 46(3), 257-

275.


Work-Life Research

Tremendous amount of research

 Work and Family Researchers Network
Conference:
https://workfamily.sas.upenn.edu/content/conference

 826 individual presenters
 785 presentations
 132 sessions


Work-Life Research
Multi-disciplinary*
 Sociology: 27%  Women/Gender studies: 4%
 Psychology: 14%  Law: 3%
 Management/HR: 12%  Public hlth/Healthcare: 3%
 Business: 9%  Communications: 1%
 Corporate/Private: 6%  Education: 1%
 Public policy/Political sci: 6%  Anthropology: 1%
 Work/Family Specialists: 6% *Based on department/affiliation of
 Economics: 4% presenter, not available for all

 Social Work: 4% participants


Work-Life Research

 Global: approximately 30% international with
30+ countries represented, including:


Work-Life Research

 Australia  Germany
 Austria  Ghana
 Canada  India
 Chile  Ireland
 China  Israel
 Cyprus  Italy
 Czech Republic  Japan
 Finland  Kenya
 France  New Zealand


Work-Life Research

 Nigeria  Spain
 Pakistan  Sweden
 Philippines  Switzerland
 Portugal  The Netherlands
 Singapore  United Arab Emirates
 Slovenia  United Kingdom
 South Africa  USA


Work-Life Research

Diverse topics reflected in a sample of sessions
listed below (# of session on program)

Culture (16)
 Work-Family Culture and Work Performance: Does a
Supportive Culture Enhance Performance?
 Understanding the Dynamic among Organizational Culture,
Employee Characteristics and Employee Use of Work-Life
Initiatives


Work-Life Research

Child, Elder, Dependent Care (47)
 Work-Family, Time and Parental Shares of
Childcare in Five Countries
 Improving Work-Life Integration for Families of
Children and Youth with Mental Health Disorders


Work-Life Research

Flexible Work Arrangements, Telework, Time (22)
 Love in the Time of Liberalization: Gender,
Power, and Marriage Among White-Collar
Workers in India
 “I’ll finish this at home”: How Boundary Flexibility
and Permeability Influence Work-family
Outcomes
 Workplace Flexibility Within Selected Industrial
Sectors, Organizational Sizes, and Employee
Populations

Work-Life Research

Diversity/Inclusion (29)
 How Americans Think and Feel About Families
 The Work/Non-Work Experience: What about
Gay Homosexuals? An Explorative Study of Gay
Men in Sweden


Work-Life Research

Fathers/Dads (14)
 Fatherhood and Marital Relationships in Families
of Combat Officers in the IDF (Israel)
 “You Try to be Superman and You Don’t Have to
Be”: Gay Adoptive Dads’ Challenges with
Work/Family Balance
 How Companies Accommodate Fathers’ Taking
Parental Leave – Perspectives of HR Managers
in Sweden


Work-Life Research

Gender (74)
 Intensive Work Commitment among Executive
Men: Cultural Inheritance and Contemporary
Meanings
 Gender Differences in Specialization Choices,
and Career Advancements of Japanese Lawyers
 How High-Performing Women Sustain Strong
Job Performance While Raising Families:
Insights from Field Research


Work-Life Research

Recession (16)
 Parent Reports of the Recession's Effect on
Young Children and Their Families in Rural
Communities
 Work-life Balance in Times of Economic Crisis: A
Longitudinal Study in a Dutch Consultancy Firm
 How do Families react to the Economic Crisis?
Families’ Expenses on Early Childhood
Education in Spain over the Period 2006-2009


Work-Life Research
Wellbeing, Wellness, Health (25)
 Solitary Time in a Harried Society: The Association
Between Solitary Time and Mental Health in the
Netherlands
 Good to be Back Home: Work Travelers and Spouses’
Daily Reports of Physical and Psychological Well-Being
 The Effect of Leaders’ Work-Family Conflict on Followers’

Depression: An Examination of Crossover Processes
 Uplifts Over the Weekend and Work Performance: The

Mediating Role of Positive Mood


Work-Life Research
Workplace (43)
 The Customized Well-Being Index: Developing an
Understanding of Your Employee Population and Tracking
Change Over Time
 Antecedents and Organizational Consequences of Family
Supportive Supervisor Behavior: An Empirical Investigation
 Work/Family Reconciliation: Corporate Management, Family
Policies, and Gender Equality in the Finnish Context
 Is Work-Life Balance Training Effective? An Evaluation of a
Self-Learning Kit for Employees


Impact of Technology of our Work and Family Lives

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