Browsing by Subject "Individual"

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Communication and collaboration technology use at the digital workplace : antecedents, use processes, and consequences
(2021) Schoch, Manfred; Gimpel, Henner
Our world is becoming more and more digital and interconnected. Particularly new communication and collaboration technologies have changed the way we go about our daily life and work. Several technological and social developments are the driving forces for this change. On the one hand, technological advancements, such as portable devices, fast infrastructure, and constantly available software applications, transform the way employees communicate, collaborate, and transfer knowledge. On the other hand, social developments, such as an increase in knowledge-intense jobs and a workforce that has grown accustomed to increasingly modern and innovative technology from their private lives, contribute to the development. Further, during the COVID-19 pandemic, digital work and the use of communication and collaboration technology has increased unlike anything seen before. It is the organizations’ responsibility to care for their employees and leave no one behind in this transformation process of work as we know it. Yet, the management of increasingly complex portfolios of digital technologies, comprised of privately-owned and business-owned components, confronts individuals, IT departments, and management with challenges. To address them, organizations and individuals need to broaden their understanding of how and why employees use digital technologies and learn about the associated outcomes. Information Systems research has long been concerned with understanding digital technology use, which is among the most researched topics of the discipline. Research results on technology use have been summarized along the three categories antecedents, use process, and outcomes Antecedents describe factors that influence use. Insights into use processes provide us with details of how technology is used in practice. Use outcomes comprise different factors that can be positively or negatively affected by using technology, such as performance or stress. Within the field, a subset of studies has specifically focused on communication and collaboration technology. Yet, in light of the rise in ubiquitous digital work and the challenges that come with it, further investigation into this subject is necessary. This dissertation aims at providing novel insights into the use of communication and collaboration technology for organizations and individuals across the three categories: antecedents, use processes, and outcomes. In Chapter 2, this dissertation deals with important antecedents of use decisions of communication and collaboration technology. Chapter 2.1 does so by identifying factors that drive the choice of digital technologies in the context of knowledge transfer. Chapter 2.2 analyzes rationales for using privately-owned technology for business purposes based on a risk-benefit perspective. Chapter 3 analyzes individual use processes of communication and collaboration technology in more detail using digital trace data and user interviews. Different heterogeneous user roles are derived from the data in Chapter 3.1. Second, user behavior over time and the effect of external events on such behavior are examined (Chapter 3.2). Chapter 4 presents insights on outcomes of use behavior, particularly adverse outcomes. Insights are provided on the role of individual appraisal in the relationship between communication and collaboration technology use and associated stress (Chapter 4.1). Second, outcomes of the use of mixed IT portfolios comprised of privately-owned and business-owned components are investigated (Chapter 4.2). In summation, this dissertation contributes to the rich body of knowledge on technology use. It broadens our understanding of why communication and collaboration technologies are used, how they are used, and what consequences arise from their use. Thus, insights are provided to practitioners on how to manage technology use in a human-centered way while considering the risks of technology use and reaping its multifaceted benefits. The results of this dissertation may inspire future research on a topic that is potentially more relevant today than ever before.
Digitalization of the individual : consequences, design, and behavior
(2021) Waldmann, Daniela; Gimpel, Henner
In the past decades, digitalization has increasingly influenced our daily lives and habits in almost all areas and has even become indispensable for individuals, organizations, and society. The interactions between individuals and organizations have changed significantly as digitalization extends the boundaries of organizations to the point at which it affects individuals. Consequently, new research efforts and better understanding are essential to understand how the behavior of individuals is affected by the use of digital technologies, how customers’ demands change, and how the purchasing process of organizations needs to be adapted. Currently, the literature on digital transformation is mainly treating the organizational perspective. Nevertheless, organizations should not neglect the individual perspective as it is essential to understand customer needs and their consequences affected by digital technologies. Matt et al. (2019)1 present a holistic research framework with three research perspectives for the digitalization of the individual. This framework encompasses the behavior of individuals, the design of information systems, and the consequences that digitalization entails. Additionally, this research framework suggests that a digitized individual can take on different roles. The dissertation uses this framework of Matt et al. (2019)1 to structure and classify the covered contents and research objectives. The aim of this dissertation is to contribute to a comprehensive overview for organizations to understand their customers’ concerns regarding digital technologies, which design options they have to address these concerns, and how it influences their behavior to realize the potential of the technologies or reduce their harms. Therefore, this work applies pluralistic methodological approaches (qualitative methods, e.g., semi-structured interviews and qualitative content analysis, and quantitative methods, e.g., quantitative decision models and data collection from online questionnaires). With that, the dissertation provides novel insights for organizations to better implement digital technologies by regarding the consequences for individuals and the behavior of individuals. First, to contribute to an understanding of the negative consequences digitalization can bring along for individuals, part A of this dissertation presents two research articles that focus on the concerns of individuals. The research papers P1 and P2 show in two different domains what individuals are concerned about when using digital technologies and what prevents individuals from using them. Therefore, this dissertation presents knowledge about the fears and concerns of the individuals have and offers starting points to develop responsible and transparent digital technologies that address the concerns of the individuals. Second, to contribute to design approaches for information systems that enable organizations to increase customer satisfaction with digital products and services, part B presents design approaches that organizations can use to address individuals’ perceived consequences and change their behavior using digital technologies. Both research papers in part B present quantitative decision models as decision support for organizations. This dissertation offers two design approaches that provide organizations with information on designing technologies to serve digitized individuals and foster them better to make well-founded decisions when introducing digital technologies. Third, to contribute to the understanding of why and how individuals behave in certain ways and how this behavior can be influenced, Part C examines the behavior of individuals when using digital technologies. Research paper P5 develops a metric to better explore the privacy paradox. With that, this dissertation offers a basis, especially to researchers and individuals, to prevent unwanted behavior when using digital technologies. To sum up, this dissertation contributes to scientific knowledge in research on the digitalization of the individual and thus addresses a subject of fundamental importance in this digital age. The models and approaches developed in this dissertation explore ways to improve conditions for the digitized individual at all three research perspectives with equal regard for the individual as itself and the individual as a customer.
Individual information systems : design, use, and a negative outcome in the business and private domain
(2021) Lanzl, Julia; Gimpel, Henner
Digitalization increasingly changes individuals’ business and private lives. Today, individuals build and use ever more complex individual information systems (IIS) composed of privately-owned and business-owned components. The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated this development since individuals were forced to work from home due to the social distancing measures associated with the pandemic. The ongoing digitalization comes with great opportunities for individuals, such as higher mobility and flexibility, as well as for organizations, such as lower costs and increased productivity. However, the increased use of IIS at the workplace also bears risks for individuals. Such risks include technostress, which refers to stress that is caused by digital technologies. Technostress, in turn, can lead to health-related issues, reduced productivity, and higher turnover intentions. Thus, to leverage the positive opportunities of digitalization while reducing its associated risk of technostress, a better understanding of IIS, their use, and its effect on technostress, and of individual resources that may affect this relationship is needed. The aim of this dissertation is threefold: First, to contribute to a better understanding of layers of IIS and their different components. Second, since a negative outcome of IIS use can be technostress, this dissertation seeks to advance knowledge on technostress creators and how they can be influenced by IIS use and by various IIS characteristics. Third, this dissertation aims to reveal which resources of individuals may help mitigate technostress. This dissertation uses quantitative methods, such as online surveys and structural equation modeling, and qualitative methods, such as literature analyses and semi-structured interviews. Thereby, the methodological focus lies on quantitative data collection and analysis, while some papers use a mixed-methods approach as a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods. Chapter 2 of this dissertation aims at providing a better understanding of IIS by investigating its various components. Therefore, Chapter 2.1 conceptualizes four layers of IIS: devices, digital identities, relationships, and information. It also considers that IIS have two more or less integrated subsystems: the business information systems with business-owned components and the private information systems with privately-owned components. An empirical validation supports this conceptualization as well as the definition of integration between the two sub-systems on each of the four layers. Chapter 2.2 studies IT consumerization, which refers to the use of private IIS components in the business domain and applies a risk-benefit consideration. The results imply that benefits of consumerization of IT services, such as better functionalities of a private IT service outweigh risks, such as the threat of sanctions for the use of private IT services. Chapter 3 focuses on technostress as a negative outcome of the increased IIS use. Chapter 3.1 analyzes how IT consumerization is related to the technostress creator unreliability of digital technologies. The results reveal a positive relationship between IT consumerization and unreliability and show that unreliability is perceived higher when the IT portfolio integration and the individual’s computer self-efficacy are low. Chapter 3.2 proceeds with studying characteristics of digital technologies and how these are related to technostress. It presents ten characteristics that are associated with at least one technostress creator. Chapter 3.3 extends the concept of technostress and introduces a framework of twelve different technostress creators, reveals four second-order factors underlying the twelve technostress creators, and brings them into relation with work- and health-related effects. Chapter 4 also deals with technostress and investigates resources to mitigate technostress. Chapter 4.1 focuses on organizational measures and finds different relationships of the investigated measures with different technostress creators. While some of the technostress creators can be inhibited by the implementation of organizational measures, others are found to be even intensified by the organizational measures. Chapter 4.2 focuses on social mechanisms that function as technostress inhibitors. Findings differ between technostress creators and the investigated social support dimensions. Furthermore, the results highlight the fact that some of the social support dimensions gain even greater importance in light of increasing telework. In summary, this dissertation provides new insights into IIS and their use, the emergence of technostress in digitalized workplaces, and organizational as well as social mechanisms that help mitigate technostress. Hence, this dissertation supports current efforts in both research and practice to reduce technostress while leveraging the positive opportunities of workplace digitalization.
Navigating the digitalization of individuals as employees, customers, and themselves
(2022) Nüske, Niclas; Gimpel, Henner
Digitalization has long since entered and transformed our professional lives, our interaction with companies, and our private lives. With the progress in digitalization in general and of individuals in particular, both opportunities and challenges arise. Digitalization represents a double-edged sword, with its vast potential on the one end and a number of risks and detrimental effects for individuals, such as technostress, on the other. Individuals need to navigate the opportunities provided by digitalization, as well as its risks, in all areas of their lives. Addressing digitalization in a way that is in the best interest of individuals requires a thorough understanding of developments, challenges, and possible interventions and solutions. Matt et al. (2019) propose a framework for studying the digitalization of individuals, which represents a holistic approach to structure, classify, and position research along different roles of individuals from a comprehensive set of research angles. By applying this framework as a guiding structure, this dissertation aims to advance knowledge for an improved, safer, and more deliberate navigation of digitalization for individuals in their roles as employees, customers, and themselves from the research angles design, behavior, and consequences. While building on and integrating qualitative research methods such as literature analysis and expert interviews, this dissertation mainly relies on the collection of empirical data and their quantitative analysis. This comprises several small- and large-scale surveys and field experiments, as well as analytical methods such as structural equation modeling, regression analysis, and cluster analysis. Chapter 2 of this dissertation discusses the digitalization of individuals in their role as employees. Chapter 2.1 covers workplace design in terms of equipment with digital workplace technologies (DWTs) and the user behavior of employees. It determines which DWTs exist and are used by individual employees in a comprehensive and structured fashion. Contributing to a deeper understanding of workplace digitalization, chapter 2.1 also demonstrates and elaborates how this overview of DWTs represents a basis for individualized digital work design as well as adequate interventions. Chapter 2.2 deals with the consequences of DWT user behavior. It focuses on the relationship between workplace digitalization, the negative consequence technostress, and possible countermeasures termed “technostress inhibitors.” By enabling a more detailed understanding of the underlying mechanisms as well as evaluating the effects of countermeasures, chapter 2.2 discusses the overall finding that workplace digitalization increases technostress. The dynamics of its different components and technostress inhibitors, however, require individual consideration at a more detailed level, as the interrelationships are not consistently intuitive. In chapter 3, the focus changes to individuals in their role as customers. As a response to increasing data collection by companies as well as increasing data privacy concerns of customers, chapter 3.1 focuses on the identification of a comprehensive list of data privacy measures that address these concerns. Furthermore, it is identified that the implementation of some of these measures would lead to increased customer satisfaction, demonstrating that there is an upside to data privacy for companies and that mutually beneficial outcomes for both involved parties are conceivable. Chapter 3.2 analyzes whether and how digital nudging can be applied to influence customers’ online shopping behavior towards the selection of more environmentally sustainable products in online supermarkets and how this influence differs with respect to individual customer characteristics. It determines the digital nudging element “default rules” to be generally effective and “simplification” to be effective among environmentally conscious customers. On a macro level, the findings contribute to a safer environment in which individuals live their lives, while at the individual level, they foster decision-making quality and health. Chapter 4 highlights the digitalization of individuals themselves. Chapter 4.1 deals with the design of a habit-tracking app that offers users autonomy in their goal-directed behavior. It is found that the provision of autonomy enhances well-being. Its exercise improves performance, which in turn positively affects well-being. Chapter 4.1 thus contributes insights into how digital technologies can foster the flourishing of users. As a summary, this dissertation aims to provide research and practice with contributions to a deeper understanding of how individuals as employees, customers, and themselves can successfully navigate digitalization.