Reintroducing technology to the coworking debate: prospects and problematics

Abstract

The paper selectively overviews extant research on coworking in order to illustrate: i) the role assigned to technology in coworking settings; and ii) how a more comprehensive account of technology could provide a richer interpretation of the future of work. Drawing on the framework originally proposed by Orlikowski and Iacono (2001), the article identifies current themes and trends in the coworking debate. The main finding is that the role of ICTs (Information and Communication Technologies) is not only under-represented, but that two key elements are noticeably absent from the discourse: the autonomy-control linkage and the temporal-spatial configuration of work. The paper illuminates those areas of the coworking puzzle in which new politics of time and space call for further investigation, positing that the scholarly spotlight needs to retrain on the role of technology.