Which Telework? Defining and Testing a Taxonomy of Technology-Mediated Work at a Distance

Abstract

Telework has been the subject of study for longer than a quarter century, yet its causes and consequences are poorly understood. A key reason for this shortcoming is that scholars define and use the concept in many different ways. This article presents a taxonomy of telework, distinguishing among three distinct forms: fixed-site telework, mobile telework, and flexiwork. It then offers a series of research questions about the associations among these three types of telework and a variety of other factors. Using data collected in a national telephone survey of more than 1,200 U.S. computer-using workers, the authors empirically demonstrate that the three types of teleworkers are unique along key dimensions regarding their individual characteristics, organizational and technological contexts, and the impacts on their work.

‘Fit’ for telework’? Cross-cultural variance and task-control explanations in organizations’ formal telework practices

“…Although we acknowledged that telework comprises multiple dimensions (cf., Garrett & Danziger, 2007), we focused on the level of formal telework practices in organizations, since access to and support for telework cannot be taken for granted (Bailey & Kurland, 2002). Consequently, no attention was paid to how organizations and individual workers actually shape the telework practice.…”

“…Consequently, no attention was paid to how organizations and individual workers actually shape the telework practice. Future research could examine the management of 'telework risk' taking into account variatons in telework locations, technologies, contracts, and time spent away from the central office (cf., Garrett & Danziger, 2007).…”

“…Telework practices comprise multiple dimensions (cf. Garrett & Danziger, 2007): (1) the use of various work locations (i.e. the central office, home, or at third places, such as satellite offices); (2) the importance and types of ICT use; (3) the contractual relationship between the organization and the teleworker (i.e.…”

Laptops in the Living Room: Mobile Technologies and the Divide between Work and Private Time among Interactive Agency Workers

“…Telework should be recognized as an extension of office-based work. Garrett and Danziger (2007) find that there is indeed a subset of occasional teleworkers they call "flexiworkers," who differ from fixed-site teleworkers, who work in a single site that is not the corporate office. Flexiworkers work in the office, at home, and on the road.…”

New technologies, work and parenting: New forms of work flexibility and how they affect men’s involvement in child care

“…Sin embargo, conviene recordar que la implantación de TIC en la organización del trabajo no es la única condición para que se den ETF, ni siquiera es necesaria. Es más, sin desdeñar su importancia, el presente estudio explora precisamente factores que otros autores han considerado determinantes en la opción por el trabajo flexible, como las políticas de la organización, la opción personal del trabajador, o las micropolíticas, entendidas como el apoyo que los trabajadores perciben tener de superiores o compañeros de trabajo, independientemente de las políticas formales de conciliación de la vida personal y laboral existentes en la organización (Garrett y Danziger, 2007, Palkovitz, 2002). …”