SOCIAL AND COMMUNITY INFORMATICS: HUMANS ON THE NET

Social and Community Informatics As a discipline, informatics has developed over the years from a focus on data processing and software development towards an emphasis on people’s use of technology and its impact on their working and private lives. Gunilla Bradley, an internationally recognized expert in this field, has been researching in this area for many years, and here authors this indispensable volume on the topic. Providing a broad and deep analysis of the relationship between people, ICT, society and the environment, Bradley examines the impact on and change in organizations and individuals, both in the workplace and in the home. Taking a firmly humanistic view, she also looks to the future as ICT increasingly transforms and impacts on our lives, and explores issues including stress, power, competence and psychosocial communication. She proposes normative research questions for the future, and presents actions to achieve the good ICT society. This thought-provoking book will be of interest to students and academics studying social informatics, computing and MIS as well as organizational behaviour, sociology, psychology and communications. Research-based and cross-disciplinary, Bradley’s book is a valuable, and topical, resource. Gunilla Bradley is Professor in Informatics at the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH), Sweden

Social and Community Informatics Humans on the Net

Gunilla Bradley

First published 2006 by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada by Routledge 270 Madison Ave, New York, NY 10016 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business

This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2007. “To purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor & Francis or Routledge’s collection of thousands of eBooks please go to www.eBookstore.tandf.co.uk.” © 2006 Gunilla Bradley All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Social and community informatics : humans on the net / Gunilla Bradley. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. 1. Information society. 2. Information technology—Social aspects. 3. Human-computer interaction. I. Title. HM851.B73 2006 303.48'33—dc22 2005031264 ISBN 0-203-94636-7 Master e-book ISBN ISBN10: 0-415-38184-3 (hbk) ISBN10: 0-415-38185-1 (pbk) ISBN13: 978-0-415-38184-0 (hbk) ISBN13: 978-0-415-38185-7 (pbk)

Contents

List of illustrations Preface List of abbreviations 1 Introduction 1.1 Why did I write this book? How did the work on it start? Why now? To whom? 1.2 Why my keen interest in social and psychological aspects of computerization? 1.3 Research engagement over time and recognitions – class journey and techno journey 1.4 Summary 1.5 Summary of Humans on the Net 1.6 Network of Excellence 1.7 New insights in society and harvest time for research 2 Theoretical perspective on the psychosocial and organizational life environment and ICT 2.1 Theoretical model on computer technology and work life 2.2 The Convergence Model – theoretical models revisited 2.3 How do the theories presented relate to other theories on the information society? 2.4 Future research related to the models 3 Information and communication technology (ICT) – past, present and future 3.1 Computer technology and its development 3.2 ICT global key areas

Contents

viii x xiii 1 1 5 7 16 16 27 28

29 30 52 58 61

63 63 64

vi • Contents

4 ICT and humans – ongoing changes in working life 4.1 Introduction 4.2 Continuous changes occur in the design of organization, work and management in the Net era 4.3 Networking – psychosocial communication becomes a key issue 4.4 Stress – with ICT our tempo is increasing 4.5 Allocation issues – knowledge transfer – global villages 4.6 Research 4.7 Concluding remarks 5 Home of the future and ICT – integration of professional and private roles 5.1 Introduction 5.2 Background and purpose 5.3 Problems 5.4 Methods 5.5 Hypotheses 5.6 Human needs and behaviour 5.7 Convergence between human needs and technology applications 5.8 Social trends 5.9 Our private role 5.10 Summary: home of the future – south-east Asia 5.11 Home of the future and ICT – Japan 5.12 Summary and conclusions 6 ICT and humans – ongoing changes in communities 6.1 Introduction 6.2 The project ‘Computers in the Bakery’ 6.3 Purpose and problems 6.4 Results from action research and the village eight years later – some snapshots 6.5 Comments and discussion 6.6 Community informatics in progress 6.7 Experiences from the national and international levels – new openings for rural areas and for communities 6.8 Comments and discussions

72 72 73 80 83 84 89 93

95 95 96 97 98 98 101 102 106 111 116 117 126 130 130 132 135 136 140 142

143 151

Contents • vii

7 ICT and pychosocial communication 7.1 Introduction 7.2 Organizational design and management (ODAM) – the communication circle 7.3 Psychosocial communication during microcomputerization 7.4 Psychosocial communication during the use of applied AI and knowledge-based systems 7.5 Psychosocial communication in the Net era 7.6 Towards sustainability – action strategies for collaboration in distributed environments 7.7 Sustainability and communication/collaboration in the ICT society

152 152

8 ICT and stress 8.1 What is stress? 8.2 Stress and the ‘paper office’ 8.3 Stress and the batch-processing environment 8.4 Stress and display terminals 8.5 Stress in the Net era 8.6 Stress and health (and ICT) 8.7 Conclusions

172 172 179 180 182 189 193 194

9 From theory to actions: how to achieve the good ICT society – a tree of action 9.1 The national level 9.2 The individual level: its importance 9.3 The psychosocial work environment: requirements and preferences 9.4 Action at the corporate level 9.5 Roles 9.6 Actions regarding stress 9.7 Towards an information society for all 9.8 From an information society for all to quality of life for all 9.9 Concluding remarks Appendices References Index

157 159 160 161 168 170

197 199 204 205 208 208 213 217 226 233 237 251 259

Illustrations

Figures 2.1 Theoretical model on computer technology and work environment 2.2 The relationship between objective and subjective work environments 2.3 Intervening variables 2.4 A chart of the indices – empirical ‘model’ related to the theoretical models 2.5 Convergence Model for ICT and psychosocial life environment

List of illustrations

31 32 40 48–9 55

4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5

Focus of research: Interplay ICT – Humans – Society Crocheted tablecloths Core workforce in the flexible company is decreasing Future ICT applications are like seeds … … some will grow into beautiful flowers

73 75 76 94 94

5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.7

The ‘home of the future’ model Model for structuring the interviews of the study Activities in the home The virtual home Key players that drive the development of ICT in homes in Japan Model of scenarios for the impact of ICT on home activities Smart Home Navigator

119 122 129

6.1

Grandmother’s bakery

134

7.1 7.2

The Communication Circle Sustainability as convergence

158 170

8.1

Stress – overstimulation (too much) – understimulation (too little)

174

97 99 102 114

List of illustrations • ix

8.2 8.3

Relationship between computer technology, work environment and stress Stress in the ‘paper office’

176 180

9.1 9.2

Action strategies in Sweden – an overview The Convergence Model and role formation

198 211

Tables 2.1 Summary of data acquisition and processing methods used in the RAM project

42

Preface

Preface

I am writing this foreword in Palo Alto, California. I am spending some weeks in the USA working on this book and participating in two conferences – Organizational Design and Management (ODAM) in Maui and Human Computer Interaction International (HCII) in Las Vegas. To make these two international events possible, I had invitations to stay with friends and colleagues from my time as visiting professor at Stanford University in 1986 and 1991. This part of the world, as well as Europe and Sweden and lately parts of Asia, has inspired me in my research on Information and Communication Technology (ICT). The book is also a kind of follow-up study, looking at my own way of working. In 1986 there was no Internet in practical use at the School of Education at Stanford, nor were there networks at home, wireless (radio-frequency or infrared) personal communications, ubiquitous technology with embedded and invisible computing power, mobile phones, memory sticks, web technology, etc. At that time, there was a hot debate on campus about AI and the Star Wars initiative. Now, there are intelligent robots in industry talking with each other in their own language. Every book has a long story and a short story about how it was born. As a researcher, writing reports is part of the job, but trying to write a book for a broader audience requires courage, time, hard work and inspiration. At my technical university, it is not common to write books, at least not in computer science and IT-related disciplines; short reports and articles from laboratory studies are most common, and advising doctoral students plays a big part. The speed of research is making the whole ICT research world rather stressed, at a time when global competition is the god. Technological progress is hard to keep up with; when the date for publishing arrives, the description of the technology is often out of date.

Preface • xi

This book has two main sources. One is the book Computers and the Psychosocial Work Environment (1989), where I first published internationally my theories on computerization and changes in work life, and where the toolbox for evaluating ICT and the psychosocial work environment was presented. The measures had been tested in three larger companies representing the main periods of ICT history. The other main source is the book Humans on the Net, which originally started as documentation of a workshop that I organized in Brussels in 1999, related to Sweden’s chairmanship of the EU. Distinguished scholars from many countries contributed, and the edited volume appeared in 2001. But most inspiring have been conferences, and informal conversations at the conferences that I have participated in during my years in Sweden and internationally. I have been actively involved in several research communities, such as ODAM within the International Association of Ergonomics, Human Factors and Ergonomics Society (HFES), International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS) and European Conference on Information Systems (ECIS). However, the most important for me have been HCII and the International Federation of Information Processing (IFIP). Receiving the Namur Award in 1997 was important in giving me support and encouragement. In fall 2002, when visiting the British Computer Society as an invited speaker, I went to the headquarters of Routledge. It was some weeks before Christmas, and London’s Oxford Street was packed with shoppers. In spite of Christmas stress, Jacqueline Curthoys at Routledge gave me time for a meeting and I left that meeting with a Christmas gift in advance. I was encouraged to send in my synopsis and fill in a form that the publisher would consider for publication. It took half a year or more and six reviewers’ work before I had a contract in my hand. All comments were important for me: thanks to all of you anonymous reviewers. I have appreciated very much the collaboration with Routledge throughout the work and with Bookcraft’s excellent copy editor, Richard Pickvance. This is also a family-supported book. My husband has supported me practically, sending files when I have been travelling, and served as critical reviewer during my preparation of talks, with endless patience. Coming closer to delivery date, I asked members of my extended family to review certain chapters. Thanks for valuable comments to Linda Bradley, co-writer of Chapter 5 on the home of the future and ICT, and currently working in Tokyo as senior consultant on organizational

xii • Preface

development and management; to Karin Bradley, writing her doctoral thesis at the Royal Institute of Technology; to my daughter-in-law Åsa Wettermark for creative language improvements; and to Eva Jansson, former doctoral student, specializing in collaboration in virtual environments. Comments and suggestions on my book are welcome. Please send messages marked ‘Social Informatics’. Gunilla Bradley Palo Alto and Stockholm

Abbreviations

AI APC CAD CEO CID CIRN CMD ECIS EDP EU FRN GSM HCI HCII HFES HMI HSFR IADIS ICIS ICT IEA IFIP ISP ITPS ITU

List of abbreviations

artificial intelligence Association for Progressive Communication computer-aided design chief executive officer Centrum för användarorienterad IT-design (Centre for useroriented IT design) Community Informatics Research Network Centrum för studium av människan och datorn (Centre for Human–Computer Studies) European Conference on Information Systems electronic data processing European Union Forskningsrådsnämnden (Swedish Delegation for Long-term motivated Research) Groupe Spécial Mobile human–computer interaction Human Computer Interaction International Human Factors and Ergonomics Society human–machine interaction Humanistisk Samhällsvetenskapliga Forskningsrådet (Humanities and Social Sciences Research Council) International Association for Development of the Information Society International Conference on Information Systems information and communication technology International Ergonomics Association International Federation of Information Processing Internet service provider Institutet för Tillväxtpolitiska Studier (Swedish Institute for Growth Policy Studies) International Telecommunication Union

xiv • List of abbreviations

KBS KTH LO MIS NGO OC ODAM OECD P2P PC PDA PPP PTS R&D RAM

RF RFID SACO/SR SIKA SMEs SMS SoC SOHO TCO UN UNESCO UNHCR UNU VC VoIP VR WAN WBC WITFOR WSIS

knowledge-based systems Kungliga Tekniska Högskolan (Royal Institute of Technology) Landsorganisationen (Swedish Trade Union Confederation [for ‘blue-collar’ workers]) management information systems non-governmental organization online community Organizational Design and Management Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development peer-to-peer personal computer personal digital assistant public-private partnership Post och Telestyrelsen (Swedish National Post and Telecom Agency) research and development Rationalization and Work Environment (from Rationaliseringens effekter på arbetsmiljön och arbetsförhållande i några tjänstemannagrupper) radio frequency radio frequency identification Sveriges Akademikers Centralorganisation (Swedish Confederation of Professional Associations) Statens Institut för KommunikationsAnalys (Swedish Institute for Communication Analysis) small and medium enterprises short message service system on a chip small office, home office Tjänstemännens Central Organisation (Central Federation for Salaried Employees in Sweden) United Nations United Nations Economic, Social and Cultural Organization United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees United Nations University virtual community ‘voice over Internet’ protocol virtual reality wide-area network web-based community World IT Forum World Summit on the Information Society

1 Introduction

•

Why did I write this book? How did the work with it start? Why now?

Introduction

To whom?

•

Why my keen interest in social and psychological aspects of computerization?

•

Research engagement over time and recognitions – class journey and techno journey

• • • •

Summary Summary of Humans on the Net Network of Excellence New insights in society and harvest time for research

1.1 Why did I write this book? How did the work on it start? Why now? To whom? 1.1.1 Main objectives and themes The main objective in this book is to contribute to a deeper understanding of the relationship between ICT and changes in the social and psychological environment (psychosocial life environment). The theme is humans and information and communication technology (ICT). The title includes the subtitle Humans on the Net, pointing out that the main focus is on the present phase, the Net era. In the introduction, I summarize some important phases in my career that give a thorough background to ‘why’ and ‘whom’. 1.1.2 Different perspective and academic disciplines My perspective on the ongoing changes in society, work life and our private life is different from that of most books available. It is a perspective much requested at international events, and often people will ask me to give the same presentation at another conference. In economics debates, more and more attention is paid to work organization, production and various factors in the psychosocial work

2 • Introduction

environment instead of traditional economic figures. This is also reflected in the change to the Nobel Prize for Economics in the direction of analyses of the interface between psychology – e.g. human behaviour and values – and economics, for instance. My background in psychology, sociology, educational psychology and ethnography is rather unusual among colleagues in Informatics, and is also unusual in that I have performed research on humans and computers for about 30 years. My theoretical basis mainly relates to social psychology and organizational behaviour, and is accompanied by a deep involvement in psychosocial issues in work life, based on my research and on research leadership. The fact that I was the first and for some years the only female professor in Informatics in Sweden plays a role in my perspective, I think. My main sources are the books Humans on the Net (G. Bradley 2001) and Computers and the Psychosocial Environment (G. Bradley 1989). The response received over the years is also an important and unique input to this new book. 1.1.3 Why is the book needed? In clear focus stands the human view, the ‘people view’ or the psychosocial view. This is stated in the presentation of many new books, but after some reading, a traditional business and/or management perspective often becomes evident. Business people are one target group for my book. However, this book with a people-centred perspective should be of interest to a broader audience as well – students and professionals, concerned with the role of and the impact of ICT in work, home and society. At many international business schools and technical universities there is a great demand for courses in ethics in a broad sense, and I consider an understanding of the psychosocial environment to be a key part of ethics. In most chapters, some main problems or issues are presented and analysed, concluding with a summary of the problems analysed. The last chapter formulates some important questions for the future and proposes actions for the present and for the future. A broad perspective is achieved through my contacts with the authors in my earlier book Humans on the Net, as well as in my role as main editor for the proceedings Organizational Design and Management (ODAM). In fact

Introduction • 3

it also made me aware of the need for this book. My role as member of programme committees for international conferences in the field also contributed. 1.1.4 Who is the book’s primary target? The academic discipline of informatics and other IT-related disciplines are growing at most universities. The orientation towards ‘ICT, Organization, Humans, and Society’ is increasing within this group of disciplines. The topic ‘social informatics’ is gaining in importance. A new type of engineer is being educated. There is a labour market requirement for engineers in computer science and informatics to have a broader humanistic and behavioural scientific orientation and knowledge. A change is taking place in the enrolment requirements for our technical universities. There is a call for books with a social and psychological perspective on technology at various levels and courses. This is also valid for business schools, where disciplines such as informatics, information systems and information management systems are part of the mandatory courses. Informatics as a discipline has developed over the years from data processing and software development towards people’s use of the new technology. The titles of the latest international ICIS/ECIS conferences can be seen as evidence here. ICIS stands for International Conference on Information Systems; ECIS is the corresponding European conference. Many more specialized conferences/academic communities are appearing, with a perspective close to the one presented in this book. Another trend is that ‘IT universities’ are being created through mergers between traditional IT departments and the humanities and behavioural sciences. For example, an IT university was established in Stockholm as a joint venture between the Royal Institute of Technology and Stockholm University: recently ‘School of ICT’ has been used as the name for the organization, and ‘IT university’ for the physical campus. In Gothenburg and the Öresund region, in the southern part of Sweden, the same thing can be seen. At other universities ‘IT faculties’, virtual or/and real, have been created. Cross-disciplinary research and courses are becoming more frequent. Home environment is another area in demand. The IT industry foresees a

4 • Introduction

new market for many products and services in the home. In work life, for many years we have had strong organizations, and labour market parties have shown a great interest in knowing about ICT and the work environment. In the private sphere, there is a lack of strong collective movements. We have to be conscious of how ICT is introduced and used in our homes. At the political and scientific levels, new subgroups have also been created in ICT, related to the home of the future. Even new research centres are being established. 1.1.5 International appeal to academic and other organizations/groups In the following types of courses, there is an increasing desire from students and teachers internationally to depart from studies of narrow interaction with the machine to a broader analysis of the interaction between ICT, humans and society:

• • •

courses in human-computer interaction (HCI, CHI) courses in human-machine interaction (research schools on HMI) courses in ICT and social change.

Departments of informatics, departments of computer technology, departments of economics, departments of industrial engineering, schools of business and schools of communications call for new ways of approaching these issues. To sum up, the book addresses the psychosocial perspective cultivated during the twentieth century in the Scandinavian countries. However, aware of the interaction between research in the UK, Canada and the Netherlands, I am not taking only a Scandinavian perspective. The book aims to give an overall, cross-disciplinary perspective and is written from a background where the labour market parties in Sweden at a central level and a local level played a part as reference groups in my research on the psychosocial environment and computerization. My involvement in women’s studies, research on the psychosocial environment, and early studies of the social impact of computerization have been helpful in the choice of areas for chapters in the book. 1.1.6 Outline of the book In this introduction I summarize some important phases that give a thorough background to ‘why’ and ‘whom’. In the next chapter (Chapter

Introduction • 5

2), I present my theoretical framework and models, both the initial one and the revised one (Convergence Model). Then follows a chapter, Chapter 3, with a description of the technology – past, present and future. Some empirical results during four different periods in the history of computerization are described in the following chapters. The results are related to the theoretical framework, ending up with the Net period, related to the Convergence Model. Chapters 4, 5 and 6 all deal with ICT and humans, where I analyse how information and communication technology changes human life; organizational changes as well as changes in people’s behaviour, attitudes and lifestyle. Chapter 4 focuses on ongoing changes in working life. Chapter 5 focuses on ongoing changes in the home. Chapter 6 focuses on changes in rural areas. Chapter 7 analyses communication from a psychosocial perspective. Information and communication technology is closely related to communication between people and to collaboration. One specific chapter is devoted to analyses of stress and ICT (Chapter 8). Chapter 9 then brings together the theoretical framework, empirical experiences transforming it into actions to achieve the ‘good ICT society’. This is dealt with on various action levels. In the same chapter, there are also some hypotheses for the future regarding ICT and humans in parallel to the suggested actions, proactive and ‘here and now’. 1.2 Why my keen interest in social and psychological aspects of computerization? In my childhood I experienced very closely an important technology shift over to electricity. In the rural area where I grew up, there were still many households, especially farms, without electricity. My father was an electrician and very much involved in the installation of electricity in the small villages around. I had the privilege of joining him on many of these excursions, especially at school vacations and holidays. To begin with, for the farmers the most important place for electricity was the cow-house. At university, I was originally trained as a psychologist, taking a deep interest in social psychology, which in my interpretation was the part of psychology that gives us a way of thinking about how we can influence society. However, after the ‘1968 movement’ of the Left in academic life in many countries, that discipline lost importance, and in the Anglo-Saxon countries developed into a discipline which did not primarily encompass critical analyses.

6 • Introduction

At the end of the 1960s I found myself among many computer scientists and computer professionals, e.g. my husband, my sister, my sister-in-law. I identified a language that I did not understand very well, and I had a sense that here was a technology that would profoundly change our lives. I was also curious to explore and understand what all these new professionals were actually doing for us and for society. It was clear that the technology was a major tool for making our work life more effective and efficient. A very strong contribution to my interest in psychosocial work environment and computerization was the invitation I received to lead an investigation for TCO about the work environment for salaried employees in Sweden – a huge task, the results to be presented at the TCO congress in 1972 (see section 1.3.2). Over the years, risks and challenges with computerization were a main theme of my presentations and book chapters, etc. I would argue that this topic has now become more important than ever, because of the intensive and widespread use of ICT in society. My latest keynote addresses have been an elaboration of the ideas developed in the book Humans on the Net: ICT, Work Organization and Human Beings (G. Bradley 2001). The book was presented at ‘Work Life 2000’, the first EU conference held during Sweden’s EU presidency. In the last few years, I have been invited to several conferences to give an overview on ICT and changes for humans and society, with various audiences and readers. At the World IT Forum, WITFOR 2003, the ‘Vilnius declaration’ was adopted, an important tool in developing and economically strengthening countries in choosing priorities for their knowledge society development (see also Chapter 9). The title of my speech at WITFOR 2003 was ‘Information and Communication Technology (ICT) for Deepening Human and Societal Qualities’ – a perspective that is deeply rooted in my research. Empirical experiences show that it is important to have a balance between pure technical research and development and the behavioural and social science disciplines. The focus of attention in IT-related disciplines has been too much on ‘technology push’ so far, instead of ‘human needs’ or ‘people push’. IT universities, like the one in Stockholm where I belong, are trying to bring together disciplines from the traditional university and disciplines from the technical university in order to facilitate a necessary rethinking and reorientation of R&D, sometimes resulting in new centres related to

Introduction • 7

‘humans in the ICT society’, focusing on the human and societal aspects of ICT use. The research I have initiated and headed over the years has primarily addressed the use of ICT in the industrial world through the various historical periods of mainframe computers to the network period. I hope these experiences can help the developing countries to better avoid the negative social consequences and promote a more successful introduction, development and use of ICT. 1.3 Research engagement over time and recognitions – class journey and techno journey 1.3.1 The 1960s – research on women’s studies and the exploratory study of the psychosocial work environment The very first part of my research focused on women in work life. I made a broad study of female employees in one of the main commercial banks (Svenska Handelsbanken) in 1968. Based on this study I presented my PhD thesis, entitled ‘Woman and Career’, in 1972. The academic world at that time was in turmoil, in Europe and in parts of the USA. There was a reaction against the authoritarian society. The young generation demanded more freedom and more influence. My dissertation consisted of two books in Swedish, summarized in a short report in English. This was actually before questions related to women and working life had come into popular debate. It was said in Sweden that women should first of all replace the immigrants on the labour market, not have power. The word ‘power’ was more or less forbidden: we could only talk about ‘influence’, and much effort was devoted to materializing ‘influence’ through legislation and agreements on the labour market. The PhD book showed a woman on the front page, writing on a traditional typewriter. Computers were not available at the time, at least not online systems with display terminals. Some of the results were:

• • •

The bank where the field studies took place was the only one that did not experience an economic crisis some years later in 1987–93. Female supervisors were more positive and perceived their work as more satisfying than those who were not involved in leadership. The only thing that differed was that female supervisors perceived a

8 • Introduction

•

clearer conflict between work and family. Recent research shows that this has not changed, and we are still looking for various ways of balancing female and male power. Twenty-five per cent of the women explained that they did not apply for managerial and promoted positions because they were scared they would lose their femininity. At that time, the word ‘femininity’ in these contexts was more or less forbidden. Those women who went out into the labour market often dressed like men and were very anxious not to differ from the dominating male culture in work life.

Soon after my doctoral defence seminar in 1972 I was invited by the Central Federation for Salaried Employees in Sweden (TCO) to make an exploratory study about the work environment among salaried employees. We undertook an extensive task. The TCO had about 1.2 million members, organized according to employment in various branches of the labour market. The report was presented at the TCO congress in 1973, and among the audience was our prime minister at the time, Olof Palme. The TCO report ‘Salaried Employees and Work Environment’ was written together with the two researchers Karin Börjeson, political scientist, and Margareta Lundgren, psychologist. We finished the report by suggesting future research, based on our exploratory study. One suggested project had a focus on computerization. It was clear that in the whole TCO organization there was an anxiety about what implications the computer technology would have on working conditions and employment. The book was printed in an edition of 40,000 copies, and it was used also in the other main trade unions as well as in collaborative organizations between employers’ and workers’ organizations – a structure that was part of the so-called Swedish model. At the same time there was an increasing demand for lectures at conferences dealing with the psychosocial work environment. For a while I became a ‘trader’ in the psychosocial work environment. So when a Swedish publisher asked me to write a popular scientific book on ‘professional roles and life environment’ in 1979, I was caught in the strange labyrinths of the research world. It was a world with many traits that were new and surprising for me. The book Professional Roles and Life Environment was used in universities but also by practitioners in other organizations in Swedish society.

Introduction • 9

1.3.2 The 1970s – research according to the Swedish model Soon after I had completed the TCO report in 1973 I set up a meeting with a new foundation for the work environment to analyse how computerization affects the physical and psychosocial work environment. I then came to initiate and be the head of crossdisciplinary research projects on computer technology and structural and social change in work life for about 20 years. Originally, I wanted to include changes in private life, but I was told that computers would only have relevance for working life. However, I went on with my questions about private life, thinking that what happened in work life would have an indirect effect on our private life, even if we had no computers in the home at that time. In 1977 the book Computer Technology, Work Life and Communication (G. Bradley 1977) was presented to the ‘delegation for long-term motivated research’ in Sweden. The theoretical models were described in the book and were used in many research programmes studying specific parts of problem areas. The ‘communication circle’ portraying the close relationship between technology and communication and the interaction between people was in 2005 applied in a doctoral thesis on ‘Working together when being apart – an analysis of distributed collaborative work through ICT from an organizational and psychosocial perspective ’ (Jansson 2005) (also see Chapter 7). Doctoral and post-doctoral students from departments of business administration, psychology, computer science and sociology joined my research group at Stockholm University. The theoretical models that I developed about the relationship between information technology and changes in working life are described in Chapter 2. In Chapter 3 I will summarize the technology, and the empirical results are presented in the following chapters. Originally the results were published in Swedish in 1986 in the book Computers and the Psychosocial Work Environment. It became widespread internationally after Taylor & Francis published the English translation (G. Bradley 1989). The book analysed three historical phases of computerization from batch systems with mainframe computers to online systems with the use of visual display terminals and microcomputerization and distributed computer power and use of personal computers (PCs). We have now moved into a new period in the history of technology, the Net period, analysed in Chapter 4, and also in Chapter 5 on the home of the future and ICT.

10 • Introduction

Many issues mentioned in the book for the delegation for long-term research are more acute than ever, which is also the case for the issues raised in Computers and the Psychosocial Work Environment. I have picked up some parts of the latter book that I believe are equally relevant today, e.g. some measurements and tools related to the theory, so that they can be applied by persons performing research on the creation of quality of life and ICT. As mentioned earlier, I came to specialize in organizational behaviour and information technology, involved in the interdisciplinary research programme on computerization and its effects on structural and social changes in working life. As mentioned above, the theories were tested in three main companies, representing three main historical phases in computer technology; batch systems, online systems with display terminals, and microcomputers. The companies included were the Swedish Post Office, an insurance company and an electronic product manufacturer. Within the project on microcomputerization, two professional roles in a multinational electronic industry were analysed both historically and in relation to the use of computer support in the work process. The sub-project ‘The Role of Engineers and the New Computer Technology’ concerned the most common traditional male profession and the sub-project ‘The Role of Secretaries using Word Processing’ dealt with the most common traditional female profession. The empirical results from this research are referred to in some of the following chapters. More general trends of relevance in the 1970s From the mid-1970s to the mid-1980s there were four research groups working on computers and changes in work life, in addition to my group at Stockholm University; namely in the School of Business (Docherty and Stjernberg) and in the Swedish Work Life Centre (Ehn and Sandberg). Some years later additional research groups appeared, with the Swedish Work Life Centre as the main organization in this research field (Göransson, Josefsson and Hedberg). The Swedish Work Life Centre has been continually reorganized and recently has become decentralized with various centres in the country specializing in different research areas. During these years there was a strong societal engagement, but during the 1990s it was replaced by a clear orientation towards becoming a leading nation, in particular within IT per se, not so much focusing on the way people behave, react, feel, etc. In 2005 there is a high proportion

Introduction • 11

of people on sick leave and stressed. That debate, however, is mainly going on in another arena. The trade unions lost influence in the 1990s. The belief in the Swedish model was questioned. Up to the mid-1980s foreign researchers came to Sweden, regarded as the Mecca of IT and work life research, and the participatory design approach. Swedish workers were interviewed in foreign media and they talked about their work, work tasks and work environments with pride. A lot of governmental investigations took place, dealing with the effects of computerization and vulnerability in the work environment. The researchers contributed a lot of information and enthusiasm to the committees at conferences where ministries and labour market organizations participated. The dialogue was intensive. 1.3.3 The 1980s – Silicon Valley and Stanford University As a visiting research professor at Stanford University in 1987, I designed a research plan for a project entitled ‘Knowledge Based Systems (KBS, applied AI) and the Psychosocial and Organizational Impact’. At that time AI was discussed mainly in computer science and philosophy. I made a pilot study in a few electronic companies close to Stanford and in Silicon Valley, and then carried out the empirical studies in Sweden in three frontline companies: a computer equipment manufacturer, an aircraft engine manufacturer, and a commercial bank. Awards appeared when I was back in Sweden. In 1989 I received two awards, the ‘Golden Leaf ’ from the Association for Psychologists in Sweden for important contributions within research on the psychosocial work environment, and the same year I was elected ‘Professional Woman of the Year’ in Sweden. High visibility and recognition are combined with a certain risk: the glass ceiling in the research world became harder and sharper. In 1991 I returned to Stanford to do the final reporting from the KBS project. Still in California, I started up a research project entitled ‘Competence development in ten high-tech companies in Silicon Valley ’ – companies which were top-ranked in sales, profits and return on sales. Among these were both electronic and software companies and pharmaceutical companies. The focus was on major theories on competence requirements and development as well as strategies for education, in-house courses, and on-the-job training. This study was undertaken in collaboration with the University of Southern California (Robertson and Bradley 1997).

12 • Introduction

1.3.4 The 1990s – general chair of ODAM 94 in Stockholm and Teleinformatics Royal Institute of Technology In 1991 I was invited to serve as general chair (1992–4) for the international conference on Organizational Design and Management (ODAM IV). I gave the conference the subtitle ‘Development, Introduction and Use of New Technology – Challenges for Human Organization and Human Resource Development in a Changing World’. Researchers from more than 30 countries in Europe, USA and Asia participated, and the proceedings are available in a 750-page hardback book (G. Bradley and Hendrick 1994). I also served as the main editor of the book. The ‘Wall’ between the former Soviet Union and western Europe had fallen, and people from the eastern countries in Europe were suddenly present on the international scene too. People from the national and international networks with an academic background in technology and in behavioural sciences were brought together – networks developed over many years in Sweden and abroad. People joined ODAM IV from industrial psychology, pedagogics, computer science, economics, etc. I served as a bridge between quite different research societies with their own languages and networks, but united by a deep interest in the human use of technology. The preparation of the ODAM conference occurred just before the Internet exploded outside the multinational companies with internal electronic networks. So the basis of communication for me and the international programme committee was still the fax machine. The conference was very successful and contributed to a rethinking within the research area of technology and organizational change. An invitation to participate in the conference was sent out to all ministries in Sweden. The conference was opened by the Minister of Industry, Anna Greta Leijon, who inspired the research foundations in Sweden to invest in cross-disciplinary research centres within computer and work life such as HMI in Linköping, CID (Centre for user-oriented IT design) at the Royal Institute of Technology, CMD (Centre for Human-Computer Studies) at Uppsala University. Similar centres were created in Lund University and Chalmers Technical University. My international colleagues asked what would be offered to me now. My answer was that I would either leave the country and become more international, or move to a technology university, or move to the countryside. I did all three. 1 Internationally I received the prestigious IFIP Namur Award in 1997

Introduction • 13

for pioneering work to increase the awareness of the social and organizational effects of IT and its use. The cross-disciplinary research, in particular about the interaction between technology, organization and humans, was recognized. 2 At the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH), starting in 1994, I was involved in extensive research planning, trying to integrate international, national and local research approaches. I thereby served as project manager for an interdisciplinary research theme entitled ‘Interactive Creative Environments’ (ICE) with the subtitle ‘Computers, Networks and Organizational Design Supporting Technology Transfer’. The theme was coordinated from the Department of Teleinformatics, KTH. Faculty staff from the following disciplines collaborated: social psychology and pedagogics, industrial economy, regional planning, social anthropology, ethnology, law and informatics, teleinformatics. The ICE project was directly associated with the interdisciplinary research and education programme between Stanford and Swedish universities (Sweden– Silicon Valley Link Program; S–SVL programme). 3 Shortly after the ODAM conference in 1994, I initiated a regional development and research project, with the EU programmes Employment and Adapt as sponsors. The project consisted of the development of an IT centre to support the start-up and survival of small enterprises in a rural area as well as strengthening the citizen’s role in the community. The research part concerned analyses of the development of networks and IT-supported organizational structures, employment rate, various aspects of quality of life, and integration of immigrants into the Swedish work life. The IT centre project also brought me back home to the small village where I grew up (more about this in Chapter 6). 1.3.5 Going north – starting up informatics research in a regional university My expedition north in 1997 started with a request from faculty staff in the northern Swedish university city of Umeå, to join the evaluating committee for a full professorship in informatics in Umeå University. I joked and said that maybe I was interested in the position and the answer was to my surprise that I was most welcome to apply. After a year of silence, I was informed that I was ranked number one by the referees for the professorship and that I had excellent opportunities for negotiating conditions, having had my main residence in Stockholm for many years.

14 • Introduction

From that moment on, I was meeting groups of delegations from the northern universities (Mid-Sweden University, Umeå University and Luleå Technical University). Junior as well as senior researchers wanted to have my advice. My type of research – ‘social informatics’ – had come into the centre of the informatics discipline. I felt that the discipline had come to me instead of the opposite. The main task for me was to form a base at and a connection to Umeå University and build the informatics research at Mid-Sweden University (MH). I decided to withdraw an application for a professorship in industrial organization at KTH. I appreciated some aspects at the new regional university college (which received full university status in 2005); for example, that there was strong entrepreneurship, and the support that existed locally in the large industries and in the SMEs. Furthermore, the new structure was, to a certain degree, open to change compared to the old university structure, and there was a belief that cross-disciplinary studies could be facilitated. I concluded also that the field of ICT, society and humans would be more exciting if it combined local (regional), national and international perspectives. I gave the research programme that I developed together with the research colleagues at MH the name ‘Research in Interplay ICT – Humans – Society’. Shortly after the ODAM conference in 1996 a research programme with that title had been initiated by the national research council on Humanities and Social Sciences (HSFR), and I was invited to give my view on what research areas such a programme could have at Swedish universities. Our programme was composed of a number of research groups and the main projects that I headed were:

• • • • •

ICE: interactive creative environments networking: organizational and psychosocial communication and information technology (NET) societal and psychosocial challenges and ICT – comparisons between a rural community and a suburban community (RURBAN) towards a global learning space: ICT, learning and competence in an organizational and social context ICT and changes in society and human behaviour patterns in the Net era.

Our programme was distributed at ICIS in Helsinki in the winter of 1998, and I tried to influence the content of the initiatives taken by the EU in research on ICT. The titles in the EU’s 5th and 6th Programmes were similar to my own research programme and gave some hope, but

Introduction • 15

the orientation of the research to be supported was still very technical. It was not until the planning of the EU 7th Frame Programme in 2005 that a transition could be seen. Some years later there was a follow-up conference arranged by HSFR. Most researchers came from Umeå University, and later on the university was rewarded as being one of the best in informatics in Sweden. It turned out that the perspective on social informatics was more accepted in Umeå than in Mid-Sweden University by teachers and researchers at that time, even if the region of Mid-Sweden could have benefited more from taking on the perspective of the use of ICT and community informatics. My explanation is that they were closer to industry and that the region had a more pronounced dependence on industry in general. Umeå had created a research climate for some years, having become a university about 20 years before Mid-Sweden. My main contribution in the research programme Media Technology within the cross-disciplinary programme Fibre Science and Communication Network (FSCN) is the project: ‘The Home of the Future – Information and Communication Technology (ICT) – Changes in Society and Human Behaviour Patterns in the Net Era’. 1.3.6 Back to Stockholm and Royal Institute of Technology – the IT University in progress – harvest time internationally ‘Information and Communication Technology (ICT) – Changes in Society and Human Behaviour Patterns in the Net Era’ is the main area for my present research. My work consists to a large extent of mentorship and contributions to popular science, entitled the ‘third task’ in the Swedish universities. Internationally I have received invitations to serve as keynote speaker during the last few years. Another task is to serve on boards for new centres and journals in the field of ICT and society. A strong effort is going on to take advantage of the technology to shape a ‘better world’. The capacity of the communication technology and ICT should be used to ‘fill the net with dialogues’ between groups with different religions, ethnicity, gender, etc. According to my observation, the possibilities for research on the relation between ICT and society are somewhat problematic in high-tech areas such as Sweden’s ‘Silicon Valley’, where the technology is developed. This was also the case at Stanford University in California. As I see it, the research interest in this area was more articulated and

16 • Introduction

clear at UC Santa Cruz, San José State University, UC Berkeley and UC Irvine. ‘Social informatics’ and Professor Rob Kling had their initial base at UC Irvine for many years (Kling 1980). 1.4 Summary 1.4.1 Summing up with a quote From my home page: We now have a whole new chance to explore the human side of societal change taking advantage of technology to shape a good and balanced life. Let us use this opportunity to redesign society towards peace, democracy and welfare for all … those who develop, introduce and use technology promoting peace, a deepening of democracy, welfare and quality of life for all will be the winners. Bradley in Humans on the Net, 2001, p. 21

1.5 Summary of Humans on the Net We are increasingly influenced by Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in our professional and private lives. Focusing on the professional role, this is true of the nature of our work, the design of our organizations, communication between people and also leadership and managerial roles. The term IT (information technology), or rather ICT, is used more and more. Other extremely commonly used words are computers and computerization. ICT represents the combination of computer technology, telecommunication technology and media technology. The convergence of these three areas definitely creates a very powerful force. Computer technology is more and more embedded in all kinds of products and equipment. The microprocessor revolution which took place some years ago, even if the microprocessor was ‘born’ many years earlier, made computer power greater, less expensive, and invisible. With regard to telecommunication technology, broadband networks connect us and connect computers with extreme speed. Time has become something of a luxury. It seems we are getting less and less time to reflect on the essentials, e.g. to reflect on what qualities we want to create and promote, having access to this wonderful technology; and this at a time when it is particularly urgent that we spend time on it.

Introduction • 17

The book Humans on the Net was partly based on a workshop held in Brussels in March 1999. I was asked by the Swedish Joint Industrial Safety Council to organize and chair a workshop attended by international researchers, on a topic close to my research on ‘Information and Communication Technology (ICT), Work Organization and Human Beings’. The authors work in different countries and disciplines; their languages mirror their disciplines in a way. At the same time, the authors share a common interest in the social changes taking place with the deep and widespread use of ICT. Most of the authors are Europeans; three researchers come from the USA and one from Asia. They are also distinguished thinkers. They all addressed crucial areas in the information society, related to concepts in my theoretical model: the psychosocial work environment, ICT, quality of life, aspects of participation, stress and health aspects, learning, organization and meaning of work, and allocation issues. One chapter underlines the need for a system perspective addressing chaos theory, while another chapter brings out the need for a revision of economic theory, and combines ICT with the theory of human capital. 1.5.1 Intellectual capital perspectives for informatics systems Keenan (2001) stated that massive changes in the post-industrial world of work require organizations to create, renew, empower and encourage anthropocentric assets (human qualities). Organizations have to cope with massive shifts toward ‘knowledge work’, flatter organizational designs, increasing needs for worker knowledge and commitment, mandates for continuous learning and improvement, rapid developments in technologies for capturing, disseminating and exploiting information, closer integration of customers, suppliers and competitors, globalization of interests and influences, expanding and intensifying electronic commerce, and continuing turbulence in business-societal conditions. The times are marked ‘subject to change without notice’, but it is change that is most noticeable: its increasing scale, scope and acceleration. Organizations are turning increasingly ‘knowledge-based’. The shift away from external competition and market-driven paradigms to a resource-based theory of the company has organizations concentrating on core resources, such as knowledge for gaining and sustaining their competitive advantage. Postmodern perspectives on organizations emphasize knowledge too.

18 • Introduction

Keenan focused on intellectual capital in organizations as a system of assets and on informatics and other systems as part of intellectual capital systems in work organizations and other collectives. The key emphasis is on the role of informatics systems in creating, managing and changing organizations as systems of actor-centred capitals or assets which, together with financial and physical capitals, can be used to achieve the organization’s goals and to create wealth for stakeholders. Intellectual capital in organizations is an open system of human and organizational structural and process assets. Organizations are viewed as open systems and as communities of intellectual capital. The intellectual capital system in organizations includes three capitals (sets of assets for the production of wealth): core capital of organizational actors, communication or informatics capital and community or social capital. Keenan focused on the relationship of informatics systems to intellectual capital in work organizations. Informatics systems enhance intellectual capital by facilitating the development and use of core cognition and commitment capitals and the communication and community capitals that are the principal ingredients of intellectual capital as viewed here. Intellectual capital is one of three organizational capitals with which to create wealth and success. Two of the capitals, financial and facilities, are owned by the organization and are relatively tangible. Intellectual capital, centred in organizational actors, cannot be owned by the organization. It can only be rented. For the most part it is hidden. It is the key to the success of the organization, possibly to other organizations as well. It is movable. Moreover, it leaves the workplace each day – proof of its fragile links to its own tenuous creation, the organization. Among those links are informatics systems. 1.5.2 The information and learning society: a critical analysis from the social organizations’ point of view Berleur and Valenduc (2001) took the White Paper on Education and Training of the European Commission as a starting point on the occasion of the European Year of Lifelong Learning (paper published in 1995 for the year 1996). They argued that we have to question the relevance of an educational policy whose main objectives are to improve ‘employability’ and increase competitiveness. This policy is also considered as the basis for lifelong learning. Today, according to the eLearning action of the

Introduction • 19

eEurope Action Plan, we shall be ‘working in a knowledge-based economy’, as stated by the Commission (European Commission 2000a). A critical analysis from the social organizations’ viewpoint will consider the guidelines for action contemplated by the Commission: to raise the general base of knowledge with new systems of accreditation, to bring schools and the business sector closer together, to combat exclusion by offering a second chance, to increase proficiency in three Community languages, and to treat material investment and investment in training on an equal basis. Some concepts today taken for granted are criticized: employability, flexibility, learning organization, competence rather than qualification, etc. The trend to customization promoted in training and learning shows also the shift from a collective to an individual approach to qualifications. The authors raised some concluding questions, which in their view require thorough attention, and if possible a clear answer, from the workers’ organizations, as well as from other associations committed in the processes of lifelong training:

• • • • • • • • • • • • •

A knowledge society, a cognitive society: What does it mean? A Europe of knowledge: Which one? Shaped by whom? How and why are these so-called historical revolutions happening? What kind of transformation in the nature of work and in the organization of production is induced by the information society? Increasing the level of qualifications to meet the globalization of the labour market: what exactly does this mean? What are the ethical rules of the information society? A broad base of knowledge: how and in which education structure? Flexibility, mobility: how, and at what price? To what degree can we accept the concept of employability? Where is it negotiated? Who will pay for it? What are the consequences for the workers of the so-called learning organization? What about the customization of education? Is it not a way of absolving the employers from their obligations? Lifelong learning: why not also lifelong training? A semantic slip of the tongue? Who will be responsible? The individuals? The employers? The unions? Validation, certification, accreditation of programmes throughout life: By whom? How? How to restore a collective approach in the different processes of working, of training, of negotiating …?

20 • Introduction

1.5.3 Living on the edge of chaos … the dynamics of change and power in learning organizations Snyder and Acker-Hocevar (2001) stated that leaders everywhere are seeking new frameworks for designing responsive institutions because the world community is shedding its authoritarian political systems and centrally planned economies, and moving towards worldwide economic and political liberalization. The survival of our institutions is at stake, for scientists tell us that our future well-being depends on our strong systems of connection with the environment and our responsiveness to changing conditions. We ought to be up to the task, for change is the essential, human experience that is both a personal and an organizational response to new conditions. Since we can no longer adequately control the forces of change, we can recognize the great transitions and the hope and creativity they offer our organizations. The new science of change in natural systems, considered along with the increasing complexities, rapid change and contradictions of our time, provokes us to search for new ways of response in human organizations. The authors express it as, ‘This is life at the edge of chaos! It is a time of opportunity for growth!’ Snyder and Acker-Hocevar used a Power River as a metaphor for examining power relationships under four different assumptions: power over, power to, power with and power through. They stated that power over creates negative social responses because the use of force causes restriction and stagnation. Influence results in manipulation. In contrast, power through creates a positive social context for change, and coercion is replaced with opportunities. Influence becomes inspiration. Snyder and Acker-Hocevar shared lessons about change gleaned from quantum physics, systems theory and chaos theory, all of which provide new mental models for the natural course of survival, learning and growth in organizations. They referred to scientists showing that systems poised at the edge of chaos achieve exquisite control, for novel properties emerge as ecological communities move to the edge of chaos . Their own empirical research on the changes that took place over time in 28 schools, whose principals had been schooled in systems theory, provides specific examples of these lessons in an organizational context, and illustrates the power that comes from responding naturally to changing conditions. The authors also shared new conceptions of power, consistent with chaos theory and social constructivism. As conceptions of change in organizations have evolved, so have definitions of power. The authors ’

Introduction • 21

contention is that unless both change and power address the facilitation of continuous emergence, change initiatives will fall far short of their goal. On the other hand, when change strategies are responsive to changing conditions and are linked with shared systems of power, miracles can happen. To shed light on the application of the new theory, Snyder and Acker-Hocevar present findings from their research on perceptions of power within schools at various levels of development. Their aim is to provide new mental models for change within learning organizations and to note the characteristics of power that foster continuous learning and growth of the system over time. Snyder and Acker-Hocevar presented the positive social responses to power through using a systems lens of interdependence, community and partnership. Systems thinking provides the means for organizational learning by supplying the rationale for dialogue across diverse role groups. This dialogue encourages access to and allocation, utilization and prioritization of resources by the community. Only within a systems perspective where power is communal can we begin to shape a different future for our communities. Group dialogue, systems thinking and mutual relationships form the basis for communal and learning organizations to prosper, according to Snyder and Acker-Hocevar. Developing vital learning communities within and across institutions requires mental models of change and power that are responsive to changing times, and their fluctuations. Vital learning organizations build strong connection systems among work teams and role groups within and across organizations, and also among programmes and services. A requirement for survival of a learning community is the freedom to exercise power over opportunity and resources, as responses are crafted to fit the times and the rapidly changing conditions of work. With a partnership model of power, learning communities can develop strong listening and response systems for using disequilibrium to self-organize around growth aspirations. According to the authors: ‘This is a life at the edge of chaos, where the dynamics of change and power have the potential for continuous emergence and transformation. This is our opportunity in giving shape to a new century of human experience and hope. ’ 1.5.4 ICT and quality of working life: implications for competencies and well-being Below is a summary of the main conclusions from the research performed by Järvenpää and Eloranta (2001) on ICT and skills. At the

22 • Introduction

global level and for global companies, ICT can mean several things. For companies in the ICT industry, globalization of the company is the way to compete, grow and increase market share. On the other hand, ICT may promote global operations and working globally. Both aspects affect competencies and skills needed in companies. Language skills, the understanding of both cultural aspects and of local ways of working, and communication skills are competencies needed in successful global companies. At the company level and in organizations, competencies and skills needed in ICT companies can be classified as technical skills, social skills and conceptual skills. A high level of technical skills is naturally the prerequisite for employees of ICT companies. Moreover, social skills and conceptual skills are important. The ability to work in teams, to take responsibility, to be flexible and to take on self-learning were found to be important ‘human skills’ for European companies. Conceptual skills include the understanding of business logic, strategies and future visions of the industry. These skills are of crucial importance for top and middle management in ICT companies. On the other hand, high-level technicians and research and development specialists may need these skills when designing new products or product concepts. At the individual level, the authors deal with work tasks and the quality of working life for ‘knowledge and information workers’. Several implications for competencies and quality of working life were found. In job design, information work should be designed to contain skill variety, including several tasks with learning opportunities and autonomy. In organizational design, participation in decision-making should be broadened to all levels of the organization. Thereby the quality of working life is promoted in information work. For knowledge work, the problem seems to be a qualitative and quantitative work overload. The authors argue that without job and organizational redesign in the information society, there is going to be a subdivision into, on the one hand, interesting non-routine jobs and, on the other hand, routine jobs with low levels of challenges and learning opportunities. Findings on daily stress and long-term stress outcomes indicated that knowledge work and information work are similarly stressful for the employees. Thus, the consequences of working in these jobs are similar for the employees even though their job characteristics may differ. Organizations should pay much attention to the promoting of their employees’ well-being. The results indicate that skill variety and autonomy are the job

Introduction • 23

characteristics that differentiate knowledge and information work. In the information society and for global, information-intensive organizations, job and organizational redesign are of great importance to guarantee challenging jobs with learning opportunities for employees working in knowledge work as well as in information work. 1.5.5 ICT and work organization: achieving a balanced system Carayon and Haims (2001) review a couple of empirical studies of ICT and work organization in mainly the Anglo-Saxon countries. These studies demonstrate the complex interplay between ICT and work organization. Psychosocial and physical aspects of work have been emphasized in those studies. Using the Balance Theory, the authors show how ICT is related to the work organization and to effects on the individual, such as stress, physical and mental health, quality of working life, and performance. In the final part of the review, issues related to the design of the work organization are discussed. Methods and principles for developing work in a positive way are discussed, and examples of applying those methods and principles are presented. A number of studies on the impact of ICT have been conducted at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA. The main findings of these studies can be summarized by the following categories:

• • • • •

electronic performance monitoring impact of computer system performance link between work organization and health outcomes implementation of new ICT technology work organization interventions.

1.5.6 Quality of working life in services Bagnara et al. (2001) stated that for some years the service sector in most developed countries has employed more workers than any other sector. Despite this, very few studies face the issue of quality of working life in services. On one hand, such a lack of investigation might be due to the multitude of activities called ‘services’, making it hard to extract some common features. On the other hand, the theoretical frameworks developed up to now and still used in research on humans at work seem inadequate to capture the complexity of tasks and relations in service activities. Ergonomics and the movement towards a higher quality of working life, combined with the socio-technical approach to

24 • Introduction

organizational design, recently converged in focusing attention from employee satisfaction to the conditions that enable their full professional, emotional, social, self- and cognitive expression, with respect to their physical integrity. Looking at the quality of working life in services, however, it is essential that we move forward. In this case, the above-mentioned conditions concern the organizational design and structure less than the human–human communication, i.e. the interaction that occurs between the client and the supplier. The role of ergonomics in providing such conditions is explored by the authors. Ergonomics has played and still plays an important role in the analysis, design and quality of work. Four different ways in which ergonomics come into play at the workplace are described. They are presented as a function of the role that is given to the client (or user): the absent user, the user as part of the working conditions, the user as the task’s end goal, and finally the user as a co-participant in a cooperative task. The last perspective is the most satisfactory one for the service sector. The first direction of the ergonomic intervention should be directed towards establishing conditions for the service relationship to develop successfully. The second line of action for intervention should aim at establishing conditions for the two agents to achieve an effective informational exchange that can yield reciprocal knowledge. The third line of action consists of transferring the outcomes of the ergonomic analysis of the communicative transactions into design requirements and solutions for technologies supporting communication. The authors conclude that a number of concepts have been adopted to define the quality of working life in specific contexts. For services, the relevance of the constructive and cooperative relationship between the provider of the service and the client is pointed out. Taking the provider–client communicative relationship in perspective can help organizations establish such conditions defining instances of qualitative working settings. Within high-quality working conditions the service provider can foster the constructive and productive relationship fundamental for the service itself. 1.5.7 Shop steward participation in the strategic decision-making process – towards learning organizations and networks Employee participation at the strategic level in organizations is analysed from a theoretical and historical point of view by Krarup and Bloch

Introduction • 25

Rasmussen (2001). History and theories point to a need for a theory and practice of employee participation in learning organizations and networks. Krarup and Bloch Rasmussen report on two experiments with employee participation in creating learning organizations and networks performed in cooperation with the Danish Federation of Trade Unions (LO) and Copenhagen Business School. One of these experiments was performed with 26 shop stewards in a traditional learning environment over a period of 18 months from 1997 to 1999. The other experiment took place in a virtual learning environment over 18 months from 1998 to 2000, also with 26 shop stewards. In both experiments, the shop stewards represent the major labour unions in Denmark and they are employed in public institutions as well as in private companies. The major results demonstrate that:

• • • •

Work and learning life must be in accordance with private and social life in order to create a learning organization and a learning network. Network creation and functioning must be envisaged as a self-organizing process. Network creation and functioning outside the normal working environment is of paramount importance for shop stewards in order to obtain codetermination at the strategic level. Group visions must be developed before strategic decision processes and strategic projects can be designed in organizations.

1.5.8 Plugging into the wired world – some reflections on the ‘digital divide’ Tan (2001) reports from Singapore on an ICT issue that concerns most Western countries in the 2000s, i.e. ‘how to connect’. Broadband transmission, which merged with embedded computer technology and media technology, and now on every page in the daily news around the world, will have a major impact on the ICT society. Tan provides an analysis of how Singapore builds its national information infrastructure, promotes the adoption of ICT and establishes electronic commerce to create the digital economy. Its success in building its high-value-added information technology hub is due to considerable efforts by the policy-makers. However, Singapore’s experience may not be directly transferable to other countries. Nevertheless, it is interesting for the rest of the world to look at the basic ingredients used to diffuse and infuse the island’s national IT strategies.

26 • Introduction

Tan’s report raises questions and promotes our thinking about these issues. She also gives some personal reflections on quality-of-life challenges in the new era with opportunities and risks related to the widespread and extensive use of ICT in this Asian country, which, lacking natural resources, has to rely on the new ICT-related economy. 1.5.9 Home of the future and ICT – integration of professional and private roles Technological development (ICT) is more and more focused on various applications of ICT in the home. Here we can expect a profound impact in the near future (G. Bradley and L. Bradley 2001). In our homes a greater number of functions will be available, related to what we call the professional role, the private role and the citizen’s role, and in the close future to one single ‘life role’. ICT will dramatically affect how humans value and relate to the home and the importance of the home, and will influence the design of our homes. What we consider as our home is now the physical home (house or apartment). Our studies show that the ‘home’ will be increasingly associated with the communication sphere. Many activities traditionally performed at home can now be performed ‘at a distance’, such as private phone calls, personal entertainment on TV and radio, planning and handling private documents, etc. More mobile IT equipment in our lives will make it easier to perform ‘home activities’ at a distance in the same way that we can perform job activities at a distance. ‘Working from Home’ and ‘Homing from Work’ are key issues in the analysis. Borderless home and borderless society? It is becoming increasingly difficult to set boundaries to what is our home. Similarly, setting boundaries to the workplace has become complex. Will this new drifting border between home and the surrounding world change the world? Research within telecommunication claims that the ‘death of distance’ will affect our lives in the same way as the use of electricity once did. Another question to consider here is what constitutes a ‘good home’? What human needs and behaviour are related to the home and home environment? What new behaviours evolve on the border between

Introduction • 27

technology and human needs? The ‘home of the future’ is the next big market for ICT gadgets. The following section in this chapter presents initial research findings and reflections. 1.6 Network of Excellence With the release of the book Humans on the Net in 2001, a Network of Excellence has been created, addressing human organization and psychosocial work environment related to ICT and the psychosocial home environment. The purpose of the Network is to disseminate and synthesize research with a cross-disciplinary perspective, thereby focusing on the interaction between ICT and work organizations, human communication, stress, allocation issues, knowledge transfer and ‘global villages’. The purpose is also to contribute to a discussion on desirable actions on various levels, and most of all to investigate how ICT can be used for deepening human qualities. The participants in the Network are distinguished researchers from Europe and some from the USA and south-east Asia. Most of the present participants contributed a chapter to the book Humans on the Net. The participants in the Network come from different research disciplines such as informatics, industrial engineering, organizational behaviour and communication, psychology and education. They all share a human perspective. Most of these issues are analysed and further developed in the present book, which serves as a basis to understand and, it is to be hoped, for everyone to contribute answers to questions such as:

•

• • • • • • • • • •

How will we live, learn and work in the future e-society (electronic society) – i.e. a society where ICT has penetrated deeply and broadly and become integrated into society and its substructures, e.g. workplaces, homes, authorities, communities? Intellectual capital and ICT – what does it mean? Employability – why this issue? What changes in power occur in the e-workplace and the e-society? Quality of life in the e-society – how to achieve it? How to get balance in our lives? New ways of influencing our lives? How could theory help us to understand our lives in the ICT society? What impact on human behaviour and values do the networks have? What is Internet stress? Digital divide – a new global phenomenon?

28 • Introduction

•

The home as a communication sphere in the network era? Opportunities and risks?

1.7 New insights in society and harvest time for research Internationally a growing part of the research and education in informatics and IT-related disciplines deals with the interaction between ICT, society and humans – at both the individual and the corporate, organizational levels. The following are examples of IT-related fields which have been developed in the technical and traditional universities, and the corresponding disciplines and subdisciplines are often organized as centres and research schools:

• • • • • • •

social informatics community informatics informatics of law ICT and ODAM home informatics technology and society technology and social change.

2 Theoretical perspective on the psychosocial and organizational life environment and ICT

•

Theoretical model on computer technology and work life

• •

The convergence model – theoretical models revisited How do the theories presented relate to other theories on the information society?

•

Future research related to the models

The first section (2.1) in this chapter outlines a theoretical framework and perspective on the work environment that have formed a base for many actions to improve the work environment in Sweden, especially the psychosocial work environment. A background to the formation of the framework is given in Chapter 1. It was presented in my 1989 book and has been used in many universities. Some of the theoretical concepts need to be revised, but the main thinking and structure of the conceptualization and the relationships between the concepts in the form of a theory are still valid and will, I hope, inspire new research. There is an urgent need to explore in more depth the characteristics of the main changes in the psychosocial environment, the impact on the individual, and the societal change of the revolutionary immersion and use of ICT.

Theoretical perspective

The second section (2.2) describes the ICT convergence theory and the psychosocial life environment. The theory serves as a basis for analysis of the main ongoing changes and in the present network period of the evolution of computer technology. It is based on research within the programme ‘Interplay ICT – Humans – Society’. During the network period a convergence and integration of three main technologies – computer technology, teletechnology and media technology – is taking place.

30 • Theoretical perspective

The third section (2.3) describes in short some sociological theories on the information society, and the main conclusions from these theories are related to my theoretical framework. Finally in section 2.4 some proposals are presented for future research on the interaction between, on the one hand, ICT and, on the other hand, the psychosocial life environment, quality of life and well-being. The first section is comprehensive and encompasses the following headings:

• • • • • • • • • •

introduction the work environment at different levels objective and subjective environment the effects of a poor work environment: reactions the effects of a good work environment: reactions intervening variables objective conditions outside work how to measure the psychosocial work environment field studies in the RAM project summary and discussion.

This final summary and discussion could be studied first for those who just want a brief of the theory and its application. 2.1 Theoretical model on computer technology and work life 2.1.1 Introduction The RAM research programme on ‘Computer technology and work life’ was an interdisciplinary research programme that I initiated and led at Stockholm University from 1974 to 1988. RAM referred to the Swedish expression for ‘Rationalization’ and ‘Work Environment’. A theoretical framework was developed, entitled ‘Computer Technology and Working Environment’ (first published in 1977). The framework included two theoretical models, one more general model (Figure 2.1) and one where the concepts and their interrelationships were specified, Figure 2.2 (G. Bradley 1977, 1989). The models were empirically tested in three large work organizations in Sweden, representing three main historical periods of computer technology – from systems with batch processing to microcomputerization.

Theoretical perspective • 31

The psychosocial work environment was considered in terms of the following perspectives:

• • • • • •

three levels of analyses (individual, organizational, societal) objective and subjective work environments interplay between levels interplay between objective and subjective work environments interplay between working life and private life a life-cycle perspective.

In Figure 2.1, factors on the societal level are mirrored to the left in the model and include the overall ‘technology’ that exists in society, the ‘social norms and value systems’ that exist in society and ‘objectives of the labour market’ indirectly reflected at the company level. The technology was specified (left of centre) as ‘computerized information systems’ at the time when the research started in the early 1970s. That box in the model could now be replaced by ICT. The organizational level is mirrored in the figure by ‘organizational structure’, ‘objective work environment’ and ‘objective conditions outside work/life environment’. These factors are through intervening psychological variables transformed into ‘subjective work environment’ and ‘subjective perceptions related to private life/leisure’ (subjective life environment).

Figure 2.1 Theoretical model on computer technology and work environment (G. Bradley 1977, 1989)

Figure 2.2 The relationship between objective and subjective work environments

Theoretical perspective • 33

The content of some of the concepts in the models can be summarized as follows. The objective work environment refers to areas of work that are germane to large groups of employees. The subjective work environment consists of the employees’ perceptions and attitudes towards their work environment. Factors in the subjective work environment are hence related to corresponding sets of factors in the objective work environment. The subjective work environment is closely linked to the concept of job satisfaction, which may be seen as a summarizing concept. The concepts ‘objective’ and ‘subjective work environment’ are in a dissolving process, ‘objective’ work environment becoming more flexible in times of flexible employment, salaries, intangible and informal decision-making systems. These blurring phenomena are indirectly related to the deregulation and strengthening of the market economy and the broad use of ICT that have been going on since the beginning of the 1990s (see section 2.2). 2.1.2 The work environment at different levels In the RAM project, a broad conception of the work environment was used. This was an important point, not least in terms of finding ways of rectifying shortcomings in the work environment. The work environment can be separated into three levels: the level of society, the level of the company and the level of the individual. At the level of society the individual is affected by societal structures – political, economic, ideological (religion and culture), technical (e.g. the degree of industrialization) and social structures. At the level of the company/ organization, the individual is affected by a number of interdependent factors, such as ownership structures, organizational structures, the conditions of power and influence, wage levels and pay systems, the content of work, working hours, rationalization and physical and spatial conditions. Each individual has a unique perception of his or her work. Factors such as the individual’s inherited characteristics, state of health, experiences, knowledge and needs are found at the level of the individual. There is naturally interplay between the factors at these three levels. The individual is not an organism without a will of its own, nor an object that is passively affected by different factors in its surroundings. People are products of their social environment, but also have the power to influence and create their environment themselves. This interaction between individual and social environment is within the purview of

34 • Theoretical perspective

social psychology. In Sweden, over the years there have been attempts to support the capacity of the individual to bring about change and to encourage the individual to make use of the legislation and agreements on matters of influence. With the European Union established, the levels for influence and interaction are getting harder to identify. What type of reactions and forms this will take in the labour market and in our job situations are at present under debate. Consequently, work environment problems must be tackled simultaneously at different levels by political action, for instance by legislation, and also by bringing influence to bear on work content, wage forms, promotion systems, organizational structures, working hours, rationalization and other aspects. It is important to aim at introducing preventive measures without neglecting the changes that are important for the individual here and now (see Chapter 9). As an example of the relationship between the levels of analysis, we could take the competitiveness among individuals present at many workplaces (the individual level). This is a reflection of events at other levels, also of the type of society in which we live (societal level). In between there is a level where the company organization and pay and promotion system encourage competitiveness between individuals (organizational level). The foundations of this competitiveness are grounded at school and strengthened by factors such as the system of school credits which in its turn is a product of the structure of society outside the school. 2.1.3 Objective and subjective work environments As described above, the work environment can be viewed on different levels and from different perspectives. It may also be divided into two categories: the objective and the subjective work environments. From an organizational point of view, factors in the objective work environment include the company’s organization, the decision-making system, the promotion system, the framework of working hours, pay, intermediate positions and physio-ergonomic factors. A number of these factors are interrelated. The number of levels in the company organization – whether it is a lateral organization or, if the company has a hierarchical, pyramidal structure, how departments are related to one another and what communication channels exist – are aspects reflected in, for example, the promotion system. Again, we can identify a dissolving process, where the formal visible

Theoretical perspective • 35

power (objective work environment) is partly replaced by an informal invisible power structure that becomes more common. The power becomes more invisible in the network organizations and with the increased use of ICT in general, including mobile technology, which is further analysed in Chapter 4. This change in power may involve the number of job promotions, the qualification requirements for these jobs, their internal interdependency, reporting channels and other aspects of the promotion system. The ‘organizational structure’ includes the methods used to allocate work, the basic foundation for decision-making and organizational aids. The concept of organizational structure is closely related to the concept of the work environment. The design of the organization is an important factor to consider when studying the relationship between ICT and the work environment. It can also be seen as part of the work environment. The subjective work environment includes employees’ attitudes and perceptions and their overall job satisfaction, covering attitudes towards employee participation in decision-making processes, job autonomy, the meaningfulness of the work, the opportunities for development afforded by the work, attitudes towards personal development, role ambiguity or buffer role, attitudes towards pay and working hours, etc. The term ‘buffer role’ refers to an objective work environment factor meaning that the employee in his/her professional role has an intermediate position between contradictory requirements. The requirements come from authorities and professionals with different goals. A company’s structure – whether it is bureaucratic, is based on some form of autonomy, or has a network structure – is reflected in a number of ways; for example, employees’ attitudes to having an influence in the decision-making processes at work. The actual design of the work tasks, for example, certain repetitive movements, excessive supervision, constant interruptions of a job that requires attentiveness, constant new personal contacts, is reflected in the way people perceive their work, and contributes to different reaction patterns. In its turn, this type of perception has an effect upon the objective work environment. Figure 2.2 illustrates in more detail the concepts in the theoretical model in Figure 2.1. A two-way arrow links the objective and subjective work environments. The underlying concepts are most easily understood through examples. The term ‘psychosocial work environment’ is used to signify the course of events or the process that occurs when objective factors in the environment are reflected in the individual’s perception

36 • Theoretical perspective

(either positive or negative) of work and the conditions of work. The essence is the interaction between the environment and the individual. Expressions like ‘job satisfaction’ and ‘job fulfilment’ are popular terms to summarize the different components that constitute the subjective work environment. These are found to the right in Figure 2.2. However, the importance and significance of these components may vary from one person to another. To a considerable extent, the experience of work can be explained by what actually happens in the objective environment. But there is a complex interdependency here. Our disparate backgrounds, aspirations and basic values and, in addition, any changes in these factors, all affect the way we perceive our environment. Naturally, environmental problems can be discussed using other terms, but the phenomena in the work environment represented in Figure 2.2 can be analysed in relation to both blue-collar and white-collar workers. What is the most important factor may vary among different groups of employees, different sectors of the labour market, different trade unions, etc. Why should the objective and subjective work environments be separated in the model? If only terms such as ‘satisfaction’, ‘adaptation’, ‘perceptions’, and ‘attitudes’ are used in the debate on the work environment, there is a risk that we will lose sight of the underlying structures, that we will not get to the root of the matter and uncover the controlling mechanisms behind these experiences. This is not to say that our feeling for or our enjoyment of our work is unimportant – having positive feelings towards our work is vital for us, and it is important to pose questions about satisfaction and attitudes. The work environment is best evaluated by the person who is exposed to it. But at the same time we must use a variety of means to supplement this picture with descriptions of the objective parts of the work environment, e.g. the design of the salary system, the structure of the organization, the design of technology, etc., that will give us a far better basis to discuss changes in the work environment. Figure 2.2 summarizes the way different factors at work are reflected in people’s experiences and feelings at work, and indicates some of the effects, and the ways that reactions are expressed. 2.1.4 The effects of a poor work environment: reactions Reactions to an adverse work environment take various forms. A common reaction is to show signs of what is usually referred to as stress.

Theoretical perspective • 37

Other reactions are to experience disappointment, a sense of powerlessness and alienation from one’s work. But reactions may also be expressions of a positive attitude, a desire to make changes and improvements, and various reactions that indicate well-being. When people experience prolonged and repeated stress, a number of symptoms persist, symptoms known as psychosomatic illnesses. The most common ones are stomach ulcers, high blood pressure and vascular diseases. They may be referred to as ‘long-term effects’. (See Chapter 8 on stress and ICT.) In recent years, various psychosocial factors have been observed in relation to industrial injury. The term now also includes injuries caused by socio-psychological factors in the work environment. When reporting industrial injuries, people are instructed to give details of any contributory factors. In addition to the technical design of the workplace and safety equipment, the organizational design of the workplace is also mentioned as a factor, as are work methods and supervision or monitoring. By and large, concepts of alienation originate in the theories of Marx. Subsequent research has uncovered a number of factors that have a significant impact on what we experience in our work. These include technology, work allocation, social organization, e.g. bureaucratization, and the economic structure. In the discussion on factors causing alienation at work, three basic human needs have been put forward, and a description of what happens if these needs are not met: The need for self-determination and job autonomy

Powerlessness

The need for interesting and meaningful work

Meaninglessness

The need for association and identification with the team

Normlessness Isolation

Alienation

Alienation can be described as an emotional condition that is caused by a fundamental disappointment in terms of one’s need for selfdetermination, job autonomy, interesting and meaningful work, and a place in society. The disappointment of not having these needs met creates a feeling of powerlessness, meaninglessness and normlessness in people. We turn away from work, seek to satisfy our needs in our leisure time through various kinds of consumption, and make a passive

38 • Theoretical perspective

adjustment to work. Terms such as ‘a low level of work commitment’ and ‘an instrumental attitude’ are used to describe the individual’s reactions. The work loses all its intrinsic value and becomes important only in terms of what it can provide for leisure activities, i.e. the salary benefits and working hours of the job. This type of alienation has traditionally been associated with jobs with low qualifications, both white-collar and blue-collar jobs. However, at the beginning of the new millennium there are signs that a substantial number of employees with high salaries experience their work as meaningless and are depressed too. They look at the job as solely a means to earn money, and obtain compensation during their leisure time. It seems to be the case, for instance, in groups such as stockbrokers – highly educated economists dealing with economic transactions and money trading. They are empowered by being included in the highly paid levels of society but at the same time feel disempowered and alienated, and they see themselves as tools in a market-economic play which many of them do not believe in themselves. No statistics have been presented on this phenomenon yet, but the hypothesis would be relevant for research. However, it is also possible to have a more positive active reaction. As individuals we can attempt to change our work situation in a number of ways, either on our own or by uniting with others, for instance by the starting up of networks, involvement in NGOs or trade union activity. These actions may be aimed at the different levels mentioned above. This is a good thing. New labour legislation and labour market agreements can create better conditions for employees to take positive action and bring about changes in working life. The extent of the impact of adaptation, expressed as passivity and resignation, may then decrease. Changes in employees’ lives outside their work – primarily changes in their families – may also affect their attitudes. Greater alienation at work and instrumental types of behaviour can be caused by giving priority to one’s family or private life. The relationship to work then becomes purely an economic one (Goldthorpe et al. 1971). Association with one’s family and children may also be a source of inspiration, and may revitalize the conditions that apply in working life. Absenteeism from work (for which the underlying reasons are very complex) and the phenomena of marginalization and exclusion from the labour market are also expressions of a poor work environment.

Theoretical perspective • 39

Finally, shortcomings in the work environment may express themselves in the employee’s private life. Phenomena at work are directly reflected in people’s relationships with their family and their private lives in general. This was an important factor in the 1970s, but there is a dissolving process – where the borders between private life and work life become indistinct – even here, to a large extent due to the use of technology. This is described in Chapters 4 and 5. I will come back to the phenomenon above when describing the Convergence Model in Chapter 2. 2.1.5 The effects of a good work environment: reactions The opposite of alienation is encapsulated in the terms ‘involvement’ and ‘engagement’. Involvement could be manifested in a strong feeling of meaning, social belonging, self-realization, influence and control over one’s life and life conditions. The resulting behaviour could be creativity, innovative behaviour regarding social, technical and organizational issues, and entrepreneurship. Even within medicine there is now a change in focus. People suffering from psychosocial illnesses receive recommendations on making changes in their lifestyles as a complement to or replacement for drugs. 2.1.6 The intervening variables: some further comments ‘Psychological variables’ is a general term covering a number of intermediate, psychologically relevant variables such as the level of aspiration and the weight attached to specific work environment areas. These variables are essential for an understanding of the subjective work environment and its dynamics, and the perception of the conditions that govern our lives in general. The important points are illustrated in Figures 2.1 and 2.2. Figure 2.3 describes how the objective environment is transformed into the subjective environment, that is, our perceptions and attitudes. The main intervening variables are mentioned above and specified in Figure 2.3. However, the importance and significance of these components may vary from one person to another. To a considerable extent, the experience of work (subjective environment) can be explained by what actually occurs in the objective environment. But there is a complex interplay, and the various backgrounds, aspirations and basic values and, in addition, any changes in these factors, all affect the way we perceive our environment.

40 • Theoretical perspective

Figure 2.3 Intervening variables

2.1.7 Objective conditions outside work ‘Objective conditions outside work’ refer to the initial model at the centre of Figure 2.1. These conditions were indirectly affected in the first phases of computerization due to changes in work life. Now these are affected by changes related to the use of ICT in both our private and citizen roles and in the professional role at work. Attitudes, values and experiences related to private life/leisure and family life are coming to the fore with the increased use of ICT in the home. This will be analysed in Chapter 5. Objective conditions outside work should be integrated with the development and use of ICT, which means that desirable professional roles, work content and reward systems should be considered in the planning of the ICT-supported tasks. We should combine ICT applications in working life and also ICT applications related directly to

Theoretical perspective • 41

our private lives. Goods and services are produced both in working life and in our private lives, but under different conditions and with different economic bases. We should be more aware of psychological variables and psychological phenomena (attitudes, aspirations, expectations). We need to pay attention to the two-way arrows at the centre of Figure 2.1. For example, it is important to recognize ‘reactions’ (ways of reacting), to the right in Figure 2.2, that can help change conditions at work and in our private lives, strengthening the things we feel work well for us as individuals and collectively. The models in Figures 2.1 and 2.2 illustrate a view of working life and its processes. There is a risk that the same phenomenon that occurs in working life in general – the fragmentation of knowledge – will also occur in the field of ICT research and research into the relationship between ICT and the environment. Integration is easily lost, and it becomes increasingly difficult to gain an overview of the research results in ICT and various other combinations of new technology. Parts of the reality can be separated out and described in great detail – effects can be shown – but the force of these effects in the interplay with other parts and ‘fragments’ is often uncertain. Atomization versus the holistic approach has always been one of the dilemmas of research, but becomes a more serious consideration in disciplines analysing the interaction between humans and society. It is important to remember that models are always simplifications, and thus we need different types of models – mathematical, geographical, linguistic models of ‘the same phenomena’ – that can complement each other (Kristiansson 1982). 2.1.8 How to measure work environment? The theoretical models used in the RAM programme were used as models in discussing what structure a computerized society should have (see the two-way arrows in Figures 2.1 and 2.2) and what might be desirable goals. This was also done in a special chapter on action strategies in G. Bradley (1986) and also in my chapter in the book Computers and Society (Beardon and Whitehouse 1993). An extensive research strategy was applied with qualitative and quantitative methods for collection and analysis of data. Indices were created through multivariate analysis, and they corresponded well to the theories in the field of work and organizational theory.

42 • Theoretical perspective

Table 2.1 provides an overview of the data acquisition and information analysis used in the project. The terms ‘objective’ and ‘subjective’ work environment used in this table recur in the models used for the project. In the early stages of the RAM research programme, qualitative methods were used, such as analysis of recorder interviews (often two hours long), analysis of documentation and analysis of relevant literature. We then transferred to more formalized methods for data gathering and analysis, i.e. both descriptive and analytical statistics. In the later stages of the research process, however, we returned to the qualitative method for study, in interpretation and feedback. The choice of method was dictated by the corresponding phase in the research process, in other words by the type of problem we wanted to highlight. How the psychosocial work environment was measured has been described in detail, because there is a need for systematic measures to control for interacting variables, to prove differences between groups of persons, and to generalize results to populations of people. This is important in the next step, formulating a basis for actions and for influencing policy-makers and politicians. The present fashion in research is to choose some examples and report ‘stories’ with the purpose of obtaining a deep analysis of a phenomenon. This is of course important as a starting point, and necessary for interpretation and understanding in all research in the social and behavioural sciences.

Table 2.1 Summary of data acquisition and processing methods used in the RAM project Objective work environment

Subjective work environment

Data acquisition methods

Behavioural observation Internal documentation, e.g. company statistics, minutes (from works councils, board meetings) Interviews with management representatives, trade union 1 representatives, AR men/women

Interviews, semi-structured Questionnaires, mainly multiplechoice answers Data on short term, absenteeism, staff turnover trends, etc. The diary method

Data processing methods

Qualitative analysis of administrative material Analysis of available documentation Descriptive statistics

Qualitative analysis of interview material Descriptive statistics Multivariate analysis techniques

Note: People involved in the company’s work for administrative rationalization (AR), work groups or the head of the department in the company that dealt with AR work connected to computer-based information systems.

Theoretical perspective • 43

However, if the research stops here, it will not be applied to change structures that influence the individual in a good or a bad way. In the IT-related disciplines it is often argued that it is not necessary to make generalizations, since the main effort has been devoted to develop a software program or to make a prototype of software, etc. However, the opportunity to combine qualitative and quantitative research for collection and analysis of data is easier than ever and facilitated by many ICT tools. It was considered very important to start the work with an exploratory phase. In 1974, when this project was started, few socio-psychological studies of the impact of computer technology on the work environment had been done. The research results available dealt mainly with conditions in other countries, where circumstances in the labour market were different. Research often focused on blue-collar workers. In addition, most white-collar worker studies concentrated on the work environments of computer programmers and systems specialists. Moreover, as anticipated, the use of a strategy based on ‘exploration’ in an attempt to highlight previously unknown changes in people ’s working conditions proved to be fruitful. Naturally, formulating hypotheses would have been an alternative approach. There are in fact no major differences between hypothetical-deductive research and critical sociology-psychology. The problem areas of the type we explored in the RAM project are based on non-directed types of hypotheses. The relationships between the concepts were also hypotheses. The ‘hypothesis formulation’ is reproduced in more concrete form by the arrows in the models (Figures 2.1 to 2.3). The structure of the indices and a shortened description of the content of the indices (G. Bradley 1989: 217) are as follows: Psychosocial work environment factors

16 indices

Physio-ergonomic work environment

4 indices

Democracy at work

5 indices

Effects of the display terminal information system

14 indices

Effects of the personal computer system

11 indices

Health problems at work

5 indices

Health problems during leisure time

6 indices

The effects of work on leisure time/family life

3 indices

The weight attached to specific work environment factors and the general attitude to work

4 indices

44 • Theoretical perspective

One way to exemplify what is behind the brief description of indices above is to replicate the content of the indices. The indices – the empirical ‘model’ related to the theoretical models – are represented graphically in Figure 2.4 and are listed in Appendix 2. 2.1.9 Field studies in the RAM project It was possible to translate the theoretical models into their empirical counterparts, both in sub-project 1, where we studied a post company (Post Giro), and in sub-project 2, where we studied an insurance company (Trygg-Hansa). Priority was given to analyses and processes – important in terms of current problems in working life. Subsequently, various attempts were made to examine in more detail ‘sections’ of the models and to select certain strategically dependent variables. Research design and methods – Postal Giro Company Only mainframe computers were in use at the Postal Giro. A batch-type system was in use (with some operations performed by the data processing system and others by the employees). The staff had no direct contact with the computer. The work materials often consisted of data listings instead of, for instance, texts displayed on the terminal screens. Data were gathered from internal documentation (company statistics, minutes from meetings, etc.), interviews with staff who were specialists in the issues being researched, ‘expert interviews’, semi-structured interviews with employees from the company, and questionnaires consisting of fixed alternative answers. A cross-sectional method was used in both the loosely structured interview phase (qualitative) and the more structured phase of the questionnaires (quantitative). All the subjects for the survey had some involvement for at least one year with the computer system being studied. The different phases of the investigation were carried out in 1975 and 1976. Three measuring tools were designed: a semi-structured guide for interviews with experts (see above); a semi-structured guide for interviews with employees; and a final, detailed questionnaire, ‘Work Environment and Rationalization’ (approximately 400 items). The tools show three possible steps towards an evaluation of the EDP system. They are examples of methods for evaluating the effects on the work environment in the broad sense, relating both to planned EDP systems and to systems that were already in use. ‘Electronic data processing system’ was a common term sometimes abbreviated to ‘EDP’ or ‘DP systems’.

Theoretical perspective • 45

The tool used in the quantitative phase was developed from a preliminary questionnaire produced in the autumn of 1973 for the TCO by my research group of the time. The qualitative analysis was used, inter alia, to modify and develop the questionnaire. It was thus adapted to the problems that were covered in this project. It contains over 350 separate questions, primarily with fixed alternative answers. The fourteen areas in the questionnaire correspond by and large with the areas in the theoretical model in Figure 2.2. The questionnaire’s design was based on two methodological considerations. First, we wanted to study the impact of computerization on the psychosocial work environment. Here we wanted to compare the response patterns for different groups of employees within the organization that differed in significant respects in their use of EDP. Second, we wanted to use a questionnaire where the subjects were asked direct questions about the impact of computerization (the EDP system) on different conditions at work. In the tool these ‘computer effect questions’ are supplementary questions after the ‘direct questions’. We often structured the ‘computer questions’ in a similar way to the other questions in the same part of the questionnaire (tool). This allowed the tool to be used in follow-up studies and different types of cross-sectional studies. The method for analysing data included a qualitative analysis of the interview material, descriptive statistics and certain multivariate analytical methods. The group investigated in the quantitative phase was formed by a stratified random sample of the approximately 5000 employees in the organization. Six departments with some major differences in their connection with EDP technology formed sub-populations. Research design and methods – insurance company An online computer system was used at the insurance company. The personnel had direct contact with the computer from their video display terminals (VDTs). We collected data through interviews, first-hand observation, and a study of the company’s internal documentation and questionnaires. The general approach had the nature of a follow-up survey. The process of introducing VDTs was observed over a two-year period, and the work was carried out in the following sequence:

•

quantitative measurements before the introduction of the data processing system, involving all personnel at the company’s head

46 • Theoretical perspective

• •

office, with the aim of assessing employees’ expectations and fears about the introduction of the new VDT system; a semi-structured interview with the users for a query-type terminal system: the objective was problem identification; semi-structured interviews with personnel who had completed training and had just begun work on a new dialogue-type terminal system.

The original plans had to be modified when the company’s computerization programme was halted in the autumn of 1977:

• •

•

interviews with personnel who did not use their VDTs even though they had completed training and had undergone various forms of preparation for VDT work; interviews regarding the modifications to the rationalization plan with experts who represented the trade union, the company, the administrative rationalization personnel and personnel from the Data Processing Department: the objective was to illustrate general trends; quantitative follow-up measurements throughout the head office, after the new terminal system had been introduced: we approached all personnel who were directly or indirectly involved.

The questionnaire survey completed at the end of 1978 and the beginning of 1979 covered the same population as the quantitative measurements of December 1976, before the data processing system was introduced. The work was carried out in close cooperation with a local reference group consisting of two personnel representatives, the personnel head and the head of systems analysis. Personnel representatives from the departments directly involved in the research group’s fieldwork were seconded to the reference group, as were a physiotherapist and company doctor. Experiences from the different phases of the fieldwork at the company provided different kinds of knowledge about computerization. The results of the preparatory measurements will be described here: the interviews carried out in 1976, and the quantitative follow-up measurements that were done in 1978–9. The questionnaire survey was based on a random sample of approximately 1000 employees at the company’s head office. The scales or indices were constructed from the factor analysis of the

Theoretical perspective • 47

items contained in the questionnaires. The indices were based on theoretical concepts, on the findings of my previous research (G. Bradley 1972), and on the study of the Postal Giro. The response alternatives in the questionnaire were graded from 1 to 5 and in the section ‘Information and co-determination’ from 1 to 3. In some cases the response scale was inverted so that 5 (or 3 in the 1–3 scale) always indicated a positive attitude and 1 indicated a negative attitude. Because of the nature of the questions, this approach could not be applied to the indices related to patterns of values and a general attitude to work (the V indices), i.e. ‘weighting, internal’, ‘weighting, external’ and ‘weighting, development’. An average index value was obtained by totalling the points for each question in the index for each individual, and then dividing the total by the number of questions. If a respondent had not answered every question in the index, then that index was only included if at least half of the questions plus one had been answered. The average index value could vary between 1.0 and 5.0 (and 1.0 and 3.0 for the exception mentioned above). The reliability of all indices had been estimated using Cronbach’s alpha formula (Cronbach 1951). Our comparisons included terminal users and non-terminal users with regard to different ‘blocks’ or problem areas:

• • • •

the psychosocial aspects of the work environment (18 indices); perceived effects of the terminal system and computerization in general (14 indices); aspects of democracy at the workplace (5 indices); health aspects (11 indices).

We also compared groups in the same ‘blocks’ with different lengths of experience of working on VDTs, groups with different daily working hours at the VDT, and groups with varying amounts of customer contact with or without ‘computer contact’ at the same time. Only statistically reliable differences are presented below. Figure 2.4 is a general diagram of the variables used in the survey. The indices are included, and the background variables as well. The indices and background data were arranged so that they related to the original theoretical model of the project Figures 2.1 and 2.2. The following groups of variables are found in Figure 2.4:

• •

work-related background data individual-related background data

Figure 2.4 A chart of the indices – empirical ‘model’ related to the theoretical models

50 • Theoretical perspective

• •

• •

• •

personal data family circumstances weighting of work environment factors and general attitude to work (V indices) work environment factors (perceived work environment conditions) • psychosocial work environment factors (S indices) • democracy at work (DEM indices) • physio-ergonomic work environment factors (F indices) the effects of the data processing system on the work environment • effects of the terminal system (T indices) • general effects of the data processing system (D indices) the effects of a bad/good work environment • health problems at work (HA indices) • health problems in leisure time (HF indices) • effects of work on leisure time/family life (AF indices) • effects of the data processing system on leisure time activities (DF indices).

A list of all indices related to the models used in the investigation is found in Appendix 2. The abbreviations for indices where the indices are described in composite questions are also included. Different ‘blocks’ of problems were analysed in relation to the project’s theoretical model:

• • • •

the psychosocial aspects of the work environment the effects of the VDT system and the general impact of computerization aspects of democracy at the workplace health factors.

Different comparisons were made analysing these problem areas. An analysis of the mean differences was made with the help of T tests. The results could be analysed in many ways. On that occasion, a number of processes were given priority with regard to the prevailing level of knowledge. 2.1.10 Summary and discussion The work environment has been considered in terms of the following: the different levels; the objective–subjective work environments; the interplay between working life and private life; and the life cycle perspective.

Theoretical perspective • 51

The work models of the RAM project are illustrated in Figures 2.1 and 2.2. These diagrams show the relationship between the objective and subjective work environments, the different effects and the ways the phenomena are expressed. The definition of the factors was further refined through a comprehensive series of interviews with employees in the organizations studied in the project (the qualitative phase). Psychological variables is a general term covering a number of intermediate, psychologically relevant variables such as the level of aspiration and the weight attached to specific work-environment areas. These variables are essential if one wishes to understand and explain the subjective work environment and its dynamics and also the perceptions of the conditions that govern our lives in general. They are crucial in the analysis of subgroups of employees and cultural variations. The concept of psychosocial refers to the process involving the interaction between the objective environment and the subjective one . Essential concepts within the psychosocial work environment include factors such as contact patterns and communication, organizational structure and design, work content and workload, participation in decision-making, promotional and development patterns, salary conditions and working hours. And psychosocial refers both to the objective and corresponding subjective factors. The term psychosocial work environment is used to signify the course of events and the process that occur when objective factors in the environment are reflected in the individual’s perception (either positive or negative) of work and conditions of work. Its essence is the interaction between the environment and the individual. Thus work environment factors exist at different levels – the level of society, the level of the company and the level of the individual – and they interact with one another. But there is also a distinction between the objective and the subjective work environment, which also interact (G. Bradley 1989). Objective conditions outside work refers to behaviour, consumption and conditions that prevail during the hours spent away from work, according to the traditional definition of work. Objective conditions outside work were affected by the changes related to the use of computerization at work during the first stages in the history of computing. Certain attitudes, values and experiences related to private

52 • Theoretical perspective

life/leisure and family life were also analysed in our empirical studies during the 1970s and 1980s, against the background of the introduction of computer technology into the individual’s work. The theoretical models used in the RAM programme were used as models in discussing what structure a computerized society should have (see the two-way arrows in the figure) and what might be desirable goals. This was also done in a special chapter on action strategies in G. Bradley (1986) and also in my chapter in the book Computers and Society (Beardon and Whitehouse 1993). From the empirical experiences a checklist was developed to evaluate the implementation of computer systems or systems in use. The checklist is used to give a rapid assessment of which aspects of the work and working conditions are to be improved and developed. Keywords were specified and complemented with examples of areas to be selected for analysis, design and action. Theories, methods and results from the RAM programme are summarized in Computers and the Psychosocial Work Environment (G. Bradley 1989). The broader view in the RAM project has been presented at international conferences, and the tools have been translated into English. Many projects have focused on specific aspects of the organizational work environment related to computerization and ICT. In G. Bradley (2001) some major international research projects are summarized, focusing on the changes in work and quality of work. The methodologies for empirical testing of the model could equally be applied to later periods of the development of ICT. The book Computers and the Psychosocial Work Environment offers some concrete examples. However, the term ‘computer program’ in questions and text in these research projects could be substituted by ICT applications, embedded technology and ubiquitous technology, wireless personal communication (for example, laptops and PDAs), etc., depending on what type of technology or combinations of technologies are in focus . 2.2 The Convergence Model – theoretical models revisited 2.2.1 Convergence theory of ICT and the psychosocial life environment In our later projects the fourth period and present network period in the evolution of computer technology has been explored. Both the

Theoretical perspective • 53

psychosocial and the societal impacts of ICT have been in focus, best referred to in our ongoing research programme entitled ‘Interplay ICT – Humans – Society’. Figure 4.1 is an illustration of the various problem areas included in that programme. The network period is very much based on the convergence and integration of the three main technologies: computer technology, teletechnology and media technology (see below). The convergence process is enforced and accelerated through smaller, cheaper, more powerful components. ICT is more and more being used in almost every activity and embedded in more and more things – ubiquitous computing. The graphical representations in my theoretical models have been changed; converging circles to represent the network period and the ongoing processes are better than the squares used in the initial models. Interactions are still important features in the model, but in addition there are convergences. Convergence means a move towards a common point. Interaction means that technology interacts with the social world with values and believes. There is also an ongoing interaction between the ‘clusters of circles’. Similar basic phenomena pointed out in the initial theory are valid:

• • • • • •

four rather than three levels of analysis (individual, organizational, community and societal) objective and subjective environments interplay between the levels of analysis interplay between objective and subjective environments interplay between working life, private life and public life a life-cycle perspective.

In the following, the main constituents of the convergence theory in Figure 2.4 are presented – a further refinement of the corresponding convergence model in G. Bradley (2001). Starting from the left side of Figure 2.5:

•

A convergence is taking place between technology, economy, norms/values and labour market under the name of globalization. The geographical span is changing. At present our work life is based mainly on national and international trade, which we will see softening in the future, taking on a more global character. Electronic commerce and electronic marketplaces are creating a strong change factor for the structure of work life. The geographical space in the future will be both global and beyond – including virtual reality.

54 • Theoretical perspective

•

•

• •

A convergence of computer technology, telecommunication technology and media is much in evidence, resulting in what is called Information and Communication Technology (ICT). Knowledge as well as information is managed in new ways. In the 2000s there are multiple channels to choose from: word of mouth, writing, audio-visual, electronics. In the future we talk more about meta-channels, e.g. meta-media of virtual reality (VR) and controlled reality environments, i.e. environments manipulated and managed in VR. Work environment, home environment and public environment are converging into a life environment, where the public issues tend to merge with the private sphere of our homes. A new emphasis is put on certain factors in the psychosocial environment, and quite new dimensions are appearing in the psychosocial environment. Openness to unforeseen implications is required. Professional role (work life), private role (private life) and citizen’s role (public life) converge, forming a life role. Effects on the individual become more multifaceted and complex. This is valid for both psychological and physical effects – effects on humans.

Four circles representing virtual reality are marked with dotted lines and surround the set of converging circles. They could also be drawn as dotted circles that overlap the other circles in each of the four clusters/ groups that represent ICT, life environment, life role and globalization in Figure 2.5. These circles reflect our participation in cyberspace on various levels. To the left in Figure 2.5 we could talk about virtual worlds on the global level. Within the concept of ICT, the steps taken by applied embedded and ubiquitous technology make technology more hidden to the individual and society as a whole. Virtual environments, to the right in Figure 2.5, are already a common concept. Finally we could talk about virtual human roles, which in more extreme forms could be another personality that people take on, e.g. avatars. The idea that ‘effects on humans are multifaceted’ is represented in the convergence model in Figure 2.5 with a stylized flower at the lower right. The converging circles form a life role, and special new lifestyles are created. Research focusing upon the individual is crucial – research concerning how ICT changes affect:

• • •

identity and self-perception social competence creativity

(G. Bradley 2005)

Figure 2.5 Convergence Model for ICT and psychosocial life environment

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• • •

integrity trust – security – privacy (the terms vary) addictiveness, dependency.

Expressed in another way and with a normative approach, it is important to develop and use ICT to create a balance between key aspects of human life (see Figure 2.5). For many years there has been too much focus on rational components, traditional male values and behaviour, overemphasizing information and communication, adopting an instrumental perspective to working life, e.g. a means to fulfil our needs privately (see also Chapter 4, section 4.5). Within informatics a discussion of focus is taking place: both analysis and design need to address not only the work process and management connected to the sphere of production life, but also people’s life environment. Not only professional roles but also our roles as citizens and private persons are crucial. In Chapter 5 this area will be addressed in section 5.12, where the home as a virtual and physical space is discussed. Community research in a broad sense comes to the fore, with respect to both physical and virtual communities. Analysis and design of ICT and societal systems both at local level and globally become important. The labour market parties in the Nordic countries used to play a role in system development and research in informatics and ICT-related disciplines in the 1970s. A renewal of the structures and focus within these organizations is taking place in Europe. There is also a need for new and additional actors in the deeper and broader integration of ICT in society (children, elderly, and consumer organizations). The Convergence Model holds a paradox. At the same time as convergence and the blurring of boundaries occur, a parallel fragmentation process is occurring, with a re-forming and hardening of social divisions. This is often referred to as the ‘digital divide’, a split that can be analysed on various levels. The convergence in the technology field and in the life environment seems to cause an increased stress level and overstimulation in the Western industrialized countries. The gap between ‘those who have’ and ‘those who have not’ seems to increase. Compaine edited The Digital Divide – Facing a Crisis or Creating a Myth? (2001), mainly analysing the situation in the USA, and concludes in the last chapter, entitled ‘Declare the War Won’, by

Theoretical perspective • 57

saying that figures indicate that the penetration of the Internet has grown across classes and groups in USA and the gap – the digital divide – is tending to disappear. However, the digital divide still exists for social groups in most countries, and globally between developed and developing countries. It is a complex phenomenon. Some headings in Compaine’s book give a hint of the various problems associated with the digital divide. Universal access to computers and the Internet has great potential for wealth redistribution. Cheap computers and broadband access may bridge the digital divide. The same could be said about mobile phones. But in addition to access to the various kinds of hardware and gadgets, there is still a need for capital, not least human capital created through education and training. 2.2.2 Methodologies for testing the Convergence Model – some comments Conceptualizing new phenomena is part of the research process. It is fundamental for the social and behavioural sciences that the starting point is both theory and in-depth interviews – which in turn are dependent on the stage reached in the research field. Also the research questions that are addressed and formulated need to come from a combination of in-depth interviews and theory. To study a dynamic field such as ICT and social change, we must develop new concepts to reflect the changes that are occurring, and grasp the latest new phenomena in depth. The research laboratories and the field studies have become more international and global: there is a need to incorporate many disciplines in the analyses of the ICT society. An example of the globalization of research into ICT and social change is the World Internet Survey that started at UCLA in the USA and now includes many countries around the world. It is possible to follow the development and the growth of the ICT society with international statistics. Further growth and examination of knowledge are taking place internationally in workshops and seminars. In WITFOR 2003, political leaders and researchers from developed and developing countries met to formulate guidelines for the use of ICT in order to prevent the digital divide (see Chapter 9 on Actions). However, for a deep understanding of the social and psychological changes we need to observe and analyse our own environment at work

58 • Theoretical perspective

and at home, and our inner life. Even studies on ourselves – our thoughts, feelings, priorities, behaviour – have a relevance. Piaget developed his famous theory by looking closely at himself and his child. Theories of human behaviour and human needs are necessary to interpret properly the results from these large international comparative studies. Other studies have the character of technology forecasts and future scenarios for the ICT society. Design problems within informatics and associated disciplines come to the fore, not only systems design. Also societal design, regional design, organizational design and role design become more important in the development, introduction and use of ICT. The various aspects of design could be represented by converging circles. Of course, more traditional fields such as architecture, industrial design and graphic design will be involved as well. 2.3 How do the theories presented relate to other theories on the information society? In what follows, a brief overview of classical theories in the area of the information society is presented. To answer the heading above I would like to refer to Frank Webster’s Theories of the Information Society (1995). His approach is an interrogative and sceptical view of the concept of an ‘Information Society’ (IS). His approach is to start from contemporary social theories instead of social impact approaches. The ‘pro-IS perspective’ means that the theory involves hypotheses arguing that there is a clear shift over to something new, to a quite different type of society. The ‘anti-IS perspective’ constitutes a group of theories which argue that there is a continuation of structures and processes and that there is no need talk about a new era of ‘Information Society’. The following frameworks and terminologies could be associated with pro-IS perspectives according to Webster: post-industrialism, postmodernism, flexible specialization, the information mode of development. The following frameworks and terminologies are regarded as anti-IS theories: neo-Marxism, regulation theory, flexible accumulation, the nation state and violence, the public sphere. Webster brings forward five definitions of the information society representing criteria for the new society, on their own or in combination: technological, economical, occupational, spatial and cultural.

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I choose to describe briefly the main content of these five theories. 1 Anthony Giddens (2000) argues that the origins of today’s ‘information societies’ are to be found in surveillance activities largely driven by the requirements of a world organized into nation states. The modern world consists of nations that are ‘information societies’ and have always been so, but need even more to maintain the following: • allocative resources such as planning and administration • authoritative resources such as power and control • information, which is the core of modern military affairs. Giddens recognizes that information per se has great importance in society but underlines that the significant character of society is the continuity, that pattern and structures in society reappear and that ICT does not challenge that pattern. 2 According to the Critical Theory of Herbert Schiller (1993), labelled as neo-Marxism, ICT is significant for the stability and health of the economic system. He concludes that ICT is controlled by corporate capitalism and international empires, market criteria and consumerism, which means that it is necessary to sell a global life style. He looks at information as a commodity. In consequence, he raises the question: ICT – for whose benefit and under whose control is it implemented? The strength of Schiller lies in the presentation of openings to alternative ways of organizing society and in his emphasizing that the information society has a real human history, developed by social forces. 3 Jürgen Habermas (1989) fears that the ‘public sphere’, of major importance to the proper conduct of democracies, is being diminished. The public sphere is the independent arena where public opinion was formed over a period of about 100 years. The quality of information determines the health of the participants. ICT stresses commercial principles and systems of mass communication. The information content is characterized by actions, adventure, trivia and sensations. 4 The ‘Regulation School’ addresses a theory on how a capitalist system can achieve stability. Fordism-Keynesianism of the industrial society is thereby changed to post-Fordism, characterized by • globalization of market, production, finance and communication • corporate restructuring, e.g. downsizing, outsourcing, ICT infrastructure, less mass production • flexible specialization

60 • Theoretical perspective

•

effects on labour, e.g. flexibility of employees, wage flexibility, time flexibility. 5 According to postmodernism, a new type of society is appearing. There is a paradigm shift. R. Barthes (Webster 1995) emphasizes that reality is primarily a matter of language and discourse, hence the world is informational. J. Baudrillard (ibid.) emphasizes that culture is one important sign of IS, and that the signs are simulations not representations and that there is no distinction between real–unreal, true–false. G. Vatimo (ibid.) thinks that the expansion of media creates multi-perspectivism. J.-F. Lyotard (ibid.) states that: • Knowledge and information are treated as a commodity; • Truth is replaced by a plurality of truths; • New skills requirements emerge; • lifelong education becomes necessary. Webster argues that characteristics of capitalist continuity in society remain. At the same time there is a shift in orientation to a novel form of work organization and changes in occupational patterns. He concludes that there is no system break. My own perspective on this complex issue is a combination of the ‘pro-IS’ and ‘anti-IS’ theories. In the short run the development of society might appear as a continuation according to Giddens. But in a market-driven globalized world there will be an antithesis, a stage where a paradigm shift occurs, resulting in a deeper rethinking in order for society to survive. The network society, in its various shapes, changes the basis for individual and societal identities. Web communities are bringing together people across new dimensions. The prerequisites for informal power are growing, and power will not be associated with capital to the same degree as now. The costs of empowering people with knowledge capital are gradually becoming less. My conclusion from Convergence Theory and the more macro-oriented theories above is that the introduction and use of ICT in the home environment should not be left to the steering factors that have been present in work life over the years. A cross-disciplinary research programme is strongly called for and should be integrated with full-scale models for various applications. Basic human needs and ‘people-push’ technology not ‘technology push’ should be a leading principle. The most comprehensive contribution during the last few years is Manuel Castells’ trilogy The Information Age: Economy, Society, and Culture (1996–8). It is ‘a life work’ and comparable with Marx’s Das

Theoretical perspective • 61

Kapital. It has a sociological and economical focus, and presents empirical data supporting all reasons to talk about a Net society. Jensen (1999) talks about the Dream Society, which represents the end of humankind’s multi-millennium epoch of material domination, and he makes a prediction for the beginning of the first post-materialistic era. He organizes the most important raw materials of the twenty-first century into four groups:

• • • •

agricultural era: soil, fields, livestock industrial era: coal, oil, steel information era: data, information, knowledge dream era: pictures, stories, myths, legends.

He stresses that the raw materials dominating in the dream era are available also among the populations of less-developed countries, e.g. African countries, India, along the Polar Circle, and the Pacific islands. 2.4 Future research related to the models 2.4.1 Focus on psychosocial life environment/ quality of life and well-being Living in a society deeply and broadly affected by the new technology, it may be harder to identify risks and opportunities. A new generation is here, having grown up in the digital environment. There are reasons today to turn our attention to the ‘classics’ in research. How are human needs for influence, belonging and meaning met in the new structures? In the development of the ‘home of the future’, there is a growing market for all kinds of ICT applications – services and equipment. We need to analyse and design the good home – when our roles are integrating. 2.4.2 Focus on the effects on individual humans Some examples of desirable research focusing on the individual are: how is the use of ICT and mobile and wireless applications changing

• • • • •

our identity and self-perception our social competence creativity integrity trust

62 • Theoretical perspective

• • • • •

the balance between products and services the balance between emotional and rational components the balance between female and male involvement and alienation the individual and collective.

2.4.3 Focus on some major psychosocial processes as policy statements Research questions and policy questions could be brought closer together and be discussed across cultures:

• • • • •

Integration: Normatively, ICT should contribute to enrichment in the social contact between people and should be used to prevent social isolation and facilitate integration. Autonomy: ICT should contribute to a greater autonomy for the individual. Control or freedom is a classic issue often described in the terms of ‘privacy–integrity’. Balance/harmony: ICT should facilitate information access for all and support individual learning, but at the same time prohibit various kinds of overload, e.g. information overload, contact overload. Humanization: ICT should contribute to the deepening and development of true human qualities and be used to provide time for people to develop as human beings. E-cooperation (peace): E-conflicts must be avoided. E-cooperation and peace are major concerns.

We need to focus on syntheses. Again, I think normative research is much demanded. By now there are reasons to set human welfare and life quality for all as core societal goals.

3 Information and communication technology (ICT) – past, present and future

• •

Computer technology and its development

ICT past, present and future

ICT global key areas

3.1 Computer technology and its development 3.1.1 Phases in the development of computer technology The golden age of the mainframe computer began in the 1950s and peaked towards the middle of the 1960s. Computer power was to be centralized. Bigger and faster computers with relatively large memory capacities were designed. These computers were used more for purely administrative applications than for scientific and technical applications, for which they were originally constructed. Data processing departments began to appear in large numbers. This trend changed towards the end of the 1960s, with the appearance of the minicomputer. Although their memory capacity was somewhat limited in the early stages, minicomputers were fully capable of handling a wide range of technical applications and tasks. They were also inexpensive and easier to install and run than the large mainframe computers. Minicomputers became increasingly common in offices and in industry. The decentralization of data processing power had begun. The performance of minicomputers began to be on a par with the now old-fashioned mainframe computers, and their prices were much lower. The third phase in this process of development was the introduction of the microprocessor. The microprocessor was the main response of component technology to the need that arose in the 1970s for small, decentralized computers which could be built into instruments, machines and other equipment. The microprocessor at the heart of the microcomputer is:

64 • ICT past, present and future

• • •

highly complex in design, but easily adaptable to a wide variety of tasks; mass-produced but, with the appropriate software, adaptable to a range of final applications; very inexpensive to purchase, but capable of imparting a higher value to the products in which it is used, and of giving them a broader area of application.

Because of the possibilities it opens up for integrating more and more electronic functions while occupying less and less space, the microprocessor is a revolutionary invention. It has proved possible to lower dramatically the price per function in integrated circuits by economical production methods and large batch production. If combined with semiconductor memory and other electronic components, the microprocessor can even become a complete single-chip microcomputer. We have witnessed since the 1970s a continuous miniaturization and a doubling of capacity and processing power about every 18 months at the same price level (‘Moore’s Law’). In parallel a development of teletechnology has created mobile wireless technology. The revolutionary change in recent decades was that, thanks to the usual operation of Moore’s Law and the allocation by the authorities of large blocks of RF bandwidth, it became possible to produce, for example, cellular mobile phones as mass-market consumer goods. The global Internet has been created through an organic growth of powerful telenetworks and computers. 3.2 ICT global key areas The following key areas have been identified by an expert group of the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences as having a significant impact on information and communication systems during the next 10–15 years. The presentation here is largely based on their report (IVA 2003):

• • • • • •

ubiquitous computing – IT everywhere complex systems interface entertainment technology information processing architectures and infrastructure.

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3.2.1 Ubiquitous computing – IT everywhere Everyday life is increasingly pervaded by intelligent technical devices, and soon all this equipment will keep us permanently connected. They will be designed for wired or wireless communication, often both. Telematics is a fast-growing field. The automobile is becoming more and more intelligent, and communication at an advanced level is already being used today. For example, telematics is applied to the use of Global Positioning System (GPS) in the car. The communication will become even more complex in the future, turning our cars into mobile communication and entertainment devices. In addition, a growing number of applications have been developed to increase safety. Such telematic systems also interact with road informatics applications, further discussed below. Both mechatronics and techniques to build complete systems on a single integrated circuit, system-on-a-chip (SoC), are gaining ground. Mechatronics products include by definition mechanics, electronics and software. The development of such products often takes place in large organizations, with involvement of many disciplines on both a product level and an organizational level. Today mechatronics plays a definite and expanding role in the engineering industry. In terms of value, IT is becoming more important. SoC is used in small, increasingly complex electronic components for consumer products, and it is the technique used in mobile phones and digital cameras. As yet, the full potential of this technique has not been reached by a long way. It is often given as a future solution, even if a distant one, in combination with nanotechnology to solve problems which now dominate for people with handicaps and to help people who have diseases which have previously been regarded as incurable. SoC technology can be used for cheap and secure single-use solutions with firmware, where software is implemented in hardware form to reduce vulnerability – instructions or data are stored in PROM (programmable read-only memory). Applications can, for instance, be various types of payment solutions where the issuer guarantees security. Ubiquitous computing, ‘IT everywhere’, describes this key area and includes everything from sensor technology for biological purposes, implant systems and ubiquitous control systems, to computer chips in clothing. One example is a cochlear implant – an electronic device that

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converts sounds into an electrical signal and then sends this to the auditory nerve. Research related to implant systems goes on to develop ‘nano-structured bioelectronic interfaces’, in pacemakers, for example. These systems may communicate with the surrounding world to update and compare information and give advice on appropriate actions. Ubiquitous computing is used, for instance, in healthcare and logistics, and to increase transport security. Communication between all these autonomous computers poses demands for a robust architecture. New protocols and communication interfaces will very likely have to be developed. RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) circuits are well suited for storing authentication information, but must be used together with an ID architecture for all dead things to ‘come alive’. In other words, for it to be meaningful to integrate IT everywhere, the artefacts must be able to communicate who they are to their outer context. Our homes are coming more and more to the centre of embedded technology, i.e. products and gadgets containing embedded technology are entering our homes, but also embedded technology is being built into the house – for example, for heating and alarm functions. The development has been somewhat uneven, but the latest housing areas in several countries are increasingly characterized by embedded IT technology. (See also Chapter 5.) 3.2.2 Complex systems The demands to have the right information at the right time to make good decisions, or to meet certain requirements, are pushing system development. Various subsystems are being combined and integrated into larger, more complex systems to handle advanced information and tasks. Such complex systems must fulfil new and harder requirements: they must be reliable, with a secure kernel, and they must be autonomous and self-testing, as well as being flexible and tolerant towards our way of interacting with the system. Systems, applications and services should be able to handle mobile use and mobile labour with virtual identities. Services are expected to be intelligent, adaptive, self-configuring and well-integrated with mobile interfaces. They should be automatically context-aware, personalized and user-configured. They must act in secure, reliable environments and

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be able to manage multilingual, multicultural contexts. Also, they should provide a number of alternative ways for interaction between the user and their environment. At the very best, we should not have to think at all about our systems – they should simply ‘be there’, solving whatever needs we might have – be it automation, increasing service productivity, or providing support for decision-making. To make it happen, embedded cognitive systems must reach a new level. These systems must understand the information and semantics to communicate intelligently within their context. They need to model successfully a human-like behaviour for activities requiring context-aware knowledge. The field of complex systems therefore drives the development of system architectures and software engineering techniques for self-analysing circuits, real-time information, operation and intrusion security, high performance and maximal flexibility and interoperability. An important aspect is to design systems with sound basic security from the very beginning. Security starts with closing ports that need not be open, and making sure virus protection, firewalls and other protection mechanisms are part of the system from the start. Large complex systems, such as transport, logistics, healthcare and financial service applications, constitute a starting point to increase productivity and meet business rationalization objectives. Management systems and automation systems become more complex. The demand to make the right decision at the right time based on limited information adds heavy demands on functionality and on adaptivity to individual businesses. A core principle of the new management systems will be to handle the complex level of interoperability characterizing open networks of intelligent, autonomous, adaptive, self-configuring and scalable software components. Furthermore, these systems must fully support the use of a mobile workforce. 3.2.3 Interface ‘Interface’ is a broad term that refers to, on one hand, the communication between systems or units – for instance, signalling and cooperation between two software programs – and, on the other hand, the user interface, i.e. how a computer and a user communicate by means of the screen, keyboard and mouse. The term has a wider scope as well nowadays covering interaction between the user and the machine.

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The wider interpretation of the concept points to its increasing significance with the expansion of information technology. A rapidly advancing branch of user interface design is visualization, i.e. visual representations of information. Better visualization will strengthen the pedagogic content of applications and our understanding of them. New areas need to be explored in the fast-developing visualization field of applications for the entertainment industry, introduction of new products and learning applications; new media services call for new types of interface design. We also need better ways of interpreting images of high complexity, such as images of the inner parts of our body. It is important that images can be interpreted by computers, not only by the human eye. Furthermore, a well-designed human–computer interaction scheme is a key to future competitiveness of our automation systems, for instance. In the broader sense of ‘user interface’, there is a compelling force to make the interaction between humans and IT tools easier and more intuitive. The coming generation of senior citizens, for instance, will make demands for simple, intuitive user interfaces. Intelligent voice recognition and voice-monitored applications will remain in demand, as will interfaces interpreting language, gestures, movement and senses such as smell, taste and somatic senses (pressure and heat). Another well-discussed area is concerned with having the right information at the right time. Intelligent interfaces for searching, information filtering and semantic interpretation, where the context is processed according to personal user preferences, are in great demand. The same goes for functions such as tracking the location of objects and human beings, as well as devices used as health indicators. The Web being always available through the Internet in the future brings about larger requirements on dynamically adjusting information to different screens and loudspeakers. Human–computer interaction has been a hot topic internationally for over 20 years. Every second year, researchers and practitioners come together to share knowledge. The area could best be described using the title of the present programme committees at the HCI International conferences, e.g. human interface and the management of information; ergonomics and health aspects of work with computers; engineering psychology and cognitive ergonomics; universal access in human– computer interaction; usability and internationalization.

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3.2.4 Entertainment technology Entertainment technology is a term encompassing a rich spectrum of technological applications for efficient digitization, compression and integration of image, text, sound and video. New software platforms for efficient production and distribution of games, music, film and media, for instance, fall into this category. The development of visualization and rendering techniques for VR and 3-D (three-dimensional) presentation as well as sound and image refinement technology belong here as well. Interaction techniques are becoming more important. Contextualizing, personalization and real-time applications are some examples here. Of great importance also is the ability to adequately describe, identify and locate multimedia. The use of new hardware can strengthen the user experience, and thus computer screens that are foldable, of organic or lightweight material, close to the eye, or wall screens, or screens that can render in three dimensions may be an interesting development, as well as the technology of portable sound systems. The development of specially designed servers and terminals for entertainment in our homes or at work has just started. Of course, the digital infrastructure is of great importance in the realization of new kinds of user experiences. New protocols, platforms and architectures for real-time routing, P2P (peer-to-peer) distribution, storing and streaming with high quality will be in demand. The emergence of comprehensive monitoring by the media, as seen in the Iraq wars and the 9/11 terrorist attacks, has in addition to the above-mentioned technologies demonstrated the need for advanced mobile liaison systems. 3.2.5 Information processing In the key field of information processing, the following domains are of particular importance: bioinformatics, road informatics (IT for road traffic) and environmental informatics. An emerging domain that has received less attention, but is growing in importance, is Net informatics. It is not an easy task to predict how these domains will develop. However, we can be certain that an increasing value will be placed on information. Information will become a core non-material resource of perhaps greater worth than has ever been the case for material resources. Thus, we must learn how to make use of this huge information resource, how to make it accessible and manageable.

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Bioinformatics is a new field in IT driven by the developments within the biotechnology area and the latest research in biology. The developments are determined to a great extent by the demands of major global customers. The bioinformatics field is characterized by a great need for a soft infrastructure and a call for ways to retrieve, process and interpret large amounts of data and complex information systems. Great demands are also put on production technology, software engineering technology, database design, real-time systems, sensor technology and image processing. The demand for road informatics will rise as telematics keeps expanding. Without the use of road informatics the advantages of telematics in cars are reduced. Road informatics is needed as well to make the operations of ‘blue-light services’ (police, fire brigade, ambulance, rescue, etc.) more efficient. Environmental informatics is a third exciting area for advanced information processing. It is well known that environmental issues are growing in importance and turning into global concerns, and also that our environment is affected by a great number of variables that hold highly complex information. Thus IT has a great mission to serve here. The significance and value of information are increasing, and the activities on the Internet are growing in frequency and intensity. The amount of digital information available on the Web is gigantic. The estimated total size of Web pages and other information sources – for example, databases – is estimated at 8 petabytes (10 to the power of 18 bytes). As a consequence, demands are increasing to measure traffic on the Internet more effectively in order to interpret, forecast and follow up information flows, and to develop the Net infrastructure and gain an understanding of user behaviour. Thus, the fourth domain of advanced Net informatics will evolve. Worldwide, there is a growing sector of research and education in informatics dealing with the interaction between ICT and society, both at the individual and the corporate, organizational level, i.e. social informatics and community informatics. 3.2.6 Architectures and infrastructure The Internet has become a resource that may potentially replace the computer. A computer is no longer necessary to run certain programs, because they can reside as Web applications anywhere on the Internet.

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Internet-based program applications can be accessed via mobile phones. We are moving towards a society in which we will always be connected, and so will all our technical devices. New types of distributed architectures for advanced cooperation and autonomy are coming to the fore. The idea is to optimize resource allocation by combining the processing power of multiple independent computers to handle large calculations and perform complex problem-solving in a distributed environment. Grid computing, which is the name of this area, can make the Internet more efficient, and it is expected to gain importance as the need for complex computations of operations for design, production, services, and operation and maintenance grows. The hard infrastructure in all its aspects – radio as well as copper and optical fibre technology – will keep expanding. The soft infrastructure of platforms managing authentication and secure information exchange, services and distribution of media such as news, films and music will experience an explosive development. Our demands for high capacity and efficient use of Net resources will increase exponentially, in particular in the consumption of media content. The Internet will become the infrastructure for data communication and telecommunication, media and workplace. It will also serve the role of meeting-place and provider of radio, TV, newspaper, books, music and film. The expansion of entertainment systems has also an impact on the infrastructure area. Home server portals require interoperability with home networks, and home networks with our global networks. Transporting, monitoring and optimizing resources of scalable audiovisual data on heterogeneous networks also add demands on the quality of service. Moreover, quality of service implies access to real broadband. The IT infrastructure will also hold an increasing number of sensors to monitor goods, persons, transport, states and changes of all kinds. Sensor networks will make possible automatic control of transport, automatic registration, payment, authentication, etc. As the IT infrastructure integrates more with other infrastructures in society, the possibilities for efficient flexible monitoring and control of resources increase.

4 ICT and humans – ongoing changes in working life

• •

Changes in working life

Introduction Continuous changes occur in the design of organization, work and management in the Net era

• • • • •

Networking – psychosocial communication becomes a key issue Stress – with ICT our tempo is increasing Allocation issues – knowledge transfer – global villages Research Concluding remarks

4.1 Introduction We are living in a time of accelerated technological development that affects us all, both in our professional and private lives and in our roles as citizens. This is true with regard to the nature of our work, the design of our organizations, in communication between people and also in leadership and managerial roles. The term ‘IT’ (information technology), or rather ‘ICT’ (information and communication technology) which is more commonly used in Europe, surrounds us more and more often. For me, ICT is the combination of computer technology, telecommunication technology and media technology. The convergence of these three technologies definitely creates a very powerful force. I will use the expressions IT and ICT with the same meaning throughout this book. Informatics has somewhat different profiles in academia around the world. In recent years, the discipline has developed more and more towards the research field ‘technology and social change’. It is a field that has been close to my heart and a strong interest for 25 years and where I have undertaken much cross-disciplinary research. Social informatics is about the prerequisites, the applications and the impact of ICT on humans.

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Figure 4.1 is an overview or a graphical summary of our main research areas. Below I will elaborate on some of these issues, commenting upon ICT and its relation to work organizations, human communication, stress, allocation issues, knowledge transfer and global villages. In Chapter 2, section 2.2, there is a discussion of some major psychosocial processes related to the content of this chapter. 4.2 Continuous changes occur in the design of organization, work and management in the Net era There is a pattern of major change in the organizational structure related to the use of IT (computerization), which in our research has been analysed during three main periods in the history of IT (G. Bradley 1986). What is happening with work content and work organization in the latest (fourth) era of computerization – the Net era? The earlier phases (eras) were: 1 Mainframe computers with batch systems 2 Online systems with display units 3 Microcomputerization We have achieved more flexible work processes regarding both the professional role itself and leadership. Furthermore, the professional

Figure 4.1 Focus of research: Interplay ICT – Humans – Society

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role, the learning role and the role of the citizen are becoming more and more integrated. Repetitive jobs and physically strenuous jobs, including routine work, are disappearing and a total upgrading of qualifications has occurred. In parallel with this, the organization has become flattened out, with fewer managerial levels and less hierarchy. The type of organizational structure which has become more and more common is networks. Our ongoing research is directed towards psychosocial and organizational aspects of networking. In an international perspective, more work tasks are becoming similar because the same software programs are sold worldwide and the work tasks are carried out in a similar way. Moreover, the demand for common processes from an increasing group of global clients drives the development of common work tasks and activities independent of geographical market. The futuristic view that we would have paperless offices has not materialized. People still use paper a lot, but this might change. However, peopleless offices are increasing. In industry a robotization is going on. An old lace cloth is to my mind an excellent model for how the world might work and what social systems, organizations and official authorities will look like in the future. (The lace in Figure 4.2 was crocheted by my grandmother.) The network era has arrived and seems to be here to stay, and networks interact more and more wirelessly. It is possible to crochet all the time: each new loop (computer) is connected to another through the same yarn (teletechnology). The distribution of power is now possible in quite a deep sense, competence being transferred to the periphery, out to the production line. The hierarchical structures of companies mirrored industrialization and industrial technology during the mainframe period of the computerization era. What characteristics does the network organization have, and how are people affected by this new structure? Some examples:

• • • • • • • • •

direct communication between the various levels of the organization; disappearance of barriers between idea and execution; reallocation of power in the organization; continuous changes of structures and roles; openness to the surrounding world – borderlessness; competence becomes more important than having a specific job position; a new role for management; immediate distribution of information; a multi-dimensional virtual culture.

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Future management skills that are important are coaching and encouraging people, being able to force future development before others, and take action to meet the future situation. Organizations are bound together by common sets of goals, vision, mission and values. These beliefs and statements become more important as we enter the world of more flexible organizations without clear borders. People choose to belong or not belong to companies

a: symbolizes centralized network

b: symbolizes decentralized network Figure 4.2 Crocheted tablecloths (G. Bradley 2001)

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depending on whether they agree or disagree with the company ’s values. Management recruits people based on potential to ‘fit with the company culture’. Workers may be successful in their jobs if they understand their individual roles, and can identify the most important relationships to other roles in the organization and how to interact with these roles (i.e. persons). Each role has its own network in this sense. In today’s organizations, employees may have more than one role and sometimes as many as four or five roles, each of which has its individual ‘web of necessary relationships’. These network relationships will help us find the competency and services needed to fulfil objectives associated with a certain role. These relationships encompass cross-border relationships as well as cross-organization relationships. Maintaining and developing these relationships is a key skill. Some organizations view their internal organization as a marketplace where services between roles are asked for and sold corresponding to an internal currency and competency. New IT-supported business governance systems appear that will support the ‘internal trading’ of competencies and services. 4.2.1 How does the workforce in the flexible company function in the network era? At the centre, there is a core workforce of permanent full-time employees enjoying a wide range of employment rights and benefits. However, the core workforce is decreasing. The other growing part is

Figure 4.3 Core workforce in the flexible company is decreasing

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called the peripheral workforce (Figure 4.3). This consists of part-time staff, self-employed consultants, sub-contracted and outsourced workers, and temporary and agency employees. Some of these ‘knowledge workers’ are key resources, while others are exchangeable. Through the network organizational structure they might have very strong positions in the company through their expertise or social contacts, although this is invisible. Power is invisible in these new forms of organizations. Power has no outward manifestation and is not reflected to the same extent as before in symbols and manners linked to leadership. One common trait, though, is that the peripheral workers are so-called free agents. They take care of their own security, skills development and personal marketing. They are very loosely, if at all, tied into the welfare system. They are strong when healthy and good times are present, but are in a high-risk situation when health and family relations and market downturn take away their energy and motivation. Hence, more and more we are seeing organic organizational structures, with a focus on flexible work processes, including dynamic networks for capital and human resources (compare the network organizations above). Economic systems are being created where the present boundaries are increasingly becoming eroded. Advanced ICT support is used for various forms of collaboration. More and more individuals function as self-governing company units. The use of robots is making production more similar all over the world, and with the same production costs. There is now a period of transition of work to countries and regions in the world with low labour costs. But this is only a parenthesis, as there will be more robots in industry in total. Hence outsourcing will soon become an old word. It will be the transportation and logistics that will constitute the main costs (discussion at the Stockholm ICT week, fall 2005). 4.2.2 Organizational context of the present age It is useful to think and reflect on the following issues (Barnett 1997):

•

•

What is the main focus of achievement? We are focusing on various forms of ingenuity at present, i.e. the materialization of technological wonders. More and more of the focus of achievement is shifting to raw imagination and the value of ideas and fantasy. How are human beings involved in the labour market? The present member status is to ‘be employed’. Workers have been paid for their

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•

•

•

time in fulfilling organizational roles. In the future, we will see more so-called free agents or portfolio individuals (Handy 1989). People, especially those with higher education, realize that ‘right on time’ and ‘right competence’ are asked for. They feel that they have to handle their own resources and competence themselves and carry their own welfare portfolio. Free agents and portfolio individuals are terms related to the ongoing globalization but ‘entrepreneur’ is a corresponding expression and still used in most countries. How is knowledge managed? Today there are many ways: there are multiple channels to choose from (word of mouth, writing, audiovisual, electronic). In the future we will probably face more meta-channels, e.g. metamedia of virtual reality (VR). There are many new tools for knowledge management. Controlled-reality environments, i.e. environments that we manipulate and manage in VR, will also be a concern. Concerns about whether we can trust information have been raised in certain societies, particularly with regard to mass media. What competencies are asked for? A generalist competency is needed and asked for in network organizations, making it possible to formulate adequate questions and to know where and how to find adequate information to answer the questions. But there is and will be a significant demand for specialist and expert competency. Both competencies are essential for a person to function well as a knowledge worker in the network era. What is the geographical span? At present, our work life is based on national and international trade, which will be more and more without limits in the future and will take on global forms. Electronic commerce and electronic marketplaces are creating a strong change factor behind the structure of work life. The geographical space in the future is both global and ‘beyond’ when virtual reality (see above) is taken into account. Deregulation of markets as well as the increasing group of global customers are also drivers in this development.

There are problems combined with these trends. Hirst and Thompson (1996) discuss the risk associated with an 80/20 society, where 20 per cent of the population is in employment and 80 per cent is outside the labour market. The authors are describing the trap created by the global convergence of economy, politics, media and environments. Personally, I would like to see a kind of renaissance, a strong emphasis on jobs and tasks requiring unique human competencies and which cannot be replaced by ICT. I am thinking of work tasks in the care of elderly people and children, and health care. Studies on the care of

Changes in working life • 79

elderly people report positive results when social workers use mobile computers and mobile phones. So far the employees have obtained more time for care, but there is a risk of more work tasks (more patients) arising and the effectiveness gained turning into stress. ICT and the school have been changing a lot in the last few years. ICT tools for e-learning have been introduced. The roles of teachers and students have changed, while the need for pedagogically trained persons seems to have increased. There is a general growth of the service sector; entertainment, caring, and education, etc. In summary, too much responsibility is put on the individual, who:

• • • • • •

loses permanent employment; has to manage his/her own competence development; has to market himself/herself; is expected to take ‘any’ job and ‘swallow’ an excessive workload; is expected to be creative – with low compensation; is a ‘unit’ in a competitive world market.

Is this the freedom from paid work in a traditional sense? If we look back at the results from research in work psychology and organizational behaviour from both industry and the office world, many work environment problems were due to inadequate and too highly regulated work systems, where control was built in and freedom was limited. In my perspective, we all need a basic level of security as employees and citizens. One question that could be raised is: should our school system prepare for fostering ‘free agents’ or portfolio individuals? Should learning in schools and elsewhere prepare young people for acting proactively to meet the ongoing unhealthy development? From an ethical point of view, individual responsibility is ‘a word of honour’. Regarding our role as workers/professionals and citizens, there is a need for balance between a strong society and strong individuals. Could a strong society be replaced by a strong network? Few persons are ‘strong’ throughout life. We need to think in terms of sustainability, regarding both environment and sustainable human beings. In most parts of the Western world, the societal support systems are diminishing and the welfare systems are reducing the support to the individual. There is, according to my view, need for economic theories that tell us ‘where all the money has gone’. When more and more people act in a global marketplace with their competencies, this will be the predominant form of work life. Hence it

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will be necessary to develop systems for individual security, equivalent to today’s employments. So far, having strong individual networks is one resource to compensate for a temporary weakness. Work in a global market introduces various forms of technology support and work, where consideration also has to be given to where an individual is in the family life cycle. 4.3 Networking – psychosocial communication becomes a key issue There is a change taking place in the structure and quantity of the contacts and collaboration between people in professional working life, in private life and in society as a whole. Electronic networks, electronic subcultures and electronic communities with various functions are emerging in work and private life. New business e-networks are appearing, such as LinkedID and OpenBC, as it becomes harder to keep one’s own register of contacts updated, and in the future those networks will play a larger role. If technology is used properly, it can give us more time for human contacts. In many cases, however, it may produce the opposite effect. Many people sit at a computer screen all day long, interacting only with the computer, and do not meet other living human beings. The dialogue between people is running the risk of getting thinner. However, a new world opens up when we think in terms of the virtual company, the virtual classroom and the virtual living room. It appears that these new opportunities provide us with an insight into the value of meeting face to face, its importance for listening, for trust, and for emotional support and safety. It is important that emotional development can find its place. Sometimes people can hide behind the computer screen, avoid conflicts or avoid difficult meetings with other persons. These are experiences which in the long run could contribute to personal growth and development. At the same time, children and young persons may lose important time in the development of their identity if exposed too early and too intensely to electronic communication. However, the feeling of belonging that is established by a meeting in person can be facilitated and enhanced with the support of electronic communication. Electronic meetings can also be deepened by following up contacts in the form of meetings in person. This ought to be an important goal. ‘Electronic solitude’, i.e. the structural loneliness which

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is forced upon a person and which exists today, must be prevented in the ICT society, or at least combated and counteracted. We now have totally new collaborative structures, with opportunities to achieve a deeper level of democracy and a better international understanding. Today, real prerequisites for peace exist. With all the e-tools available today it is possible to manage a large number of contacts. E-tools can also be used successfully to maintain relationships over time. However, it takes time to develop close relationships. Individuals need to find a balance between quantity and quality of contacts. Communication between people with an increased use of ICT makes it clear to us that communication has different purposes, with the following functions:

• • • • •

knowledge function social function control function democratic function and, not least, expressive function.

Regarding the expressive function, we can see that ‘smilies’, for example, have to be added to SMS text messages to express emotions. Qualitative aspects of communication, e.g. trust, confidence, interest, listening and emotional engagement will be needed more. New dimensions in the quality of communication will occur. 4.3.1 Some major hypotheses on communication Some years ago, while a visiting scholar at Stanford, I started a project on ‘psychosocial communication’ and made some pre-studies in the San Francisco Bay Area. This was in 1991, before the Internet exploded, but in research we had already sent files for many years over the Net. In my family, there were people working in the multinational IT business who used their own Intranet at that time. I formulated some hypotheses on communication from these experiences, and the majority were confirmed ten years later:

• •

Our perception of time and space will change – we perceive that we have less time and that we are closer in space: definitely confirmed. Structure, quantity and quality of communication will change: definitely confirmed. We have an information overload; we have chat

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• • •

•

•

groups, online/Web communities, use of ‘blogs’ for personal and professional information, etc. Electronic subcultures appear: confirmed. Not only is there a hacker ’s culture, but new groups with the same interests, cultures and religions are strengthening their cultures, and new cultures are appearing. There will be a strengthening of traditional family life, with few close or nearby contacts and an increase in remote contacts: confirmed. The present gender structure will be more pronounced and visible: at that time in 1990, I could see the male part of the families assembled around the computer, and the female part more taking roles as observers. This is not true any more. Women communicate and use the Internet frequently, in both their private and professional lives. However, regarding powerful positions in ICT, in business and in research and development, there is a male dominance, and the gap seems to be increasing, according to a new Swedish investigation. The causes are multifaceted, but actions must be taken (see Chapter 9). Identity and self-perception change: this hypothesis is in focus and constitutes by now an important research area in informatics and political science and for many disciplines in the social sciences. We can conclude that people have multiple identities due to virtual roles. People join various Web communities, and those subcultures on the Web become new bases for identity formation. However, there is also reason to be concerned about electronic loneliness. Subdivision in work and leisure loses relevance: confirmed. Human roles at work and in private life converge, and environments also converge (see the Convergence Model in Chapter 2). Barriers between work and leisure have been broken. This has contributed to a ‘border management’ phenomenon.

Countries are at various stages and phases. In some countries the industrial era has not preceded the ICT age. This is true also for certain regions in the developed countries. This could lead to another pattern of communication; for example, lack of physical transport and infrastructure seem initially to contribute to a leap in the use of mobile phones. Globetrotting youngsters play a certain role in the introduction and use of the Internet, but it is mainly macro-phenomena on the economical and political level that have the greatest value in explaining the adoption of ICT. In some Asian countries, we see a very high adoption of new technologies, in particular mobile phones – for example, in Thailand, Malaysia, China and India. (The take-up is dependent on price but also

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on the non-availability of a landline telephone network.) There is now a potential throughout the world for introducing or deepening democracy. So far, this influence cannot be seen in most of the existing regimes. The potential to use ICT for the development of democracy is sometimes met by opposition: one form of this (applied both in West and East) is to use software to detect certain words and content in e-mail messages; another is to prevent access to specific information sources on the Web. The reasons in both cases could be political and/or ethical. About action plans and the status of the efforts towards e-democracy in Europe, see Chapter 9 on action strategies. 4.3.2 Collaboration in network structures Collaboration in network structures becomes successively a common pattern both in work life and in education. This topic is described in Chapter 7 on psychosocial communication. 4.4 Stress – with ICT our tempo is increasing Our perception of time and space is changing. New opportunities for flexible work (telework), to work and learn independently of location, have changed our perception of space. What we require of ourselves in the way of pace and tempo is increasing all the time – there is a change in the level of our expectations. People adapt to the machine and its tempo. We become unconsciously affected by the speed of the machine. The words ‘slowly’ and ‘quickly’ have acquired quite new meanings. The same is true of the words ‘close’ and ‘far away’ (G. Bradley and Robertson 1991). There is a basic level of stress in our technological environments in large cities. It used to be entitled ‘techno-stress’, a phenomenon at the societal level (G. Bradley 1986). Techno-stress is a completely accelerated tempo, to a large extent a result of effectiveness and efficiency. It may be that technology fits better in rural areas (as opposed to urban areas and cities), into a societal structure at the macro level, where a small scale and closeness to the environment, to nature, to the woods, lakes and the sea exist. One could talk about overstimulation, often in the big cities, and understimulation, often in rural areas, as promoting stress. These two opposites could be balanced by use of ICT. The phenomenon called ICT stress can be characterized by too much or

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too little of various aspects or areas, such as workload, amount of work, information, communication, contact with people, responsibility, flexibility, dependency, mobility, demands on development and training. Perhaps we could even revise the plans that were discussed in countries such as Sweden in the 1970s to create a ‘society of moderation’ (Lagomsamhälle in Swedish) – a balanced society! There are reasons to talk about ‘Internet stress’. Some ICT stress is related to the fact that we have an increased dependency on computers and networks, and an increased expectation that these technologies will function well. We have a ‘super network’ with the Internet, which nowadays dominates electronic communication in business and private life. Stress phenomena in the Internet world are information overload, contact overload, demands for availability, lack of organizational filters, difficulty of separating ‘noise’ from essentials, changing level of expectations and an altered perception of time and space in general. A special chapter is devoted to stress and ICT (Chapter 8). 4.5 Allocation issues – knowledge transfer – global villages 4.5.1 The allocation issue and ICT Twenty-five years ago, at a time when ICT was known as EDP (electronic data processing), I used to close my speeches by arguing that computerization is really an issue of allocation (G. Bradley 1979b). I argued from my initial research findings that computerization would create a serious issue requiring a solution: how to allocate various resources. I realized that computers were a strong tool that was used to rationalize the production of goods as well as services. Muscle power was replaced more and more with programmed machines. In countries such as Sweden, both the employer organizations and the employee organizations were eager to maximize the use of computers to remain competitive in the market and to create the basis for and facilitate the growth of the welfare state. This was very clear in a small country with a small home market. It was possible to save a huge amount of money, and the question of allocating the profit should be a key issue in computerization. Since the global economy could be foreseen, the allocation issue became valid as both a national and a global phenomenon. In other words, the allocation issue has very much to do with allocating the ‘good life’:

•

allocation of work and leisure time

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• • • • • •

allocation of citizens’ services (paid/unpaid) allocation of production and reproduction allocation between cities and rural areas allocation of profit between sectors within a country allocation of profit between industrialized countries allocation of profit between industrialized countries and industrially developing countries.

Both physical power and ‘intellectual power’ are replaced in many ways by computers and ICT. However, the part of human life that work constitutes, or at least what we refer to as work today, does not seem to have diminished. We have achieved a subdivision with one group that is overworked and another that is shut out from the workforce. It is not a necessary development. There are alternatives. More people could have access to a good life. The question of allocation and ICT concerns important research problems. Furthermore, ICT can support the ‘weak’ in society; people with various kinds of handicaps – linguistic, physical and intellectual. ‘The digital divide’ is a descriptive and analytical term, whereas ‘the allocation issue’ and allocation of resources are more political terms. Allocation issues, knowledge transfer, global villages, digital divide are terms addressing various facets of an important societal problem. It is crucial that we act today. NGO movements such as Attack raise this topic. ‘Universal access’ is a special conference theme in HCII. A special journal, Universal Access, summarizes research in the field. ‘Digital divide’ is the theme of a series of conferences worldwide. The WITFOR conference is in this respect a strategic event that is the first to address policy and action strategies on a global level regarding the digital divide and the ICT society. Again there is a lack of economic theories to analyse the new world order. There is a call for systematic theories incorporating social and human costs and the gains of globalization, in a short- and long-term perspective. The potential of balancing deep divides in resources is inherent in ICT, but a plan is needed (see also Chapter 9 on action strategies). 4.5.2 Transfer/growth of knowledge and influence is an ongoing and deep process What we call ‘knowledge transfer’ is an important phenomenon in the present and future knowledge society. The transfer of knowledge could

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be exemplified with regard to urban–rural, Sweden–Europe, centre–periphery, north–south and globally. Other relevant relations are: the old–young generation, professionals–users, company–consumers. The transfer and growth of knowledge and influence are closely related to the allocation issue described earlier in section 4.5. It might be seen as a facet of the same phenomenon. The technology earlier confined to experts is now used to transfer knowledge to a large group of people in society. Learning in itself is changing: we can now be co-workers and colleagues when shaping new knowledge. Distance education is becoming increasingly common. The teacher’s role and the student’s role are also changing, and we are learning more and more together. The role of leaders has changed to be more that of providing guidance and coaching. ICT involves a transfer of power connected with knowledge. A decomposition of the traditional hierarchical structure is occurring, and there are early signs of an organizational renewal. Long-distance work, distance tuition and long-distance services already provide new prerequisites for the roles of regions. The issue of knowledge has attracted much attention over the years, from the intensive and emotional AI debate, expert systems, knowledge-based systems, to the softer period of learning organizations, knowledge management, and business re-engineering and creative organizations. Information Management is now Knowledge Management, perhaps because of the more sophisticated technology mix. We will probably progress to Creativity Management, Ideas Management and Trust Management in the future. In 1988, I was involved, together with one doctoral student, in a project on the psychosocial and organizational aspects of introducing and using knowledge-based systems. Three front-line companies in Sweden were intensively analysed and compared with companies in Silicon Valley. Today there is scope for a follow-up because of the new era of technology. The same questions are more relevant today. However, more interesting to me is the creation, transfer and management of knowledge in society as a whole, as a basis for the reallocation of power and influence and the widening of democracy. 4.5.3 IT and learning Closely connected to knowledge transfer is learning in the new society. More emphasis should be devoted to the content of learning, and what

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type of knowledge is desirable. Much information is available via the Net, and trained learners could benefit extensively. But the young generation does not primarily need support on the technicalities of the use of ICT. It is more important to provide structures for learning, connected to the various disciplines, and to inform the young generation about structures that were developed before ICT. The intention should not be to preserve old structures, but only to make it possible not to get lost in the information flow. Of course old-fashioned structures could be and should be revised with a broad support to create meaningful content related to basic human needs. In our own academic environment, there are now increasing opportunities for interactivity in research, documentation and learning. Networks between universities are appearing and growing. Regional ‘centres of excellence’, i.e. research centres with special profiles, are being established. The often-discussed ‘critical mass’ referred to as crucial for the quality of research is more and more being created with the support of electronic networks. Research in many fields can now be done in distributed learning and work environments and in distributed teams. The academic role must be revised. Research is to a high degree public and is ‘owned’ by all of us. Global collaboration for improving the world situation should be strengthened. New roles for collaboration with companies are needed, and consultancy could come in here to facilitate the new forms of collaborative structures. Some time ago I read Jacques Delors’ report Learning – the Treasure Within (1996). He listed four pillars of education that I believe will be truly essential for learning in the future:

• •

• •

learning to know (for the sake of knowing) learning to do • from skill to competence • from intellectual to behavioural skills • innovation and creativity in a local context learning to live together • discovering others • working towards common objectives learning to be.

For researchers in economics who could not find support for new theoretical-oriented research in their own discipline, education has appeared as a strong field of knowledge for a more democratic society. The use of ICT comes into the scene. There is a trend that, before

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consulting a specialist in medicine, we first search on the Net for health information and then formulate the hard questions in front of the doctor. The two last points in the list above – ‘learning to live together’ and ‘learning to be’ – should be as important as the cognitive aspects of learning in shaping the world of the future. 4.5.4 Global villages I think it is desirable for us as researchers to leave our ‘ivory towers’ and try to influence society more directly. I devoted three years to getting my small home village in the south of Sweden to start flourishing again with IT. The project was originally entitled ‘Computers in the Bakery’ (CiB), and consisted of both an action research part, with various development projects, and a more descriptive and analytical part (G. Bradley and W. Bradley 1996). There are efforts in this direction taking place within the European Union RAM programmes, although there should be more of an open and scientific debate on this type of effort to redistribute knowledge and power in Europe. The CiB project was an action research programme where the following issues were involved:

• • • • •

networking – bringing together local personal networks with personal networks in research and industry start-up of companies renewal of community integration of immigrants increase of quality of life for people.

This type of research will contribute to our knowledge about how societal factors and information technology should be co-designed . This is crucial when the convergence of computer technology, telecommunication technology and media is taking place, in order to shape desirable conditions for the individual in his/her professional role, in his/her role as citizen and in international contacts. Learning in networks was the guiding principle of transferring experiences from research in the rural community – my home village in the south of Sweden – to a suburban community, Kista, in Sweden’s Silicon Valley, where part of the Royal Institute of Technology (my affiliation) is located. Further, these experiences can be transferred to other rural villages in Sweden. We are in the midst of an extremely exciting process of change in the new era of computerization and

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networks in integration, both as researchers and as part of the change process. (See also Chapter 6.) The experience from the CiB project is described in Chapter 6 on ICT and changes in cities and rural areas. A brief summary from a follow-up study in 2004 on the main sustainable results from that action research follows:

• • • • • • • • •

trust in the future highest coverage of broadband among Swedish rural communities local Internet service provider reclamation of former commercial centre quality of life increased mobility from Stockholm, Germany, Greece, etc. attractive leisure industry extended school system planning of a centre for health and food.

4.6 Research Within informatics a discussion of focus is taking place: both analysis and design need to address not only the work process and management connected to the sphere of production life, but also people’s life environment. Not only professional roles but also our roles as citizens and private persons are crucial. Community research in a broad sense comes to the fore; both physical and virtual communities. Analysis and design of ICT and societal systems at a local level and globally become important. The labour market parties in the Nordic countries used to play a role in system development and research in informatics and ICT-related disciplines. A renewal of the structures and focus within these organizations is going on in Sweden and in Europe. There is also a need for new and additional actors at the deeper and broader integration of ICT in society (children, the elderly and consumer organizations). Systems design, societal design, regional development, organizational design and role design, which could all be represented by converging circles, are crucial in the emerging IT-related disciplines (see Chapter 2 on theories). Of course, more traditional fields such as architecture, industrial design and graphic design will be involved. As a basis for these approaches, the traditional academic behavioural sciences have an important role to play, e.g. psychology, sociology, educational

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psychology, ethnology. Cognitive psychology is represented already, and in my view should be accompanied by social psychology, which analyses the interaction between the individual and the environment on all levels, including the societal level. 4.6.1 Focus on some major psychosocial processes as policy statements One way to summarize the discussion on the ICT society and the individual is to address psychosocial processes. They could be formulated as problem areas and viewed as research questions or policy statements. By now there are reasons to focus on normative research on these problem areas, which later on could be discussed across wider cultures. It concerns the classic question: is research value-free? Integration Normatively, ICT should contribute to an enrichment in the social contact between people and be used to prevent social isolation and facilitate integration. Autonomy Normatively, ICT should contribute to a greater autonomy for the individual, and prevent stress reactions. Control or freedom is a classic issue often described in terms of ‘privacy–integrity’. The use of wireless and mobile ICT at work and in private life permit greater autonomy and self-determination, but people could also be more controlled, thereby indirectly causing work pressures and job stress. Flexible work and telecommuting are new work patterns that could shape more autonomy, but electronic performance monitoring is in use. Research has proved the impact of electronic performance on stress. The level of expectation on the individual is increasing because of the use of mobile technology – people are expected to be ‘always connected’, ‘always informed’. Overstimulation and understimulation Normatively, ICT should facilitate information access for all and support individual learning, but at the same time prohibit various kinds of overload, e.g. information overload, contact overload. ICT should be used to contribute to a ‘digital unit’ instead of contributing to a digital divide. Techno-stress, ICT stress, Internet stress, and mobile stress are analysed in section 4.4 above and in Chapter 8.

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Humanization Normatively, ICT should contribute to a deepening and development of true human qualities and be used to provide time for people to develop themselves as human beings. Our bases for identity are being changed dramatically in the present network era. Human interactions via electronic networks could sometimes lead to misuse. Risks appear of disintegration of the self and of the development of cultures of artificial personalities. The exchange of social contacts without physical constraints can also allow for a greater understanding of the underlying characteristics of humanity. E-cooperation and peace E-cooperation and peace should be a major goal. E-conflicts have started and e-wars must be prevented. The national domains, for example, the symbols .se, etc., represent a powerful tool. Governmental committees around the world want to control electronic communication or at least have control over their own national domain. The United Nations and other supranational bodies should make it a priority to work on peace-contributing strategies and ICT. Sustainability ICT should contribute to sustainability, both human and environmental sustainability. 4.6.2 Focus on psychosocial life environment/ quality of life and well-being In my contacts with the media I have on occasion dared to go back to the books I have authored, primarily Computers and the Psychosocial Work Environment (1989), published in Swedish in 1986. I conclude by saying that the research questions I proposed as important for the future are still highly relevant today, and perhaps more important than twenty years ago. Why? I think that, living in a society deeply and broadly affected by the new technology, it may be harder to identify both risks and opportunities. A new generation now exists that has grown up in the digital environment. There are reasons today to return and review some research that was performed in England, Canada, Scandinavian countries, and the US west coast during the 1970s: e.g. there are no more work environments in the traditional sense – they are dissolving, although phenomena identified in research into working life, in which Scandinavia was very active for

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many years, have to be reviewed with a new perspective. How are the human needs for influence, belonging and meaning met in the new structures? How are human rights taken care of in the ICT society? We need to look at these issues cross-culturally and globally (see Chapter 9.) Some examples of desirable research focusing upon the individual are: how is ICT changing our

• • • • • • • • • •

identity and self-perception social competence creativity integrity–privacy trust–security dependency addictiveness balance between emotional and rational components balance between female and male aspects involvement and alienation.

In our research programme, known as ‘Home of the Future’, a new ICT environment is coming into focus. In the development of the so-called ‘smart homes, smart dwellings’, there is a growing number of all kinds of gadgets, desirable or not. We need to analyse and design ‘the good home’ – when our roles are integrating. What is a home? ‘Working from home’ or ‘homing from work’ are concepts explored in this new research programme. The virtual and physical worlds are merging; we can virtually be at home wherever we are. The future home was set in focus because of the introduction of high-speed and ‘always on’ Internet access as a main driver. We started with the help of the Swedish Trade Council in Los Angeles to understand what the trends were in this area, not to copy but to reflect upon them. A similar study in south-east Asia was initiated at the beginning of 2001 and in Japan in 2004. There is room for deeper reflection: Scandinavia could contribute (L. Bradley, Andersson and G. Bradley 2000, L. Bradley and Andersson 2001, L. Bradley 2005a, 2005b). (See Chapter 5.) Our research encompasses many academic disciplines, e.g. the behavioural sciences (including research on usability and stress from a broader perspective), architecture, and IT-related disciplines such as telecommunications, computer and system sciences and electronics. Companies in focus are the forest industry (paper and pulp), design and furniture, the electronic industry and construction as partners in the present and the potential collaboration.

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4.6.3 Focus on syntheses We need to focus research on syntheses and on issues related to welfare and quality of life – perhaps regarded as worn-out words in certain countries. The so-called Scandinavian model has been very much criticized since the fall of the Iron Curtain. Yet, there is a call for a renewal here. Areas specified in the circles in Figure 4.1 should be analysed including human welfare and life quality for all as crucial societal goals. Some main areas for research are the study of ICT and various cultures, ICT and democratic processes, human life roles in the ICT society, leadership on a governmental level as well as in organizations, at work and in school, human-to-human interaction, analyses of lifestyles and values, and new organizational models of work and life in general. International comparative analyses as well as cross-cultural analyses seem to be necessary. ICT itself serves as a tool for both quantitative and qualitative analyses. In research, postmodernism is popular and attracts many researchers. Statistics is not in fashion any more. A deeper understanding of ongoing processes is often captured in a better way by qualitative methods. However, when it comes to confirming or disproving hypotheses, statistics and quantitative tools for multivariate analyses with the help of ICT will never be out of fashion. In addition, the time to perform complex analyses and the time to get in touch with the intended population via the Internet are reduced to a minimum. The formulation of the problems still remains important in all research. 4.7 Concluding remarks A summary of Chapter 4 could also be made from the headings of my Powerpoint slides during the year 2004:

• • • • • • •

Focus on research on the interplay between ICT, humans and society. Accelerating changes at work are occurring in the Net era. Network organizations are like crocheted tablecloths. Each new loop (computer) is connected through the same yarn (network). Network organizations have new communication patterns. The core workforce in the flexible company is decreasing. The organizational context of the present and future age is changing as regards achievement focus, organizational member status, knowledge media in use, geographical span for collaboration. Criticism: too much responsibility on the individual.

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• • • • • • •

The various functions of human–human communication become visible. Main hypotheses on communication in the ICT society from mid-1980s confirmed in 2005. Stress: with ICT our pace and tempo is accelerating. Stress in the Internet world concerns perception of time and space. Stress in the use of mobile technology concerns availability and dependency. The allocation issue remains a main problem but actions are being taken. The four pillars of learning in the future: to know, to do, to live together, to be.

New applications in information and communication technology are like seeds (Figure 4.4). They pop up all the time. Some of them will not grow and survive. In the so-called ‘experience economy’, there are many applications that could be reviewed with regard to their contribution to a meaningful life, with a critical view. What interests are behind the products and what is their purpose? Other seeds will stay in the soil and grow into beautiful plants and flowers (Figure 4.5). This will be true for applications that fulfil human needs and requirements: influence on one’s own life conditions and society, social belonging (a sense of belonging in society), meaningful life content, learning and growing professionally and personally. I hope we shall have a field of flowers that will broaden and deepen quality of life for all. To use a quote from my home page, ‘deepening and broadening of democracy, well-being and quality of life for all, and peace should be the leading principles and goals for ICT’.

Figure 4.4 Future ICT applications are like seeds …

Figure 4.5 … some will grow into beautiful flowers

5 Home of the future and ICT – integration of professional and private roles

Home of the future

with Linda Bradley • • • • • • • • • • • •

Introduction Background and purpose Problems Methods Hypotheses Human needs and behaviour Convergence between human needs and technology applications Social trends Our private role Summary: home of the future – south-east Asia Home of the future and ICT – Japan Summary and conclusions

5.1 Introduction In this chapter a special research programme will be described, with the original title ‘Home of the Future – Information and Communication Technology (ICT) – changes in society and human patterns of behavior in the network era’. The overall purpose of the programme concerns changes in living and working conditions, with emphasis on the impact of ICT. The objective of the included studies has been to explore future trends of living and working from and at home with the increased use of ICT-related services and products. The first study focused on the USA, the second on south-east Asia, and the third on Japan. ‘Homing from Work’ and ‘Working from Home’ are both key issues. The research questions were raised from a Nordic perspective. The method has been explorative, using expert interviews with leading research institutes, universities, and high-tech companies. A model, ‘The Home of the

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Future’, has been developed for the analyses of factors affecting the future home. From the model, problems are derived, e.g.: What human needs and behaviours are related to the home and home environment? What new behaviours evolve on the border between technology and human needs? What are the main social trends? What are the main technological trends? What are the main hypotheses that can be formulated from an international comparative perspective? 5.2 Background and purpose The technological development is focusing more and more on various applications of ICT in the home, where we can expect a profound impact in the near future. All the technology applications taken together will dramatically affect the balance between various types of information and communication carriers. In our homes more and more functions will be located/or activities carried out, related to what we term the professional role, the private role and the citizen’s role, also understood in terms of a single ‘life role’. ICT will dramatically affect how humans value and relate to the home and the importance of the home, as well as influencing the design of our homes. In the same way as in working life at present, there will be an impact on the balance between physically and electronically mediated information and communication, and new functions will appear, tied to all life roles. As part of the cross-disciplinary research programme entitled ‘Home of the Future and ICT’, three studies have been performed – one study in the USA (in 1999), one study in south-east Asia (in 2000) in close collaboration with the Swedish Trade Council (North America) and the then Soul Business Innovation Group (now Cordial Business Advisors) of Stockholm, and one study in Japan (in 2003) in collaboration with the Swedish Institute for Future Studies. One study among young IT professionals in the city of Stockholm and some master’s theses that G. Bradley supervised during her professorship at Mid-Sweden University were also included in the project ‘Home of the Future’. The overall purpose of the research project concerns ICT and changes in society and human behaviour patterns in the Net era. The objective of the reported studies has been to describe and analyse the ongoing social changes with a focus on living and working from and at home – emphasized by the increased use of ICT-related services and products. The home is considered as both a physical and a virtual space in this

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Figure 5.1 The ‘home of the future’ model (L. Bradley et al. 2000)

context. The objective of the studies has also been to explore the future trends with an international perspective by means of studies from the Nordic countries, the USA and Asia (Singapore, Malaysia and Japan) to facilitate interpretations and refine conclusions. The overarching key issue is: how will ICT change our lives, and how can we improve our lives with the use of ICT? 5.3 Problems In order to obtain an in-depth understanding of the changes in people ’s life roles in the Net era, the focus of our research is on analyses of human and organizational behaviour related to the professional role, private role and citizen’s role. Some overarching key issues related to the model in Figure 5.1 have been formulated:

• • • • • •

What is the future home? What human needs and behaviours are connected to the living/home environment? What needs and behaviours appear at the meeting point between technology and human needs? What applications of technology (ICT) at home appear and what applications support human needs? What kind of technology and technology level determine applications today and in the future? What are the social trends (including demographics) in various cultures that we need to reflect on?

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5.4 Methods The method has been explorative, using expert interviews with leading research institutes, universities, and high-tech companies in the United States, for the first study. A work model has been developed for the analyses of ‘Home of the Future’ and factors affecting, interacting with, and driving the future home. The second study was directed to the ‘global trade areas’ of Singapore and the Multimedia Super Corridor in Malaysia, and focused more on the interaction between the individual and society. The most recent study in Japan focused on pilot homes, their success factors and user experiences, as well as on ongoing applied research regarding behavioural sciences. Methods refer to the model described below, whose core represents the future home, consisting of a physical, virtual and community space. The two surrounding circles represent factors influencing and interacting with the home. Human needs and behaviours are central, as well as human abilities. In the outer ring, factors of more overarching character, e.g. social structures and social trends and technology level, are represented, which have a complex impact on the home. To this level also belong demographics, political and economic factors. Moreover, there are interactions between various factors between and within the circles. A cross-disciplinary approach and international comparative analyses characterize the research and are part of the research design. 5.4.1 Model for structuring the interviews, developed for the Japan study The Japan study has been exploratory, using interviews with key persons at a selection of research institutes, companies and industry organizations working with issues related to the home of the future or developing ICT-related solutions for the future home. The model in Figure 5.2, derived from hypotheses developed for the previous studies, was used to structure the interviews. In Japan the actions of the government are important to stimulate change, thus this perspective has been included in the model. 5.5 Hypotheses Below are some hypotheses on social issues with relevance for the role of the home in the future, derived from our earlier research on working life and some pre-studies.

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Figure 5.2 Model for structuring the interviews of the study (L. Bradley 2005b)

• • • • • • • • •

We will become more global, but also more local – ‘glocal’ is a concept to describe this development. We will develop new forms of living – on the one hand more ‘flexible living’ supporting a mobile lifestyle, on the other hand more ‘stable living’ (community living) supporting traditional values. The dominant lifestyle will differ with various phases in the life cycle (manifested in age, family position and educational background). We will be ‘Working from Home’ and ‘Homing from Work’. We will continually ‘choose’ new forms of working, and our working conditions will thereby change. There will be an overflow of information and communication. There is a risk that the demands on the individual will be too great, leaving little time for relaxing from the information flow. New models for office workplaces – similar to a mini-community – will appear, e.g. SoHo (small office, home office). New physical meeting places will appear in parallel to virtual meeting places. In the Nordic countries, a parallel trend towards the restitution of the traditional nuclear family may be seen, with an increased number of formal marriages.

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• • • • •

Family ties may be strengthened, the neighbourhood may be revitalized, and cooperation with schools can be made easier. The definition of a family will change – we will consider the extended family as encompassing relatives, friends and colleagues. Our homes are acquiring certain functions of a virtual marketplace. Our citizen’s role can be empowered with IT support in the home – there are opportunities to widen and strengthen democracy. ICT addictiveness in general and computer game addictiveness will appear.

In the following, we draw some conclusions about a few technological trends of relevance for the future home.

• • •

• • • • •

•

The dominating trend is the convergence of computer technology, telecommunication technology and media technology. IT will become more mobile, smaller and more powerful. IT will be embedded and ubiquitous and thus invisible – in the long term, or for certain functions, also implanted in our bodies. Kitchen appliances, home terminals, clothes and toys will acquire more natural, cognitive interfaces to the digital world. A decrease in the cost of technology (primarily electronic components, but also software to some extent) will contribute to a faster development. We will experience many poor IT products because of limited usability testing. ‘Intelligence’ will be built into or linked to many products, as a result of lower costs and miniaturization of computing power. Our media contacts (news, entertainment) as well as various shopping transactions will take place more and more over the network (use of the Internet). There will be a context- and culture-dependent development of online services to meet local users’ needs (for example, in Singapore there is a need for a forum to express opinions, and in Tokyo there is an need for navigation support such as digital maps). Security and privacy issues will be in focus, and revised solutions constantly in progress. In parallel, maintenance and support issues will be permanent issues.

5.5.1 The technology that makes the home smart The terms ‘smart homes’, ‘smart things and environments’, ‘intelligent houses’ and ‘connected homes’ have become frequently used to describe

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environments and home products with either embedded/invisible or tangible/visible computer technology, often linked in a network structure. ‘Interactive environments’ may be a more neutral term and more suitable, since intelligence is a truly human quality. Opportunities for home automation have existed for a long time now. What we refer to as the ‘traditional’ smart home is a house with computer-controlled, automated systems providing benefits such as simplicity for the user, safety, security, and efficient use of energy. These systems can, for example, monitor the outside of the house with video cameras and simulate the presence of someone in the home by switching the lights on and off. This can be done simply with timers and remote controls, and energy bills can be reduced by optimizing heating and air-conditioning systems. These systems are already available on the market and commonly used, primarily in newly built homes, in the USA and Japan and to a limited extent in the Nordic countries. 5.6 Human needs and behaviour Social psychology is concerned with basic human needs; concepts which are applicable when we analyse how to create a good home environment (also see psychosocial environment in section 2.1). Important human needs are the need for security, the ability to influence one’s own situation and change one’s circumstances, experiencing a feeling of social belonging (i.e. the sense of belonging to society), having the opportunity to learn and develop, and a sense of meaningfulness. These needs can be realized as specific activities and behaviours. Communication provides the conditions for feeling social belonging and the possibility of learning. Also needed for this is information, i.e. a unidirectional basis for communication. Safety and comfort may be said to satisfy some of our basic needs – in the first instance, the need for security – but can also be linked to social belonging and the opportunity to influence one’s circumstances. Access to time for a free choice of activity and a more or less formalized social vision are required to create content in our lives and thereby make them meaningful. Figure 5.3 presents a list of common activities in the home that reflect human needs.

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Figure 5.3 Activities in the home (After IVA 1999)

5.7 Convergence between human needs and technology applications In sections 5.7.1–5.7.7 some ‘convergence scenarios’ are presented, developed by a forecasting process regarding ICT in the home. Some technology applications are already in use; others are more like scenarios. 5.7.1 Online services in households Considerable scope exists for online services designed to make housework easier. The Internet provides an opportunity for niche companies to increase their market. Small companies can become global players on the Internet and compete with multinationals. We speak of the ‘death of distance’ syndrome. Services of the do-it-yourself kind are becoming more and more common on the Net. Entirely new services are being created on the Net; services which would scarcely be possible in the physical world. Shopping implies a social activity. A shopping mall accessed via the Net is open 24 hours a day, although the social activity has changed. Online services can complement, change and/or replace physical/traditional services, for example library searches, doctor visits and medical treatments, ordering books, etc.

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5.7.2 The Internet compared with traditional media – interactivity People have started to talk about and formulate requirements governing the content of the Internet. At commercial sites the content may involve, for example, independent product tests, personal recommendations, articles, newsgroups, blogs, etc. Interactivity gives the visitor to the site influence and opportunities to change the content. It has also been realized that it is necessary to build up confidence in order to attract visitors. In virtual/online communities it is possible to network and discuss different subjects. Virtual communities can strengthen the individual’s different roles – the private role as well as the professional role and the citizen’s role. Branding is an important factor in developing online services – thus designer products and clothing have potential. The consumer becomes able to select quality as a result of knowledge of the brand. In parallel, price is easy for the user to compare. The most popular Internet products are tickets and travel, books and music, contact lenses (commodity but with a brand that reassures the customer), used and antique furniture, Internet telephony, etc. In countries such as Japan and Sweden, online shopping is increasing since there are well-developed logistics systems available. 5.7.3 Metamediaries – a single point of contact between buyer and seller The concept ‘economy of distance’ has been replaced in the information society by ‘economy of attention’. It is no longer distance that limits businesses: on the Net, people from all over the world can be present simultaneously. The attention of customers has become the focus of interest. The time gained by the customer from not having to travel some distance to the shop is now being consumed instead by the searches that have to be made on the Net. We can identify a time of disintermediation, i.e. the intermediaries between customer and service/product, such as travel agents, insurance brokers, banks, bookstores and car dealers, are being replaced by online services. The necessary condition for building a meta-market is the ability to offer a broad spectrum of cognitively related activities (e.g. travel websites also offering car rental, hotels and insurance) – activities that influence people’s time and financial situation, where there has traditionally been a need to approach a number of different companies. A ‘metamediary’ is the neutral third party who

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links the market with the set of linked activities. This line of argument can also be applied to an area such as the home. Portals could in a more limited sense be viewed as metamediaries. 5.7.4 Interactive digital entertainment in the home The home entertainment of the future will be more and more interactive. There will be TV programmes that involve interactivity during their actual transmission. For example, it will be possible to choose between alternative endings to films. We will be able to see plays that we can help to create in real time, e.g. by deciding on the dialogue. Hyperlinks will enable the viewer to influence the scenery. At present we can choose not to look at advertisements, and we can choose subtitles on DVD films; we can download films, for example, at the same time as viewing the film. A growing field is the games market. 5.7.5 Virtual companionship More and more people are trying what is known as virtual companionship, which may involve synthetic, virtual characters that interact, take independent decisions and show feelings. These characters, in a computer, can modify their presence and their behaviour in line with the user’s wishes and act as an information servant, a kind of personal agent that searches out information or shops on behalf of the user in cyberspace. The viewer can create his or her own avatars or movable icons and so hide behind a new identity. This situation is very similar to online gaming. Domestic robotics would be fascinating – robots that supported many heavy tasks at home. In Sweden it is not considered acceptable to have someone working in one’s home: everyone should clean after herself/ himself, and the word ‘maid’ is associated with times that were bad for human rights. So why not use some robotic help? In Japan, development of domestic robotics is a field for both research and market innovations. There are roughly two kinds of domestic robots: household assistants and partners/friends. The purpose of the household assistants is understood as the next generation of household appliances. The partner/ friend robot is a companion for humans. In 2005 these robots are mostly research prototypes, for instance with the purpose of being companions to hyperactive children and elderly people living alone. In 2006 Sony terminated the production of the famous AIBO robot dog, of which

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150,000 were sold. The challenge today is not the technology but knowledge about social behaviour patterns. Interactivity and communication between humans and technology are enabled by means of various interfaces: keyboard, touch, voice, patterns of movement, eye movement, facial expression, VR gloves or suits, and electrical impulses in the brain. It seems that this field of ICT application is at present most highly developed in Japan (compare section 5.12). 5.7.6 The kitchen of the future – the centre of the home The kitchen may be regarded as the most dynamic place in the home. It is a room that has the character of input, process and output, to use an analogy from computer technology. According to several futurists, the kitchen is the next room (after the living room) that will be online. The kitchen actually has ‘more going for it’ since it is much more active than the living room. In the latter we often devote our time to relatively passive entertainment. In the kitchen an active creative process takes place, for which aids are needed. The kitchen will be more and more individually designed according to users’ preferences and lifestyles. An increasing number of activities will be carried out in the home in general and in the kitchen in particular, which means that the kitchen will regain its historic role and status as the centre of the home. In order to get closer to the vision of the conscious kitchen, researchers have started to make individual appliances ‘intelligent’, with a view to connecting them later via a network. We will soon be able to control food habits and health by simple means – for better or worse. New types of rooms will also appear; either ‘a silent room’ or a ‘communication room’. 5.7.7 The paperless home? New online services, such as electronic bill payments, will replace much of the paperwork in the home. At the same time, however, the Internet is a source of an enormous potential increase in the use of paper, since we largely prefer to see information in print. The vision of the paperless office has not yet been realized, and in the home the trend regarding the use of paper is not clear. However, digital photos and digital video have been widely accepted in private use. More and more office equipment is

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entering our homes as a result of the reduced cost of printers, scanners, etc. This allows us to produce more printed material in our homes. It may be that there will be a trend towards electronic books and printed books existing side by side without competition, but used in different ways – the electronic book finding new types of application, e.g. taken when travelling, or acting as a repository for extensive notes and used for reading in the dark. In bookstores, ‘instant paperback’ printing will be used. This means that if a particular title is not on the shelf, the customer can be offered a paperback version printed on the spot (printing on demand). 5.8 Social trends We would like to comment further on some of the hypotheses (convergence scenarios) in sections 5.5 and 5.7. In what follows we give a brief account of some broader future lines of development for ICT and its consequences, as a background to the lines of development that can be seen related to the home. 5.8.1 We will become increasingly global and at the same time local Human activities – both private and institutional – will become globalized, although a trend in the opposite direction is also found – the word ‘glocal’ having been coined to express this. Telecommunication minimizes the distance between people. We can associate online with friends on the other side of the globe and create networks with colleagues in other parts of the world. ICT will enable people to reduce the time that they devote to local and national concerns by increasing contacts with colleagues and friends a long distance away. The opportunity to have a global network of contacts is increasing, while at the same time the risk is increasing that we will lose our closeness to our local environment, friends and family unless we do something to counteract this trend. A few years ago we saw in the USA a boom in bookstores ‘just around the corner’, which almost certainly was due to an increased need for local affiliation. These bookstores were often combined with coffee shops or ice cream bars. However the future is unclear; e-commerce is being applied more and more for books, and the international competition is changing the book

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sector drastically. E-books have so far not achieved a breakthrough, but serious product innovations are being made. Local newspapers and community activities engage people. A global culture will develop as ICT links together the population of the world, and local cultures will initially decline. Many languages may disappear. The global economy entails the growth of a global culture. Global franchising chains exist in most countries, films are distributed worldwide and an increasing number of people have access to the Internet. Local products will have to give way to others. A parallel trend is that the stereotypical advertising model will have a generic appearance, independent of race, culture or even sex, in order to fit into the global market. New cultures and new ‘languages’ will develop in these cultures. Hence, at the same time as some cultures and some languages disappear, new ones are formed. There is already a dictionary of cyber-language. Special interest groups can grow large online and create new cultures. Old cultures and their members who have been separated by wars and catastrophes are coming together again over the Net. Some interesting experiences in this field were presented at the IADIS conference on Web Communities in 2005. Armenians who belong to the same ethnic group and who are expatriates in many other countries have been able to meet again over the Net and thus bridge the gap to the homeland – the republic of Armenia (Manoogian 2005). The Web brings together people from various backgrounds and experiences to share common interests, dreams and aspirations. A web-based community (WBC) is a web-enabled communication and social interaction among groups of people who have common interests as well. A WBC is also known as a ‘virtual community’ or ‘online community’ in the literature, and it was at first seen as a social phenomenon that had no business dimension. However, recent advances in ICT have shown that a WBC could be a business enabler in the digital marketplace, intentionally designed to promote human interaction and facilitate customer-driven e-commerce. A WBC enables the sharing of experiences through discussions and a sense of community, but a virtual community of this nature can be exploited for economic activities such as e-commerce. Online communities are often a parallel phenomenon to community-building in a traditional sense, and thus a way to shape social interaction and provide a common foundation for connectedness. They represent people who interact to satisfy their own needs or roles,

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have a shared purpose, act within a determined set of policies, and are supported by ICT that facilitates interaction, information sharing and social connectedness (see also Chapters 6 and 7). 5.8.2 We will choose new housing environments Certain sparsely populated areas, suburban environments and recreation areas will change and experience a boom, since ICT makes it possible to work at home instead of commuting long distances to a factory or an office. In other words, IT makes us less dependent on distance and time. Consequently, we will choose where to live; for example, closer to beautiful countryside, close to a certain group of people, or in an area with good public transport and services. It will become more common to live in communities. People with shared lifestyles or ethnic backgrounds will live together – another direct consequence of the fact that we are becoming less tied to a physical workplace. Communities are a form of living that exists in large parts of the USA. Some of them were formed as a result of people with shared values deciding to live close to each other; examples being artists, individuals from the same ethnic group or religion, homosexuals and environmental activists. There are both risks and opportunities – one risk is that this development contributes to the isolation of groups and a segregated society. 5.8.3 We will ‘choose’ new forms of work and our employment conditions will change We will work in new ways in, for example, projects or network organizations, as ‘free agents’ or ‘at a distance’ in relation to the traditional concept of the workplace. In some industries, distance working is frequently encouraged by companies. It may be that a company wishes to reduce its fixed costs or, in some cases, that there is an environmental requirement laid down by the authorities that a company should give its employees an opportunity to do their work at home, thereby cutting down on the number of journeys by car to and from the workplace. Occupations will become increasingly specialized. Today specialists can reach a large part of the marketplace, just as ordinary people have an opportunity to seek information and knowledge of both a specific and a general nature. With the help of the Internet, a number of companies

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with a niche product or service are at present able to operate in a global marketplace. Knowledge and skills will become out of date more and more quickly. For example, a graduate engineer has only a few years’ front-line knowledge, in contrast to his/her professional skills, which last a lifetime. This applies more strongly in some fields of engineering than others. With the help of ICT, it is now easier than ever to get updated in dynamic professional areas such as engineering. This trend will focus attention on lifelong learning. The Internet provides an increased opportunity to keep abreast of what is happening in one’s own area of work. New service-oriented professions are appearing; for example, a new type of occupation has entered the language – infopreneurship. An infopreneur is an entrepreneur who earns a living from information services and knowledge-intensive services. Another example is the call centre, where service and information are provided over the phone, making them independent of location. In the Nordic countries these call centres are often located in rural areas where there is unemployment. In other countries such as the UK, call centres are located in certain urban areas where labour costs are relatively low, or in India. 5.8.4 We will work at home and be home at work Our home today more or less fulfils the function of a box that we empty when we go to work and fill when we come home (see Figure 5.4). Working at home previously carried something of a negative connotation. It meant that one did not fit in properly with a workplace because of a disability, lack of social skills, the wrong age, etc. For a long time, work at home was only for housewives or socially incompetent individuals. However, many ‘computer hackers’ started their careers from home. Studies have shown that the biggest reason why people start to work at home is to get work done, since they are not interrupted, and to complete, because of a deadline, tasks that could not be finished at their workplace. We are now able to choose when and where we wish to work. We can say that people have once again become nomads, a key expression for this being ‘nomadic computing’. At the time of writing this book, the mobile Internet has become something of a national business goal for Sweden: ‘Mobile Valley’ is often used for the main high-tech centre outside Stockholm. This means that the computer has become a tool for

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work outside the office. SOHO is another key word. Many companies today supply office products and services aimed at small companies working in home environments. Mention is made of SOHO particularly in connection with the sale of software and hardware, and also where office furniture is concerned. In Tokyo, SOHO is popular among a new breed of companies, and housing and office expenses can be combined to minimize the cost of living. At the same time as we are increasingly working from home, we are starting to do at the workplace things that we previously did at home (see section 5.9.4). Professional networks have previously tended to join together with social networks, but now new technology means that work and leisure are coming together to an even greater extent, the Internet being the tool that blurs the distinction between leisure and work. The Latin word from which ‘leisure’ originally comes means something ‘which is allowed’. 5.8.5 We will have a flood of information and communication When workplaces and work processes were made more efficient in the 1960s and 1970s with the use of information technology, only a few individuals, mainly among researchers, foresaw that this would also create substantial problems and new challenges. Problems in the form of an information and communication overload and accompanying demands and expectations are growing in number and can be seen in particular in our homes. What prevents us from carrying out work today is not a problem in getting hold of information. It is rather the irrelevant work-related information that threatens to swallow up large chunks of the working day. (Also see Chapter 6.) Comfort Convenience and functionality in the home will be important. We have still not reached the stage that applies to the comfort we have in our cars. Another aspect of comfort is that we might want to ‘be able to carry around with us part of our home’ when we leave our physical home, which is possible with the help of IT. This can be compared with taking the music we usually listen to at home with us to the car or to the office, having photos at work of those we love, calling home, etc. The new technology enables us to communicate with our home in entirely new ways and influence events in the home when we are not physically there. This gives rise to a number of questions concerning security.

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Security and control Information and knowledge are important elements in achieving security and control. We can monitor parking places and entrances with cameras and intelligent computer programs, and in this way detect ‘abnormal’ behaviour. The next step is to make our homes smart for the same purpose. A key issue is how and by whom all the information will be handled and managed. 5.9 Our private role The US study was performed and reported at a time of substantial expansion in the Western world – the so called New Economy. At that time in Silicon Valley, unemployment among high-tech workers was measured in distance instead of time; the number of miles to the next job. Some analysts take the view that we are now entering the constructive stage of the information technology revolution. High-tech centres in Sweden and elsewhere in Europe were dominated by optimism which sometimes turned into euphoria. What happened to people ’s lives after the so-called IT boom regarding work, housing, relationships? 5.9.1 Demographics and our private role The concept of the family has mirrored the time in which we live. At the end of the nineteenth century, a family was defined as ‘those who share the kitchen’. In the period when the Church was powerful and during the process of industrialization, the concept of the nuclear family was introduced. In the literature of the network economy one talks more about the ‘extended family’, which includes relatives, in-laws, friends and colleagues. The extended families are the primary source of both social contacts and work-related concerns. Thus, in Asia (Japan and Singapore) the network is very important both for social and professional success. People born in the 1940s will be succeeded by the X and Y generations. In the Nordic countries there is a new name in use – the Me-We generation. These generations have new values and a greater familiarity with IT. We can also see an increasingly older generation, where the number of people over the age of 85 is increasing in most Western countries, but in particular in Japan and Sweden. Most people live on their own and will need help at home. For this group of the population, ICT can play a decisive role.

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5.9.2 Change in our private role Working from and in the home has a clear effect on the role of our private life. Family ties can be strengthened, neighbourliness can be vitalized and cooperation with schools and the local community can be facilitated, but there are also risks (see below). Trade on the Internet is becoming a reality for ordinary citizens and their families, not just business to business. This development is a substantial factor for change in the role of the home. The problems of security of Internet commerce will presumably be resolved in the next few years. In Sweden, personal information is protected by the Swedish Data Act. In the USA personal information is considered to be in the public domain when two or more persons are aware of it, which occurs whenever a transaction is made. This enables companies to freely buy and sell databases provided they have not promised the customer otherwise. Americans are probably more careful than Europeans when it comes to revealing their personal details to the authorities; the opposite applies in regard to payment over the Net. In the USA people are used to making purchases by ringing toll-free numbers, e.g. when ordering from the TV or catalogues, from which it is not a very large step to shopping on the Internet. Payment is usually made with a credit card. So far Internet commerce has been popular in a limited number of areas, but new areas are expected to appear when more homes are equipped with larger terminals (flat screens) and with an increased speed of connectivity. Spontaneous meetings, social networks and contacts are made easier and can be created by everyone, regardless of race, sex and age. For a long time the home has been regarded as only a unit of consumption. The more the amount of home-based work and activities, the higher the status of the home. This has also to do with changes in the law, e.g. healthcare in the home is starting to be paid for by the state in countries such as Sweden. Our home could become a place of commerce in that sense; a communication sphere. Thus the future holds a paradox in this transformation – a definite marketplace or a sphere of opportunities for the quality of life. Living in rural areas definitely has potential, although at the moment we have not seen much of this trend. An important prerequisite for this is the development of broadband networks and computers, not to mention other carriers. New environmental problems are threatening densely populated areas. Ownership of two homes may become increasingly

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common. In the USA, for example, more and more people are taking up permanent residence in Colorado, while working for companies situated mainly in Silicon Valley. In Tokyo, many workers commute most days of the week in order to live in a rural environment with closeness to nature as well as lower housing expenses. 5.9.3 Our role as citizens Our citizen’s role can be strengthened with the assistance of ICT. Here we see at the same time the largest differences between groups and cultures in society. Many societal concerns in the USA are, in fact, highly localized, e.g. the news on TV. The need to take part in local events and activities is assumed to increase as we become more global. We have a need to live in an environment that feels particularly natural and local and with people who are known to us. There is much evidence supporting the idea that community living will be the future pattern of living in the USA. What view will Europe and Asia adopt on the question of living patterns? 5.9.4 The virtual home What people in general consider as their home is at present the physical home (house or apartment). Our studies show that ‘the home’ will be to an increasing extent associated more with the communication sphere which one is normally in contact with, in and away from the physical home. Many activities traditionally performed at home can now be performed ‘at a distance’, such as private phone calls, personal entertainment on TV and radio, planning and handling private administration, medical information, etc. More mobile ICT equipment in our lives will make it easier to perform ‘home activities’ at a distance in the same way as we can perform job activities at a distance. ‘Working from home’ and ‘homing from work’ are key issues in our analysis. The picture in Figure 5.4 below shows our home as a communication sphere, where we can be physically or virtually (1). In the same way we have a virtual ‘job box’, which we sometimes take home (2). It is becoming more and more difficult to set boundaries to our home, suggesting a borderless home and borderless society. In the same way, setting boundaries to the workplace has become complex. Will this new drifting border between home and the surrounding world change the

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Figure 5.4 The virtual home

world? Research within telecommunications claims that the ‘death of distance’ resulting from ICT will have the same effect on our lives that the use of electricity once had. New technical interfaces to strengthen human capacity are in focus in the area of HCI. Extensive research and development are under way, all about being at the cutting edge of basic technical research and its applications in the area of home computerization. This is illustrated in the headings below. The interfaces in these areas were regarded as especially interesting through their innovative character, and a ‘lack of boundaries in a cognitive sense’ could be identified:

• • • • •

mobile/portable equipments: ‘wearable’ technology in the body enhanced reality: manipulated reality smart cards artificial intelligence.

Important concerns when introducing ICT in the home are both security and support and maintenance of technology applications. In the business world, the role of the ICT department can be complex and hectic, but just imagine the situation in a home with various needs and competency levels. Who is the IT department in a home? 5.9.5 Home of the future – a discussion and conclusion of the USA study Design of the home of the future According to our studies, a home should be a safe place – a place to land on, where you can say ‘stop’, as someone has put it. In the USA, the

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security issue is of great importance. It is the driving power to some extent behind the development of smart homes. Safety, security and control are closely related. There are various IT solutions for security management (electronic surveillance, alarms, etc.). Furthermore, if you want to live in a familiar environment, the home should be protected in such a way that an outsider (or an electronic device) is unable to change anything when you are not present. A home is a personal landscape and thus very individualistic. A cult of nostalgia has developed about the construction of homes, as a contrast to the development of smart homes. Some people felt concerned that large computer companies are trying to introduce today’s office environment in the home environment, and that we will be dependent on their hardware and software and have to update our equipment because of commercial forces. A smart home should result in easier maintenance, enabling us to focus on other things. It is important to take a holistic view of the functions of the home, such as family life, work, hobbies, learning and entertainment. The design of our homes must take into account that technology should be a natural part of the home, where all the details are not seen and do not need our attention. In this respect we might be able learn from the integrated technology in cars. Finally, a smart home should be service- and not product-oriented. A smart home and IT solutions should help the individual to achieve good health, safety and joy of life (quality of life). Home as a marketplace? Our study has shown that more and more activities take place within the (physical) home, such as billing, shopping, entertaining, etc., and are supported by the use of ICT. With increased activities in our homes, there will be more contacts and communication. Our home is our main communication hub in a sense. Accounting for the increased delivery of goods to and from our homes, the home might be seen as a virtual marketplace, whether we like it or not. Summarizing this section, the design of the future home should be based on human needs, as well as human abilities and preferences. The design should aim at enriching the experiences of the individual at home by

• • • •

creating quality time facilitating communication, interaction and entertainment automating certain activities such as maintenance and payments establishing a ‘home sphere’ for communication, and establishing boundaries to prevent stress and overstimulation.

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5.10 Summary: home of the future – south-east Asia An overview from the study in Singapore/Malaysia can be summarized as follows. We consider south-east Asia an interesting part of the world for the development of ICT in the home and in society as a whole. 5.10.1 Society and ICT Singapore is very dedicated to building an ICT society. Singapore is a small country, where ‘everyone needs to be a member of the knowledge society’. The ‘Technopreneur Home Office Scheme’ allows start-ups to operate out of homes. ‘Paperless’ government is a goal. Singapore aims at taking a lead in developing future content and software – utilizing its cultural mix and local languages. Maintaining the economic and industrial lead is important – competition and collaboration with Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia will be more marked in the future. 5.10.2 Private role Of the population, 83 per cent live in homes built by the state, and 85 per cent own their homes. Family ties are very important: rents are reduced for people taking care of elderly relatives. Maid services (catering for one-quarter of the population) are common. In general, the home is a rather small place, with little space for work. Other values, besides career and work, are becoming increasingly important; there is a trend towards a global lifestyle. Shopping is a major hobby for many Singaporeans and is more important than housing. There is a materialistic trend in society and an enthusiastic approach to new technology, with an interest in trying out the latest applications. 5.10.3 Professional role The professional role is influenced by religious values, primarily Confucianism. A long tradition of networking is built into the professional role. Some other traits are a hierarchical structure, a ‘don’t lose face’ attitude and a work ethic. Both the Internet and the new generation per se are affecting business life, which is becoming more westernized. Today, professionalism and competence are becoming more important than contacts. Measures are being taken to increase IT skills across all professions with the use of ‘IT coaches’, buses to be parked outside offices to provide IT training, laptops and e-books for teachers and students, etc.

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5.10.4 Citizen’s role The Singaporean government wants to create a one-to-one relationship with each citizen, supported by ICT. There is a great awareness of being a ‘Singaporean citizen’, although there are a growing number of ‘world citizens’. A fear exists of a widening generation gap due to the use of the Internet – challenging the ‘traditional way of life’. Stimulating local content and services are important to bridge the generation gap and other barriers (e.g. language). Empowering citizens is one goal: the tools are electronic networks, chats as a channel for expressing opinions. 5.10.5 The future home A unified development strategy exists as a background for master-plans for ‘lifestyle’ communities. The home is seen as a central hub for all life activities. Community Intranets are used to support and build up local facilities and to provide access to local service providers. Broadband-enabled homes are increasing rapidly. Current broadband content includes e-learning, ‘logon to schools’, ‘citizen services’, ‘library online’, ‘military services’. It will potentially be attractive to live in a house and thereby telecommute, which involves a dependency on Malaysia for housing. In summary, the citizen’s role in Singapore is very strong. Lifestyles enforcing ‘one life role’ are perceived as attractive by many people. There is a fear of the Americanization of cyber-content. This results in strong promotion of locally produced content in different languages. At the same time, the home is becoming more global – its similarity is due to global lifestyles. 5.11 Home of the future and ICT – Japan The following is mainly based on a presentation at the HCII conference in 2005, and is a report of a comparison between Japan and Sweden (L. Bradley 2005a, 2005b). 5.11.1 Introduction Sweden and Japan are countries and markets of particular interest for a comparison, partly because of their demographic structure – with a large elderly population – and partly because both countries are mature societies in terms of highly developed industrialization facing the new challenges of the knowledge society. In both Japan and Sweden,

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questions regarding the quality of life (QoL) have been raised, and technology development in general, and ICT in particular, are considered to have a major role in shaping and supporting the quality of life. As our professional and private roles become integrated, the home takes on the extended role of a space for both relaxation and work. Introducing ICT in our homes, we are challenged by accommodating the needs of changing life roles and behavioural patterns. Hence, we can learn from and respond to the problems that occurred when ICT was introduced at our workplaces, when a redesign of professional roles and organizations did not occur in parallel with the introduction of the technology. This section is based on a comparative study on the future home and home environments and the use of ICT in Japan and Sweden. The main research issues are: What visions regarding the home of the future dominate in Japan and Sweden? How are these visions expressed in terms of state of the art of living or experimental living environments (pilot homes, test beds and prototypes)? What technology and technology applications within the ICT field are used in Japanese and Swedish homes? What Net-enabled services are used in Japanese and Swedish homes? What market players drive the development of ICT in Japanese and Swedish homes? What do they consider as driving or prohibiting factors? How do Japan and Sweden face/interpret quality of life? Japan has a successful electronic industry making consumer goods, and Sweden has a long tradition in telecom development. Both Sweden and Japan are increasingly regarded as countries and markets of particular interest for study purposes because of high PC and Internet penetration in homes in Sweden and the success of mobile services in Japan. 5.11.2 Key market players that drive the development of ICT in homes The key players that drive the development of ICT in the home are described in Figure 5.5. The home electronics and entertainment industry in Japan has been active from an early stage in developing products for the home, including ICT applications. The telecommunication companies have primarily been focusing on the mobile technology and mobile services of relevance for ICT in homes. The housing and construction companies have not been very active in this field until now. Collaboration initiatives are led by cross-industry associations such as JEITA (Japan Electronics and Information Technology Association, Tokyo) and at the then ALICE Forum (Association for Information on

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Figure 5.5 Key players that drive the development of ICT in homes in Japan

Housing, Tokyo). It is critical to establish a close collaboration between these players for the development and this has been one of the most important lessons learned from the situation in Sweden introducing broadband services to homes. 5.11.3 Japanese housing and lifestyles This section provides an introduction to the housing situation and lifestyles in Japan. The main source of information is JETRO (Japan External Trade Organization), but also observations made during the study visits in Japan. The main geographical characteristics of Japan are:

• • •

Cities are located in the plains, which occupy only a small part of the country. Due to the size of the population (127 million) the urban areas are densely populated. There is a large dependence on public transportation, and people in cities value living close to a train or subway station. Land prices are in general high, although they have declined somewhat since the bursting of Japan’s economic bubble.

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The houses and apartments in the cities are comparatively small, average 27 sq m per person in Tokyo and 40 sq m per person in Stockholm (statistics presented at the exhibition Two Urban Models, Modern Museum of Architecture, Stockholm, 2004). Rural residents have more space and often own a car.

In the traditional Japanese home, the husband would provide for the family economy, while the wife would take care of the household and raise the children. The grandparents also live in the same house, being looked after, if necessary, by their daughter or daughter-in-law. Today Japanese women have more choice, and some choose to work even after they are married. This has implications for the housing situation. A young married couple may choose to live in a rather small (two-room) apartment, from where the commuting time to work is less than an hour. The birth rate in Japan is among the world’s lowest, and large families are rather uncommon. There is an urgent need to develop solutions for care of the elderly and children, as more women enter the labour market. Housing trends in Japan:

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Design of homes according to individual lifestyle preferences. ‘Imported housing’ (foreign houses and housing materials, i.e. imported from Europe, North America and Oceania). Specially adapted and more friendly housing for elderly and disabled people, e.g. homes designed to be ‘barrier-free’. Homes designed for two households, known as nisetai jutaku. This type of home makes it possible for two generations to live under the same roof. Homes equipped with ICT to cater for convenience and security (information terminals, video cameras, delivery boxes, surveillance systems, heated toilet seats and timing for heating of baths, etc.). Broadband to the home, bundled with various media and content offerings. In Tokyo there is currently the lowest price for high-speed connection to the home, as a result of fierce competition. There are many Wi-Fi hotspots set up all over Japanese cities to provide high-speed Net access when at a distance from the home or office.

5.11.4 Scenarios for the impact of ICT on home activities An analysis of the current and the future activities related to home life and the possible impact of new technology results in different user scenarios.

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The different lifestyle scenarios are: New social patterns and relationships In this scenario, technology ultimately changes our way of living and enables different communication patterns between individuals. For example, the mobile phone has ultimately changed people ’s communication behaviour and enabled a new mobile lifestyle. New work forms and efficient life In this scenario, technology is primarily an enabler of a more efficient lifestyle, by allowing easy management of the home as well as distance work. Being able to work from home could have a strong impact on the lifestyle of some individuals (teleworkers, entrepreneurs, parents with small children, women, etc.). Easy and convenient living In this scenario, technology is primarily used in the home for the sake of convenience. Applications are in the area of security and home management systems, but could also improve care-giving, e.g. caring for the elderly. More choices through digital channels In this last scenario, technology is primarily an extension of already existing trends towards a more entertainment- and experience-oriented lifestyle. These four scenarios also suggest different areas of activities which could be further developed into new services to the home (Figure 5.6). 5.11.5 Social, economic, cultural and political factors that drive or hinder introduction and use of ICT in homes In the following, some major driving and opposing factors are listed, mainly reflecting a macro-perspective. Opposing factors

• •

Lack of coordination between market players (broadband providers, home builders, architects and ICT equipment and service providers) for development efforts as well as standardization issues. Lack of experience for design of good and sustainable business models. The business model should, for instance, encompass a long-term perspective such as support and maintenance issues related to introducing ICT in homes.

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Figure 5.6 Model of scenarios for the impact of ICT on home activities (L. Bradley and Torgny 2004)

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•

• • •

The negative attitude in the media towards the so-called smart home development has prevented a serious public discussion on how to design a good home environment and on issues to address when integrating ICT into the future home. Lack of both practical experience and human behavioural know-how from full-scale trials in society as well as tests run by companies delivering ICT solutions for the future home. A general fear, in particular in Sweden, of negative effects from the technology, e.g. a health risk from wireless/radio technology, lack of integrity and security. In the short term, the prices of the services and products for the ‘ICT home’ will be relatively high and therefore only address a small fraction of the market (the high end).

Driving factors

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•

•

•

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Political factors are important drivers; Sweden has made a decision to support the expansion of network infrastructure, for example, broadband and the digital TV network. Similar activities to stimulate the use of ICT in homes are planned in Japan. The ICT strategy and vision of both countries may serve as framework for the development if communicated or implemented in a successful way. As regards citizen services, in Sweden the social contract between the state and the individual citizen can be seen as a driving force for introducing 24-hour e-citizen services. This could as a next step also drive the use of the Internet at home. Efforts are being made in Sweden to create an environment for innovative thinking by stimulating the testing and usage of new technology. This includes stimulating usage by tax reductions. One can compare the rapid market acceptance of mobile phones as a result of tax deductibility for companies. A general good family economy increases the demand for welfare services. In Sweden there is a tendency that some parts of the population work too hard according to the phenomenon of an ‘80/20 society’. This drives the demand for services to make life at home simple and enjoyable. Young people and children are early adopters and will drive the introduction of broadband services, e.g. enabling gaming, music and video downloading. New organizational structures and the internationalization of companies enable people to travel and communicate more frequently.

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•

This poses a demand for distance-independent services to support communication, both physical and virtual. In general, international benchmarks and exchange between countries and markets can benefit the development and use of ICT in the homes, such as the present learning and experience exchange between Japan and Sweden. New interface design and technology gadgets, for example, domestic robotics, will stimulate creative use of technology in our homes even if the application will vary in the different cultural contexts. In general, Japan has a playful attitude towards new technology that contributes to innovative design, while Sweden has a more functional orientation and attitude towards new technology. Hence, it is an opportunity for exchange initiatives and activities.

5.11.6 Communication and lifestyle in Japan Two of the papers in the session that we organized at the HCII conference in Las Vegas were written and presented by persons from Japan. Kambara (2005) described and analysed communication and lifestyle in the ICT era in Japan and provides a summary of observations in regard to communications and lifestyles in her country. First she notes that there is a digital divide in offices as well as a digital divide in business in general. Second, she emphasizes that the Internet offers a high level of anonymity. With respect to privacy, great care must be taken with respect to its protection. In just the past several months, there has been a series of cases in which personal information has leaked from the online services of major and well-known companies. In one sense, this has probably served as a type of education. Nevertheless, these services are offered and operated by large companies, so it is natural to believe that people must be even more careful with respect to other services. Third, she mentions some dark sides of the use of the Internet. Particularly in view of the changing demographics of an ageing society, there is a high risk that recent problems such as telephone fraud will also occur on the Internet. Moreover, some people publicize the faces of their children and their homes and neighbourhoods on family websites. The danger that anyone can access information must be firmly understood.

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Two other phenomena are discussed by Kambara which deal with the future of household appliances and the issue of trust. There seem to be two worlds – two cultures – when it comes to work and home. Kambara argues that the assortment of household appliances in our homes can be divided into those that make household chores easier and those that enable us to enjoy our free time. Personal computers that have been used to increase efficiency in business are now used in homes to help us enjoy free time. Kambara says that there has not been any other artefact in the past that serves a different purpose in the office and in the home. Another issue concerns the mistrust of consumers with respect to manufacturers. An increasing number of consumers will not purchase cutting-edge products during the period that manufacturers are competing over technical standards. Because there is no personal contact as a result of using IT, it is necessary to spend time to build trust with users. Relationships of trust that are established with customers over periods of many years, by adding the power of the Internet, can cause damage to brands or companies at a moment’s notice. Finally she underlines the importance of a user perspective and understanding the consumer. Ubiquitous information in our lives is not an end but a means. There is a question as to whether our lives will become richer or more difficult. New possibilities must be discovered to satisfy the diverse human ‘needs and grievances of everyone, not only with respect to things and IT’. Nomura et al. (2005) talk about ‘information management centres in everyday’ and have made a preliminary analysis that reveals the existence of a space in every household that functions as an information management centre (IMC). It is populated by telephones, calendars and piles of sorted mail, and functions as a communication centre for families. The IMC is typically located in the living room on a path to the front door and is often the site of activity during context shifts, such as when leaving home for grocery shopping. The IMC can be seen as an information management portal connecting the home to activities outside the home. Understanding how it functions promises to be useful in informing the design of context-aware networked home environments, according to Nomura et al.

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5.12 Summary and conclusions 5.12.1 Conclusions Theories of human needs, physical and psychosocial, could be used as a point of departure for analysing how we could create a good home environment in the information society. Important human needs are the same as in traditional working life. In addition to physical needs, there is a need to have a safe and secure life, the need to influence our individual circumstances, the need for social belonging, the need for learning and for developing oneself, and finally our need for meaning. These human needs can be materialized into certain activities and phenomena at home and at work. The main challenge in the near future will be the home in a broad sense, as many human roles are integrated in this growing communication sphere. Three technologies – computer technology, teletechnology and media technology – are now becoming fused into what we refer to in everyday speech as IT or ICT. This development may be illustrated by three convergent circles, which together give an overall change in society. Compare Chapter 4 on ICT and ongoing changes in working life and Chapter 2 on theories. Every technology (circle) has undergone major changes. With the arrival of the microprocessor, computer technology became very small, powerful, inexpensive and capable of being directly built into different instruments and devices – becoming invisible. ‘Embeddedness’ has become a theme for international discourse about ICT and social development. The transmission rate which teletechnology offers has become enormous as a result of technology such as broadband networks, and finally media technology is undergoing an explosive development. At this stage another convergence – of a social nature – is taking place. Our professional role, private life role and citizen’s role are converging to form a life role. The home is coming back into focus, and it appears that history is repeating itself. Another aspect is the convergence of human needs and conditions and the development of technology. This has been an area of much research and application. But now it is about the whole of our life, both private and what we call work. A smart home in the more developed sense of the word will provide us with the prospects and means to use our time to develop our own ‘core activity’ and develop something where we as individuals are unique; to extend what is truly human.

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The aim of our research is to describe and analyse living and working in and from the home with the increased use of ICT for services and products. Homing from work and working from home are key concepts. Our home can be described as a communication sphere in which we can be present either physically or virtually. Portable technology also makes relevant the balance between ‘nomadic’ and home-related aspects of humans and their lives. A model has been developed to analyse the home of the future and factors that influence what form a future home will take. The model gives rise to questions such as: What human needs and behaviours can be related to the home and the home environment? What new behaviours emerge at the interface between technology and human needs? What are the main social trends and what are the technical trends of relevance for the home of the future in relation to its function and significance for human beings? A number of hypotheses have been formulated, which were refined with hypotheses in a wider international comparative perspective. This chapter seeks to serve as a basis for reflection for everyone. ‘What is a good home’ and how should activities relating to the work environment, education and training, social roles and union activities be carried out when more and more of our working life is moving into our homes? At a time when our roles for certain periods are mobile, how can the home of the future be designed to support a good family role and a parental role? Experiences from research into working life and the psychosocial work environment should be transferred to the psychosocial life environment – the home environment. There is room for both continuity and new thinking, theoretical and practical. This chapter may also serve as a basis for an important venture from the point of view of research strategy, with an international focus. The intention has not been to analyse developments critically, although we have now and then commented on them. We think it is important to:

• • •

design for environments from a holistic and ‘systems perspective’ – environments for people to live, work, learn and play; explore the possibilities for those who want to remain or move to beautiful rural areas, which could prosper once again; redesign dwellings in the cities, in suburban areas as well as in the countryside;

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• • • •

identify necessary ‘boundaries’ – physical, electronic and with regard to time – for preventing information and communication overload, which have become main stressors; extract and apply essential findings about humans from the social and behavioural sciences; transfer experiences from research on psychosocial issues to the life environment in the new homes and to the new meeting places created in the ICT society; explore, emphasize and apply what enriches people’s lives.

5.12.2 The convergence theory and the connected home Our conclusion from the convergence theory (Chapter 2) and associated empirical research is that the two main perspectives of the sociological theories on the information society summarized can be combined. Hence there is both continuity and a new paradigm shift that we are experiencing. The introduction and use of ICT in the new life environment, having moved into communities as well as into our homes, should not solely be left to the steering factors that have been present in work life over the years. Reflection and wisdom are needed. Cross-disciplinary and international comparative research and action programmes are crucial. Such programmes should be integrated with full-scale models for the future home (L. Bradley 2005b). Basic human needs and a ‘people-push’ technology not a ‘technology-push’ should be the leading principle. The main challenge in the near future is the home in a broad sense, as many human roles are converging into one life role and the home is more and more understood in terms of virtual space as well as physical. The home will become a multi-purpose and a communication centre where the home could be regarded as: an extended family centre; a care centre; a multimedia centre; a centre for democratic dialogue; a marketplace; a learning centre; an entertainment centre. A ‘smart home’ (Figure 5.7) should be service- and not product-oriented. A ‘smart home’ should help the individual to good health, safety and joy. A ‘smart home’ should enable us to deepen human qualities and provide humans with psychological and physical strength to change society in a humane direction. In summary, the design should be based on human needs, as well as

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Figure 5.7 Smart Home Navigator (G. Bradley 2001)

human abilities and preferences. Important human needs are the need for a safe and secure life, the need to influence our life conditions, the need for social belonging, the need for learning and for developing oneself, and finally our need for meaningful life content. In parallel it is important to prevent various stress phenomena in our life environment, also related to techno-stress. The private sphere in the home is opened up to the public sphere, but an important role and function of the home is to be an oasis for fostering deeper human qualities that are foundations for making globalization truly humane. Approaching the future home with an explorative mindset will help bring out innovative solutions to cater for new lifestyles, to revise and/or reclaim former lifestyles. The explorative mindset could help in discovering how new technology could add valuable content to home life as well as develop lifestyles where dependency on technology is minimized in strategic areas. We are only at the point of discovering how to utilize this technology to enhance communication and support.

6 ICT and humans – ongoing changes in communities

• • • •

Introduction

Changes in communities

The project ‘Computers in the Bakery’ Purpose and problems Results from action research and the village eight years later – some snapshots

• • •

Comments and discussion Community informatics in progress Experiences from the national and international levels – new openings for rural areas and for communities

•

Comments and discussions

6.1 Introduction This chapter deals with a project initially entitled ‘Computers in the Bakery’, which was a social experiment in my home village. When capital, technology and people become increasingly and rapidly mobile at the global level, the strength of the local competence and know-how environment will become of greater significance. This is true for the development and prosperity of the individual at a local level and for the living conditions of the citizens. Competence to cope with the rapid pace of change and a complex world is crucial and requires vision. Small villages in the countryside are becoming part of the global village, with the increased use of information and communication technology. The term ‘global village’ appeared as a result of the fact that people in small and remote villages could connect to other units, both cities and villages globally. There are now possibilities to analyse the use of ICT in a broader societal context. The empirical research on the three communities described in this chapter started in 1995, as the use of the Internet exploded. The former more futuristic analyses that sketched on

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the societal level what could occur with the computerization of society could in the year 2000 be complemented with empirical experiences. In this chapter, the main experiences are summarized for a rural community, a suburban community, and a city-centre ‘community’ in the capital city of Stockholm. The rural community is small and situated in the south of Sweden, where many small villages originally formed the community. The visions set out in the rural community for the ICT implementation were to:

• • •

offer a high quality of life for more people; strengthen the rural area with respect to business development, structure and level of employment, and the citizen’s role; facilitate the integration of immigrants.

The theoretical model on the interaction between ICT and the psychosocial life environment (see Chapter 2) was used to analyse the ongoing changes in the communities, with regard to organizations, human roles and lifestyles. In the present era of computerization, the Net era, networks in integration, interaction and action are cornerstones of the change process. This is the case for electronic communication networks as well as for human-to-human personal networking. This chapter has a special character. It is built on many years of research, theoretical and empirical work, which constitute a background. It was a jump from the ‘ivory tower’ that often appears in research, as a result of an interaction between researchers’ own egos and the scientific culture, into action research. In this case the field research took place in the author’s home community, in the countryside of Sweden. The visions adopted for the community research in 1995 came to appear in certain areas some years later, on a global level. The visionary part brought to life the efforts from the World IT Forum and the Vilnius Declaration in 2003 (see Chapter 9 on actions). With reference to the Convergence Model presented in Chapter 2, I would like to emphasize that within the academic disciplines such as informatics, information science, and computer and system sciences, a discussion of focus is taking place: analysis and design now address not only the work process and management connected to the sphere of production life, but also people’s life environment and life roles.

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Professional roles, our roles as citizens and as private persons are fundamental. Community research in a broad sense comes to the fore, with respect to physical as well as virtual communities. Analyses and design of ICT and societal systems at local levels and globally become important. Also in demand are new actors in the integration of ICT in society (children, the elderly, and consumer organizations). The general research strategy was to use methods of a more qualitative nature at the beginning of the research process, and more quantitative methods in the data collection and analysis. Towards the end of the research process in each of the projects included, qualitative methods were again used in the interpretation of results. The theories and concepts were created in interaction with the empirical findings, but the initial theoretical framework was applied (see Chapter 2). A substantial part of the research described in this chapter is actionoriented, and its purpose and problem statements are presented below. Collaboration and learning in networks were applied and are further addressed in Chapter 4 on psychosocial communication. 6.2 The project ‘Computers in the Bakery’ 6.2.1 The rural community – motivation and action research The rural community was the very community where I lived during my first 15 years. The community is small. It has about 6000 inhabitants, and is situated in the south of Sweden. The project started in 1994. The ODAM IV international conference that I chaired that year in Stockholm received much publicity. I was interviewed in a daily newspaper in Sweden. At one point I declared that I had a vision that my home village would start to grow and flourish again with the support of ICT. This was at a time when nobody would have thought that the village could develop and prosper in this rather isolated part of Sweden – a village from where originally thousands of people had emigrated to the USA. It was the part of Sweden where Wilhelm Moberg, the author of On to a Good Land and The Emigrants, described the lives of Karl Oskar and Kristina (Moberg 1949, 1952). The community business officer (Nils-Erik Svensson) called the next day and said ‘you have a vision about Högsby – come down to us so we can talk about it and see if we can make these visions turn into reality ’. After that first meeting the local newspaper contributed to making me

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somewhat of a local guru and I found myself often on the front page of the local press with headlines like ‘Gunilla wants to save Högsby’. ‘Högsby will be on the World Map’, etc. So there I was, suddenly, in a new challenging project, of a unique kind, back in my own backyard! Three years of voluntary work in my home community had just started. The tools were networking, visions, strategy for change, and strong local support. People from Stockholm coming to a small community such as Högsby were often viewed with some suspicion. People with such a background were sometimes thought of as having an intention to use local or EU money for their own limited interests only. For me it was different then; born in the area and with a family background of more than 400 years in the region, I felt that I was trusted and that I had important ‘personal capital’ from my ancestors to take good care of. An old bakery (Figure 6.1) served as the office for the project ‘Computers in the Bakery’. My grandmother started the bakery at the time of the First World War and was known to be very generous; everyone coming into the bakery went out with a basket of food or some important knowledge. Her father was an agricultural labourer paid in kind by the big manor in the area from which many of the inhabitants of the village came. That generation often had some ten children and lived within one single room and a kitchen. For me personally, the project ‘Computers in the Bakery’ was a way to heal myself, but on a societal or community level. My memories were very dark, since my father had entered a long period of unemployment, and one day the depression was too heavy and he did not want to live any longer. This was before the time when the country had developed economic support systems for unemployment. As pointed out in section 6.1, the visions formulated for the rural community for the ICT implementation were to:

• • •

•

offer a high quality of life for more people improve quality of life strengthen the rural area with the help of IT and with respect to • business development • structure and level of employment • citizen’s role facilitate the integration of immigrants.

The proportion of immigrants was higher than in most communities in Swedish rural areas, and at the same time there was a strategy applied for

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the integration in parallel to the transition of the community to part of the ‘global village’. The immigrants came mainly from former Yugoslavia during the Balkan war. An infrastructure for progressive use of information technology in general was designed to support the professional role and the citizen’s role and to shape good prerequisites for a broader use of ICT. The community authority made a substantial investment in computers and networks to support the development projects and activities. This was done at an early stage with some guidance and encouragement from our project. 6.2.2 The suburban community The suburban community was Kista, often referred to as the Silicon Valley of Sweden, where a major part of the Swedish IT research and development is located. In Kista there was a growing problem with a subdivision of the community into one group of fully employed, highly educated IT professionals, who ‘owned’ the area in the daytime, and another group of largely unemployed persons, primarily immigrants, who ‘owned’ the area outside work hours as residents. This societal problem in the neighbourhood of Stockholm was discussed and brought forward by the community of Kista, a part of the Stockholm

Figure 6.1 Grandmother’s bakery

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Municipality. In seminars with representatives of companies located in the area, the technical university (KTH) and the community, it was very evident that there was a demand for specific research on ICT and social segregation/integration. The vision developed in the community was to create a better quality of life for all people in the area and to use the local IT competence and resources to facilitate the integration. In the discussion I also mentioned the importance of looking at Sweden in a new broader context, where the rural areas in transition could collaborate with high-tech areas in densely populated cities and suburbs like Kista, to facilitate the integration of subgroups, e.g. immigrants, increase the quality of life and develop the role of citizens in a more democratic direction. Hence research was initiated with the purpose of preventing local segregation and urban– rural segregation in the use of ICT. In the neighbouring community of Järfälla, similar tendencies of social segregation were seen. This was also the case in the community of Ronneby in Southern Sweden, where the new ‘Soft Centre’ had expanded with a large number of IT professionals – the new information and knowledge workers. A fairly high unemployment rate was found among production workers in the more traditional industries. 6.2.3 The urban community The third community was a community with young IT people in the centre of Stockholm, partially a virtual community. A new generation of entrepreneurs had expanded worldwide. In Sweden, there was a generation which had received a good training in collaborating in networks at an early stage. They had grown up in day-care centres, with their parents working outside home. Risk capital had spread to our country, where formerly only big governmental funds existed. We were experiencing the period of the so-called IT bubble. The ‘IT community’ of Stockholm became famous for being informal, playful and ‘hip’, as in other high-tech regions. 6.3 Purpose and problems The overall purpose of the studies in the rural and suburban communities was to analyse the use of ICT in a societal context, addressing both structural changes and changes affecting the individual at work, in the private role, and in the role as a citizen. The main humanistic focus of

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the research was on possibilities and prerequisites, related to ICT, for influencing one’s own life conditions, for social belonging, for meaningful life content, and for learning and developing oneself. The research addressed the following issues:

•

•

• •

balance and relations between • employment/unemployment • Swedes/‘New Swedes’ (i.e. immigrants) • female and male cultures • rural and urban psychosocial and organizational environment • organizational structures • professional and citizens’ roles • leadership • stress phenomena • values and attitudes to work and leisure (lifestyles) competence development transfer of knowledge and influence.

The title of the project was further elaborated to: ‘Societal and Psychosocial Challenges and ICT – comparisons between a rural community and a suburban community’ (RURBAN). The purpose of the urban study in the city-centre community of Stockholm was a little different. It was primarily an analysis, and did not include any ambition to change and influence. The study was part of the project ‘Home of the Future and ICT’ described in Chapter 5. The focus was to analyse the psychosocial environment for young urban IT professionals – quite a new group on the labour market in the IT boom. The IT professionals developed a new lifestyle in many ways at work and in their private lives. 6.4 Results from action research and the village eight years later – some snapshots The main results and experiences are summarized below. 6.4.1 The rural community In the first step a Learning Programme, sponsored by the community, the Swedish National Labour Market Board and a private enterprise, was performed, concentrating on CAD and Internet/Web applications.

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In a second step, various efforts were made to encourage workplaces of different characters, e.g. ‘start-up’ and ‘spin-off’ companies. To exemplify the activities, a small enterprise, the Högsby Textilfabrik, was established with more than 20 female workers (refugees and immigrants, primarily from Bosnia in the Balkans). The initiative was sponsored at the outset by the European Union as a project in the ‘Employment programme’. The initial project plan was to use advanced CAD systems for the design and production of clothes customized to people’s bodies and to make it possible to order these products at a distance. The company was to represent a niche in the Swedish labour market and be organized as a virtual unit. Preparations and contacts were made, but unfortunately it turned out to be too early to implement them at that time. However, the start-up traditional textile factory remained in business. In the third step, small spin-off companies from the Learning Program were established. Examples are an Internet service provider, a Web application producer, and a mechanical CAD designer. The community provides substantial information on the Web to the various departments and politicians – a part of a citizen’s office. In addition there was a progressive ‘village development project’ in the community, on a voluntary basis. The community was recognized as one of the most ‘IT mature’ communities of southern Sweden. Some years later the community was elected as ‘the community of the year in Sweden’, with an exhibition at the central train station in Stockholm, underlining the fact that the local railway had closed, but opened once again, facilitating the community development. A leap was taken from once being part of the ‘set-aside’ communities in the country, with the lowest budget for public expenditure for some years compared to other communities in the country. The research contributed to a greater knowledge and understanding of how combinations of information technology (computer technology and telecommunication technology) and societal factors can be designed to shape good conditions for the individual in his/her professional role and role as citizen and in international contacts. In June 2004 some followup interviews were performed with key persons in the rural community. The main changes reported can be summarized as:

• • •

The belief in the future had been restored. The community had the highest coverage of broadband network access among Swedish rural communities. There was now a local Internet service provider, offering a service level that to some extent exceeded that of the dominant provider.

138 • Changes in communities

• • • • • •

The commercial centre from the old days had been reclaimed. The quality of life had been improved. People had moved to Högsby from places such as Stockholm, and even from Germany, Greece and France. A new leisure industry replacing the traditional industry had been established. An extended school system with a so-called gymnasium, i.e. a comprehensive upper secondary school, had been introduced. A centre for ‘health and food’, connected to a university, is being planned.

According to discussions at the follow-up interviews, five main characteristics were identified for a sustainable community development for the use of ICT, besides effective technology:

• • • • •

a good and healthy living environment security in a physical sense good societal services entrepreneurial competence effective transportation facilities.

6.4.2 The suburban community In the suburban community of Kista a project ‘Learning with IT’ was formed by the Electrum Foundation, the Royal Institute of Technology, Kista community and a number of innovative small education companies. The project, partly sponsored by the EU, created IT competence centres. There were two main purposes. One was to give the long-term unemployed, disabled and immigrants better possibilities to enter the labour market, through education and project work. The second purpose was to encourage the start-up of new companies and new types of professional activities, using flexible and open forms of education and training with a perspective of ‘lifelong learning’. The first stage of the suburban action programme ran at the time of the project; about 40 students were enrolled, and a further 50 in association with another organization. The project had the advantage of being leveraged by the ‘Swedish Silicon Valley’ resources, and in the long term there were estimates in the range of 10,000 new jobs. The development took another turn. At the beginning of 2000 the IT industry entered a downturn with the bursting of the ‘IT bubble’. Small start-up firms did not survive, and large companies such as Ericsson,

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located mainly in Kista, had to reduce their staff by 50 per cent. However, investments that had been made in competence development for immigrants, including a special programme for women, had a long-term importance. In 2005 there is a new recruitment process going on in Kista, the Silicon Valley of Sweden, today a prospering multicultural area. 6.4.3 The urban community The urban community was a city-centre community and a partly virtual one. It consisted of young IT people in the centre of Stockholm, where networking was a guiding principle in the community culture (Danielsson 2002). The empirical experience was based on semistructured interviews with ‘young urban knowledge workers in the new IT business’. In what follows, the main results are summarized applying the Convergence Model (see Chapter 2, Figure 2.5). The professional role

•

• • •

• •

•

The young IT people had strong social networks. Workmates and friends were often the same people – the interviewees had strong trust and confidence in their friends and thus also in their workmates. The solidarity among the workmates was very good and as a result the interviewees felt very safe in their professional role. They considered that the work tasks gave meaning to their life. Everyone considered good health and being able to continue spending time with family and friends to be the most important thing in life. One interesting result from a sociological point of view was that most people were deeply involved in their work. They found their work tasks fun, stimulating, interesting and independent. They remarked that it was inconceivable not to be reachable by the phone or e-mail for a long time-period. Flexibility concerning time and space was a common description of the work situation. Their own responsibility in their professional role and private roles gave them freedom. They took responsibility for their professional development as well as for allocation of time and choice of work themselves. Important skills and qualities were: ability to cope with stress and manage on one’s own; engagement in the task; certain technical knowledge; group collaboration skills.

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The private role (and citizen role) The private role was characterized by strong social networks. They were connected to the Net more or less permanently. Their meals took place outside the home. They often had so-called compact living compared to rural and suburban living. A more traditional family view seems to have been reclaimed: they all wanted to have a family and become parents. ‘Feel good’ was the main goal, and included both physical and psychological well-being. Interesting duties and successful assignments came next. They perceived no hindrance to combining work and family (one reason might be the paternal leave system in Sweden). They were not involved politically, but 50 per cent were involved in non-governmental organizations. Psychological effects Both men and women experienced positive and negative stress, depending on interest and the time allocated to their work. It was mainly stress, fatigue and anxiousness that they related to problems in the physical ergonomic work environment. Pains in their backs and shoulders were reported by 50 per cent. Many of the interviewees experienced worries about their work and had problems sleeping. To be able to experience complete relaxation from work, they had to engage in physical activity that demanded deep concentration (Danielsson 2002). 6.5 Comments and discussion The research in the rural and suburban communities was expected to contribute to our knowledge about how combinations of information technology (computer technology and telecommunication technology) and societal factors may be designed to shape good conditions for the individual in his/her work role and role as citizens and in international contacts, especially social integration concerns. Examples of important results are the understanding of the changes taking place in the use of ICT in a rural area on the societal level and changes for the individual. On a societal level the long-term results of the research contribute to a deeper understanding of

•

knowledge and power distribution and its potential in an IT society • between traditional organizations and new organizational structures; • between cities and rural areas;

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•

• •

between some Swedish communities and the new international ‘landscape’; creation and development of networks and virtual organizations; global communication in the global village – the new possibilities to connect to the world from a small rural village.

The research results contributed to the discussion about what actions could be undertaken, during the ongoing transformation of a small rural community into part of the global village with a large suburban community already approaching and belonging to the global arena, respectively. What are the main issues that the rural area faces in 2005? What actions need to be taken for it to ‘survive’ and possibly grow? What lessons could be learnt from the project? For the future, investment in projects that keep people’s motivation, engagement and positive thinking at a high level are important in parallel to the changing of structures such as ICT infrastructure, commercial infrastructure, and transport infrastructure. It is also important to tackle issues related to a phenomenon referred to by a special law, ‘Jante’s law’, in Sweden. This is formulated as a set of rules for the individual, and says, for example, that you should not think that you are someone special, that you can do anything better than others, and so on. This way of thinking has been dominant in the Nordic countries for centuries. It has often had the effect of keeping people down, prohibiting initiatives and undermining self-esteem. Moreover, hard work is needed to create local politics with a creative approach to different ideologies. A tight collaboration with the neighbourhood communities, instead of competition, is also important. To a certain degree subsidies from the EU contributed to the expectation of having support money in entrepreneurship. Together with ‘Jante’s law’, so-called ‘learnt helplessness’ was a new risk. Entrepreneurs often came from outside the community. What are the main issues in the suburban community? What lessons could be learned? Around the IT companies and the university campus a new commercial centre, Kista Galleria, with a multicultural touch has been built. New Swedes are engaged in the new service sector. College courses in IT disciplines have also been organized in the form of classes and in self-study form for new Swedes, some directly addressing females. In

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addition, a college-level engineering school is active, a first step towards a labour market with a technical edge. In research, the balance between Swedes and new Swedes is fairly good. In many academic courses there is even a predominance of people coming from abroad, emphasizing the multicultural character of the area. However, one thing that strikes the visitor is the male dominance among leaders, teachers (including professors) and students, this in spite of Sweden having the highest proportion of women in the labour market. The male dominance in the field of IT research as well as in the industry is a growing problem in many countries. Research has identified causes of the gender segregation in the academic discipline of computer science (CS) and ICT employment. The causes are sociocultural factors that influence women’s participation in CS and ICT, as well as intrinsic factors in the teaching and culture in CS (Wardle et al. 2005). At the present stage, contributions from all social and gender groups are necessary to improve the quality of life through ICT. The research in the urban community was more focused on the individual level. As stated earlier, the research analysed possibilities and prerequisites, related to ICT, for the individual to influence his/her own life conditions, for social belonging, for a meaningful life content, and for learning and developing oneself. The young IT professionals in Stockholm’s city centre represented a new lifestyle in both work and private life which seems to be more and more common in the ICT society. 6.6 Community informatics in progress Learning in networks was the guiding principle for the community research. It started with transferring experiences from university research and industrial networks over to research and actions in the rural community – and back to a suburban community. Finally a third ‘community’ – young IT professionals in the city centre – was explored. Later on it was possible to discuss and compare our experiences from the three communities with the experiences from some other countries in Europe (east and west), south-east Asia, Africa and the USA as part of an international master’s course on ‘ICT and Global Management’ at the Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden. About 60 students participated in groups and they summarized their discussions in reports. There are many similarities in the relationship between ICT and social change across cultures, but countries are at different phases of computerization

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and ICT use. However, in some cases one might conclude that some developing countries are leaping ahead in this process and that the lack of infrastructure in these countries in certain circumstances serves as a facilitator rather than a hindrance for its implementation. This seems to be true especially as a result of microcomputerization and the use of mobile and wireless telecommunication. It is crucial for the ongoing broad and deep use of ICT to shape desirable conditions for the individual in his/her different roles and psychosocial environment. At the IADIS conference on the ‘e-Society’ in 2004, the programme was structured in themes that pattern the present stage of knowledge and focus: e-society, e-government, e-learning, e-health, etc., as well as the more traditional themes such as management of information systems (Isaías et al. 2004). According to Gurstein (2000) Community Informatics is a technology strategy or discipline which links economic and social development effort at the community level with emerging opportunities in such areas as electronic commerce, community and civic networks and Tele centres, electronic democracy and on-line participation, self-help and virtual health communities, advocacy, cultural enhancement, and others.

Having strong technologies at the beginning of the twenty-first century empowering the individual, it is important to focus on different aggregations of individuals. Organizations, communities, societies, etc., are formed by individuals but also form the individuals. The definition by Gurstein above corresponds to my general perspective within the discipline of informatics, entitled ‘social informatics’ and ‘technology and social change’, and the theoretical framework presented in Chapter 2. Both learning and working in distributed environments are taking place in ‘virtual communities’, and contribute to the creation and strengthening of virtual communities. Processes such as learning – communication – interaction have many connections. 6.7 Experiences from the national and international levels – new openings for rural areas and for communities 6.7.1 What are Open.Net and open communication? The main technical systems used for communication are based on infrastructures such as telephone networks and the Internet, including

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both wired and wireless links. The supply of these infrastructures is generally considered a matter for the telecommunication operators and public administrations. Yet, this has not always been the case, and it is not true everywhere. Many of the traditional concepts and procedures of telecommunication networks should be revisited, in order to facilitate access for all to communicate beyond the reach of the human voice. Experiences from alternative ways to organize the deployment, management and operation of communication systems, including both infrastructure-full systems (in cities) and infrastructure-less systems (in rural areas), were disseminated and discussed at a workshop in 2003 entitled ‘Open Access Workshop’ (Pehrson 2003). Open.Net is a research project aimed at sharing the infrastructure costs. The end user is able to choose between ISPs, and several ISPs can deliver services through a common access network. Regarding infrastructure-less systems, some examples were presented at the workshop of ongoing work illustrating the concept of ad hoc networking and its application to providing connectivity in rural areas lacking ICT infrastructure (Pehrson 2003). Regarding infrastructure-full systems, experiences from pilot networks based on the concept of open-exchange point-centric network topologies were presented, as opposed to the traditional operator-centric one. Conclusions were drawn related to regulation, competition and pricing. The components of such networks include operator-neutral access networks and distributed traffic exchange points to which service and content providers can connect servers directly and to which user communities and user agents can connect access points. Natural actors and user agents play important roles that facilitate the use of flexible economic models based on local opportunities rather than national business models. The experiences presented at the workshop included networks in both densely populated and rural areas, and in both developed and developing countries. Strategies and role-playing for exploiting the concept of speeding up the deployment of access networks were discussed. Some examples from the Open.Net research programme are presented below: SameNet was one of the projects presented. Sámi (Lapp) reindeer herders are semi-nomads and indigenous people of the northern and

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mountain areas of Sweden. For an IT system to be useful for the Sámi people, it must not rely on a fixed infrastructure. The herders move within unsettled areas where the topography makes radio limited in reach. Broadband cannot cover the total area, and satellite coverage is intermittent and too expensive for general use. With an IT system which did not require real-time speed initially, the following services were possible:

• • • • • •

distance learning and education distance health care remote office employment self-employment communication across wider communities recreation and pleasure.

These services were identified in the Sámi community to have a potential to increase the economic gain and the quality of life for individuals and families. Requirements on a functioning IT system were specified in a communication-challenged region, especially the herders in the Laponia World Heritage Area. The semi-nomadic population of Sámi live in a land that has little communication infrastructure and a strong requirement for maintaining the ecological balance and management of nature. Since cables cannot be laid nor towers or antennae erected, the access network needs to use whatever facilities are available. This includes wire, wireless, satellite and broadcast television. Additional connectivity will be provided by mobile relays placed in cars, trucks, all-terrain vehicles and snowmobiles. Initial plans for the project included building a prototype network in cooperation with one Sámi village. The services that were provided during the prototype stage include basic e-mail and Web access, as well as selected business services such as providing the ability to track herd movement while in the winter ranges. The following projects were part of the Communication Systems Design course for international master’s students at Telecommunications System Lab, Royal Institute of Technology (KTH), Stockholm in 2004. Hotspot Laponia was another project set to provide wireless Internet for the Sámi people, to provide an alternative Internet connection for them. This project served as test bed for Sámi Network Connectivity (SNC) research and provides a platform for further SNC research (see below).

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As part of an effort to bring communication to an area of the western Norrbotten, currently underserved by communications infrastructure, the Hotspot Laponia team installed a Wi-Fi hotspot at the Sámi educational centre of Jokkmokk. This hotspot provides basic Internet services like a walled garden Web portal, e-mail, VoIP. Inhabitants, tourists and students can use the services offered by the hotspot. It can be extended to comply with the Open.Net architecture. The solution that master’s students explored was easy to maintain and required a minimum of administration. In response to the communication needs of inhabitants and reindeer herders at remote areas of western Norrbotten, Sámi Network Connectivity (SNC) was launched in March 2002. The aim of SNC was to provide hotspots in remote areas and connect them with the hotspot in Jokkmokk. It can be done by running mobile relays. The technology is also known as delay-tolerant networking. Hotspot Laponia is a sub-project of SNC. With this project the first phase of SNC is completed. A part of the solution (Hotspot kit) is reproducible and hence can be used to provide hotspots at other remote areas. A project from Asia presented at the workshop was ‘The Remote IT Village’ (Denkayaphitchith 2004). The project involved the development and field-testing of a custom-designed computer linking five villages in Laos via wireless connection. A system for communicating words and data was created and designed according to specifications of villagers. Computers were installed, and a way to get onto the Internet in villages that had no electricity nor telephones nor cell-phone possibilities because of the terrain. In five villages, the students placed new rugged, no-moving-parts, low-power-consumption computers, dot-matrix printers, keyboards and roller-balls. These were powered by pedals – stationary bicycles with generators running against the wheel rims, hooked up to batteries. The batteries were connected to the computers and printers via cable. The Remote IT Village Initiative aimed to empower five villages in a remote valley, without electricity and phones, with a means of communication and the use of simple business tools. The Remote IT Village pilot test linked five villages in the HinHeup District, 100 km from Vientiane, the capital of Laos, implementing a wireless Wide-Area Network (WAN). Villagers were able to use VoIP to communicate with the outside world. Telephony and Lao-language business tools, designed by a member of the group, were designed to raise their standard of living while preserving traditions and some cultural values.

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The network was expected to enhance business and trade opportunities for organically produced rice to be sold in markets and in Vientiane, and the establishment of a local market for sales of products among the villagers themselves. Villagers could also connect by voice and e-mail with family members living overseas. The system is owned by the villagers and run by literate middle-school children. The Internet Learning Centres (ILC) project enabled secondary schools in Laos to develop sustainable computer labs combining educational purposes with for-profit outreach to the community. The ILCs provided students with technology training and the chance to communicate with others and collaborate on projects. The project was run by the Lao people themselves and was developed through on-the-ground, rigorous planning with an emphasis on sustainability. The ILC program was awarded the prestigious 2001 Stockholm Challenge Award in education. The project has also been selected as a premier project by the 300-member Technology Empowerment Network. Both Remote IT projects and ILCs are tools for linking Lao children/students (a long-term goal of the Jhai Foundation). 6.7.2 Stockholm Challenge Award The Stockholm Challenge has been for more than 10 years a global networking programme for ICT entrepreneurs. It demonstrates how ICT can improve living conditions and increase economic growth in all parts of the world. One of the main features is an award which has attracted over 3000 projects over the years. Two examples of prize-winning projects are presented below. Projects cover public administration, culture, health, education, economic development and environment. Telehealth – a case study in South Africa One project that received an award in 2004 focused on tele-health. It is a case study conducted in Tsilitwa, at the Eastern Cape of South Africa. The innovation solution piloted a low-cost communications platform, utilizing solar energy, in a remote rural community to facilitate improved healthcare and sustainable development. The community network used wireless and GSM technologies linking two villages, enabling data, voice and video communications to a clinic, hospital, school, police station and Community Centre (Multi Purpose Community Centre , MPCC). A Web server using a GSM modem provided e-mail and local content. An effective application for voice and video communications

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was demonstrated by the nurse at the rural clinic and the doctor at the hospital. A camera was incorporated into the wireless link between the clinic (sending site) and the hospital (receiving site). The nurse could also send a digital image of the patient via e-mail. Training was given to the nurse and the doctor. The Health Department has adopted the system and will continue training and developing new applications. A rural maintenance support business was established from trained community members. Sustainability of the project is achieved through ‘no cost’ Intranet communications and provision of information services, such as agriculture and education, and training at the MPCC, on a fee basis. Many rural communities have no access to basic services such as electricity and telephones – essential pillars for economic development. Simple connectivity to facilitate communications and remote healthcare can have a major impact on rural communities. The community wireless network facilitated an increased quality of life of rural people. Patients can now be diagnosed at the clinic without incurring the cost of transport for a diagnosis that can simply take place through tele-consultation at the clinic. The clinic nurse now feels empowered to provide a better health service as she has, for the first time, support from the doctor. In addition to using e-mail, she can send pictures taken with the digital camera for further diagnosis anywhere. Safety and security were enhanced in the community as a result of voice communication with the police station in the neighbouring village, thereby sharing resources. Extensive training empowered the community members to use the MPCC for local information such as agriculture and educational material, and trained business facilitators helped develop local business plans. Schoolteachers were no longer threatened by computers and were confident to teach new learners. Class attendance was also improved as a result of access to computers by the children. The project is important not only in showing the impact that it has on community mobilization and engagement, but also in demonstrating how innovative technologies should be considered in telecommunications regulatory policy. The Department of Health now wants to expand the wireless technology to other rural clinics. A key aspect of the project is sustainability. This has been demonstrated by use of a technology that has ‘no running cost’ (free wireless and local server) and also by the establishment of a rural technical support and maintenance business. The MPCC concept has been proved to be sustainable, offering relevant services to communities and business support.

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Botswana Basket Weavers online Another project that received an award in 2004 was the ‘Botswana Basket Weavers online’. Basket weavers formed a group to market their products on the Internet with help from Botswana Craft Marketing. Experienced art class basket weavers felt that the prices they got for their work was not justifying the work they put into the weaving. Weaving baskets could take months, and they were tired and ready to give up weaving. Botswana Craft Marketing suggested that they could form a group and try to market their work directly on the Internet. Twenty-four women who formed the initial group were able to sell most of their work to collectors from many different countries. They are interested in continuing to use their weaving skills and allowing more women from the community to join the group. A vision formulated is that they will have the world University of Basket-making in Etta! 6.7.3 SPIDER SPIDER (the Swedish programme for ICT in developing regions) mobilizes Sweden’s ICT resources to bridge the digital divide. It has its office at the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm and is mainly financed by Sida, the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency. The activities are focused on creating favourable environments in developing countries for implementing ICT efficiently, to bridge the digital divide and thereby alleviate poverty. There are three focal areas in the programme: Education and research – providing advanced-level education in technology and the application of ICT for sustainable development. Research focuses on novel solutions to the unique technical problems of the developing world. Project collaboration and services – focusing on assistance in the deployment of ICT, the creation of ICT-enabling environments in developing countries and on policy and regulatory issues. SPIDER also serves as a help desk for Swedish authorities in matters related to ICT and development work. External relations – creating awareness of the importance of ICT for development among the stakeholders, decision makers and development cooperation agencies. SPIDER is associated with the Stockholm Challenge Award (www.stockholmchallenge.se).

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6.7.4 Slow Cities Closely connected to ICT and the perspective of allocation issues and quality of life (see section 4.5) is the Slow Cities movement. It is a group of towns and cities in Italy committed to improving the quality of life of their citizens, especially with regard to food issues. The first meeting of Slow Cities was held in Orvieto in Italy in October 1999, and the Mayor of Greve in Chianti, Signor Paolo Saturnini, was elected coordinator of the movement. The following description is based on the Charter of the Slow Cities Association. The development of local communities is based on their ability to share and acknowledge specific qualities, to create an identity of their own that is visible outside and profoundly felt inside. The phenomenon of globalization offers, among other things, a great opportunity for exchange and diffusion, but it does tend to level out differences and conceal the peculiar characteristics of single realities. In short, it proposes median models that belong to no one and inevitably generate mediocrity. Nonetheless, a rapidly increasing new demand exists for alternative solutions that tend to pursue and disseminate excellence, seen not necessarily as an elite phenomenon, but rather as a cultural and a more universal fact of life. Success is seen as related to those who have pursued uniqueness and originality, and told the world all about it. Slow Cities are cities which:

• • • •

•

implement an environmental policy designed to maintain and develop the characteristics of their surrounding area and urban fabric, placing the onus on recovery and reuse techniques; implement an infrastructural policy which is functional for the improvement, not the occupation, of the land; promote the use of technologies to improve the quality of the environment and the urban fabric; encourage the production and use of foodstuffs produced using natural, eco-compatible techniques, excluding transgenic products, and setting up, where necessary, presidia to safeguard and develop typical products currently in difficulty, in close collaboration with the Slow Food Ark project and wine and food presidia; safeguard autochthonous production, rooted in culture and tradition, which contributes to the description of an area, maintaining its modes and mores and promoting preferential occasions and spaces for direct contacts between consumers and quality producers and purveyors ;

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•

•

promote the quality of hospitality as a real bond with the local community and its specific features, removing the physical and cultural obstacles which may jeopardize the complete, widespread use of a city’s resources; promote awareness among all citizens, and not only among members of the association, that they live in a Slow City, with special attention to the young people and schools through the systematic introduction of taste education.

(Charter of Slow Cities Association, Orvieto, 15 October 1999) 6.8 Comments and discussion In section 6.7, examples are described of how ICT could be used to balance and allocate resources. These examples are pioneering works with a technical focus, since the actors are master’s students in telecommunication engineering. They are engaged in installing the technology in these new environments and solving problems associated with a new concept. It is important to perform research addressing and analysing the social impact of the use of technology and also the socioeconomic prerequisites for the technology to last. Such an effort has been established through the research centre SPIDER (section 6.7). In parallel there is a growing awareness that ICT could be used as a tool that contributes to more justice internationally, above all to reduce poverty in the developing countries. The allocation issue and ICT are now recognized in international organizations, and strategies are being elaborated (see Chapter 9 on actions). The opportunity for centralization or decentralization as an impact of or a conscious goal for the use of ICT was discussed early in the Western countries. The use of ICT is closely related to power and power allocation, with regard to various forms of resources. ICT could be applied to centralize as well as decentralize people’s work and living places. Urbanization, accompanied by various problems, is increasing throughout the world. This struggle between decentralization and centralization is ongoing and takes various forms – some kind of balance in these processes should be present to keep a sustainable society. The greatest effect lies in political decisions, as we have access to a technology with great power to deepen democratization and self-determination.

7 ICT and psychosocial communication

• •

Introduction

ICT and psychosocial communication

Organizational design and management (ODAM) – the communication circle

• •

Psychosocial communication during microcomputerization Psychosocial communication during the use of applied AI and knowledgebased systems (KBS)

• •

Psychosocial communication in the Net era Towards sustainability – action strategies for collaboration in distributed environments

•

Sustainability and communication/collaboration in the ICT society

7.1 Introduction In the present period, the network period of IT, profound changes are taking place in human communication, in structure, quantity and quality. A dominating steering factor for the design and structure of work life and private life is the convergence of three important technologies. Telecommunication technology has come to play a more and more dominant role in the convergence of computer technology, media technology and telecommunication technology, especially for the Internet and Web-related technologies. If the industrial and social changes related to ICT are to function well, analyses of organizational and psychosocial communication are important. To manage and work in a company organized as a network is largely about communication. ICT will require an organizational, communicational and societal renewal. This chapter deals with ICT and the psychosocial life environment, with special emphasis on psychosocial communication and sustainability in the Net era and the e-society workplace. The analysis in sections 7.1.1–7.1.3 is based on Caldwell (1998).

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7.1.1 IT functions One issue at the heart of all of debates about IT is that, fundamentally, IT systems are tools with a variety of applications and outcomes depending on the user and the task to be accomplished. It is unreasonable to expect that any IT implementation will be equally appropriate on different interpersonal and organizational occasions. Similarly, various forms and types of information will have distinct origins, applications and patterns of use. One basic distinction concerns what role the information plays. Is it a piece of information valuable simply by having access to it, or is it important because of its usefulness in completing some other task? A major problem in many organizational IT implementations is that a failure to make the distinction between use and access often dooms the organization to produce greater and greater volumes of data, without a clear understanding of the functional relevance of specific data important to the organization’s survival (Harris 1994). A second fundamental distinction in information exchange is the type of interaction the IT should support. In human interaction there are two separate goals. One goal focuses on instrumental information exchange, required to perform tasks and achieve material outcomes. The second goal is to achieve a socio-emotional balance by supporting social norms and emotional fulfilment. In studies across countries and job types, social support and sharing of interpersonal information continue to be major requirements for job satisfaction, psychosocial health and productivity. 7.1.2 Characteristics of IT network interactions Although it is reasonable to separate IT networks into occupational and non-occupational settings, there are in fact two additional characteristics that enhance the importance of the distinction between work and leisure. One characteristic is that of sharing information based on psychosocial versus sociotechnical aspects, or at least having some degree of emphasis on these aspects. The distinction is important in understanding differences between networks of users based on shared interests, common principles and occupational categories, as opposed to networks based on geographic location, organization function and common resources. The development of networks, in technical infrastructure and application use, will take different forms depending on whether the aim is mainly to

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support ‘communities of place’ or ‘communities of interest’. This was evident when participants in a local society interacted and shared knowledge resources with an urban society with the support of ICT (G. Bradley and L. Bradley 1997). (See also Chapter 6 on ICT in rural areas.) The second important characteristic useful in understanding work and leisure IT networks is the characteristic of promoting material versus cultural advancement and development. The promotion of material aspects of a society is seen in the rapid growth of commercial services and ‘electronic storefronts’ to provide opportunities to sell goods to and earn incomes for network participants. However, a number of network services most desired by potential IT network users provide opportunities for cultural and social enrichment rather than material gain. Community-based IT implementations such as schedules of local events, information about neighbourhood resources, and alternative access to local services via IT networks were initially the highest-priority features. 7.1.3 Characteristics of IT information flows The subdivision between psychosocial/sociotechnical and cultural/ material distinctions helps to define the range of transactions that may occur across IT networks. However, that distinction is not the same as a distinction between types of information transmitted in an IT network. Four critical criteria can be said to distinguish network interactions in terms of the nature of the information being exchanged. Static: information not subject to change through participation

Dynamic: the information content changes depending on the specific participants in the network at any point in time

Public: information considered open and accessible to all

Private: restricted in ownership or application

Serial: a specific piece of information may be intended for single communication

Parallel or broadcast: information takes multiple communication paths

Synchrony: information may be exchanged where real-time interactions between participants are expected

Asynchrony: information may be transmitted when feasible and received when convenient

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7.1.4 ICT – some challenges for communication In this section some experiences are presented from a symposium organized on ‘Information technology – challenges for organizational communication and societal renewal’ at the IEA world conference in Tampere, Finland in 1997. Dray and Siegel (1997) examined at an early stage the characteristics of communities, and how they can be applied to groups on the Internet. They contended that there is a continuum of Internet groups ranging from ad hoc groups to those that meet most, if not all, of the criteria for a community. At one end of the continuum are loosely formed groups with ever-changing memberships forming and dissipating rapidly. There are also many groups on the Internet whose participants are bound by varying degrees of necessity, and therefore take on characteristics of a community. The characteristics of communities analysed were multidimensionality, constraints on behaviour, institutions and conventions, interdependence, and stewardship of shared, finite resources. Dray and Siegel stated that there are ways in which Internet groups could conceivably meet parts of the definition of community (see section 7.5.2 on Web-based communities or virtual communities). Not all groups become communities, but there are some identifiable circumstances which predispose a group to develop as a community. The common thread is that the more the group participants are mutually bound by necessity, the more community-like will the social organization be. Dealing with conflict may be a ‘rite of passage’ towards community, because it leads to identifying constraints on behaviour, and behavioural conventions and institutions then develop. Groups also tend to evolve towards communities when they engage in shared work. Shared commitment to a definable outcome creates bonds and increases interdependence and multidimensionality. Dray and Siegel stated that in professional work groups using listservers, Web pages and online discussion forums, participants could become dependent on the Net for professional survival. Through the use of technology and the development of true virtual communities, there is a potential for this integration to expand and redefine geographic communities, not by eliminating them, but by expanding them and increasing global participation in managing real-world events. There are new opportunities and prerequisites for both cities and rural areas to ‘colonize the world’. (See also Chapter 6.)

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Pihlajamäki (1997) asks herself, ‘Is technology listening?’ She claims that listening is the basis for all other communication. Meaning is continuously created by listening. She presents complementary ways to relate to communication and to generate the requisite variety. Listening is the most important communicative quality and ability in organizations – so basic, however, that it is often ignored. Listening is an internal process of receiving, constructing meaning from and responding to verbal and non-verbal messages. It recognizes the importance and power of emotion and feeling in interpretation and evaluation of messages. It is closely related to thinking. We can think (listen) normally four times faster than we talk. By means of new technology we can identify individual tastes and motives and use the information for ‘personal’ marketing. But this kind of ‘variety increase’ becomes ‘variety reduction’ if people’s tastes and demands converge through having access to the same information. When organizations become gathering stations for similar thinking and management styles, there is a danger that lack of necessary variety gives rise to organizational pathologies. Human communication is created by transformation, not by transmission. Active listening is like ‘mind clearing’ to allow people to receive the maximum amount of information. It means that we must be conscious of our own triggers in interpretation, memorizing, evaluation and responding. By not being prematurely judgemental we allow more variety. Pihlajamäki (1997) mentions three aspects of listening:

• •

•

Listening creates trust. When trust exists, more information sharing and more variety are allowed. By sharing information we win more insights. Listening increases organizational awareness. Various listening patterns in organizations bring forth information on questions from different dimensions and levels. Receptivity and responsiveness of the organizations determine their speed of change and ability to cope with complexity. Recognition is the key to active listening.

Keenan (1997) suggests that, for the communication/information technologist, the values of the organization operate in three design-relevant ways:

•

Values are producers of communication and information technologies.

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• •

Values are products and results of (contribute to producing) communication and information technologies. Values are part of the process: designing and managing the process is really the role of communication and information technologists in the world of work. Communication and information technologies are values-in-action.

Keenan argues that contemporary professional journals are marked by an efficiency/effectiveness ideology; noticeably missing is a humanist concern for the characteristic of people – the human operating units. In current sociotechnical system design, the ‘socio’ part is an ‘after-construction’, rather than implying that humans are the primary concern. 7.2 Organizational design and management (ODAM) – the communication circle Historically, early computers were entirely self-contained, without any communication capability. By the 1970s, computers were used as an information and communication tool and had an impact on communication between humans directly and indirectly, both from a quantitative and qualitative point of view. The concept of the ‘Communication Circle’ (Figure 7.1) was originally published in a book written for the Swedish FRN (Bradley 1977). The intention at that time was to report the research findings on human communication during the first phase of computerization (mainframe period, with the use of batch systems) and emphasize the importance of investing in research on the social impact of computer use. The arguments in the book were supported by initial theoretical models that later on served as a basis for priorities in the research field. The initial communication circle is still valid today. The topic of international collaboration and communication in various forms, primarily in the widespread use of Internet and Web technology, has become an important component of sustainability in workplaces in the ICT society. The message in the communication circle is, in short, that technology directly affects communication because it is a tool and hence affects the structure, quality and quantity of communication. But it also affects the communication between humans indirectly because of the changes in the phenomena described briefly in the segments of the circle. ICT affects

• •

the work content (competence level) organizational structure (networks)

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Figure 7.1 The Communication Circle (G. Bradley 1977, 1993)

• • • • •

decision support system (centralized or decentralized) power structure leadership (power gets invisible, more informal leadership) salary and promotion system (revision) physio-ergonomic factors (distance) possibilities for learning and developing (new incentives to learn).

These objective factors in the work environment affect the communication between people directly and indirectly. The basic thinking reflected in the communication circle turned out to be applicable throughout the continuing technology phases and became

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fundamental at the introduction and use of the Internet and collaboration in a distributed work environment. The later results were presented in a doctoral thesis in 2005 (Jansson 2005). In the following sections, the focus is on qualitative aspects of communication in large and complex organizations during the third and fourth phases of the evolution of computer technology, and in section 7.5 psychosocial communication in the Net era will be addressed. 7.3 Psychosocial communication during microcomputerization The results in this section are based on research performed during the third period of computerization – microcomputerization – and the corresponding research was performed in the mid-1980s. Microchips had moved into computer hardware, and computer technology became distributed and computer power decentralized. Later, in the 1990s, we saw a rapid development and spread of personal computers. A field study was performed at Philips Electronic Industries, situated in the Stockholm area at the time (G. Bradley, Bergström and Lindeberg 1988). The subjects included lower-echelon employees in the Display Terminal and Defence Division of the company, secretaries using word-processing systems and engineers using CAD systems. The study showed the importance of human–human interaction, and both context and quality were specified. 7.3.1 Quality in communication The answers that the interviewees in the study at Philips Electronic Industries gave about what ‘quality of communication’ meant for them, and what connotation the word ‘quality’ had in this context, were structured into four categories corresponding to their perceptions of communication. The following characteristics were included in their answers:

• • • • • • •

openness: open work-related discussion, give and take praise or criticism trust: sincerity, honesty, trustworthiness, reliability respect: equality in communication, politeness goal-oriented work: good performance good working relations clarity and concentration separation of work from pleasure.

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The last factor, ‘separation of work from pleasure’, has later on been deeply challenged since we entered the Net era. The following factors were considered to contribute to a good work environment: respectful treatment, politeness, similar interests and knowledge, closeness, independence, trust, lack of jealousy between workers. Obstacles to good communication included factors related to the individual, such as fear of losing one’s position and inability to give and take. (This was important at the end of the twentieth century and more so in the twenty-first century.) Obstacles to good communication that were related to the work situation were decisions without authority, spatial barriers that complicated contacts, too many bosses, lack of help and support when overloaded, and unclear definitions of nomenclature. 7.3.2 Circumstances and contexts at work where personal contacts are desired One-third of the interviewees stated that they wanted personal contact in all contexts (note that the research was performed in the mid-1980s). Most of them said that in this way they did not feel isolated at work, and they looked for personal contacts even when it was not necessary. One-quarter stated that they preferred personal contacts when discussing work tasks and when booking hotels, conferences and meetings. This shows the big changes that have occurred in the following (present) period – the Net era. One-fifth stated that they wanted personal contacts for recommendations and sensitive matters, to express problems of both a personal and work-related character. One-eighth stated that they did not need personal contacts because of their work – since all the work was machine-related. When asked about the main obstacles to personal contacts at work during this period of computerization, the response was: Psychosocial obstacles Physical obstacles Psychophysical obstacles No obstacles

44% 12% 20% 24%

7.4 Psychosocial communication during the use of applied AI and knowledge-based systems The results in this section are based on one study performed during the fourth period of computerization – the use of applied artificial

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intelligence (AI) and knowledge-based systems (KBS). The study showed that in this period of computerization, which implied more advanced computer functions, aspects of human–human communication became crucial for certain tasks and in certain environments. The field study was conducted in three companies at the forefront of using KBS in Sweden, and the results stem from the use of KBS for decision support in a Swedish commercial bank (G. Bradley and Holm 1991). Subjects were engineers and IT people. A striking result was that KBS turned out to be a strong tool for organizational training, but it was concluded that, for effective use, training in human–human interaction was essential. A new focus on ‘IT pedagogics’ and ‘e-learning’ took place at the beginning of the 1990s in Sweden and internationally. A general conclusion was that the concept of psychosocial communication should be emphasized in the future as an essential part of the psychosocial work environment. However, it would take some years for this to happen. Not until Internet and Web technology was deeply and broadly applied would this type of research focus come to the front line and build a separate academic discipline (sub-discipline), now established as Community Informatics. The Community Informatics Research Network (CIRN) held its 2004 Inaugural Conference and Colloquium on the theme, ‘Sustainability and Community Technology: What does this mean for Community Informatics’, in Prato, Italy. In addition IADIS, which runs annual conferences on the e-society, has held special events since 2005 addressing web-based communities. 7.5 Psychosocial communication in the Net era 7.5.1 Collaboration in distributed teams This section is mainly based on Jansson and G. Bradley’s paper (2004) on sustainability in collaborative network structures, presented at a conference on ‘community informatics’ (see Chapter 6). Jansson had performed comprehensive fieldwork which in 2005 resulted in a doctoral thesis in informatics, and Bradley had in research projects during various periods of computerization studied psychosocial communication and ICT, and reported theory and empirical findings in articles and books. ‘Communication between people’ was also identified as a main factor in Bradley’s early research in psychosocial work environment (e.g. G. Bradley 1979a).

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We focused the analysis on the concept of sustainability in collaborative network structures based on the theoretical model – the Communication Circle – and on the empirical experiences from global team collaboration (Jansson and G. Bradley 2004). Distributed working and learning environments are becoming more and more common in the world today. Areas that become harder at a distance are building trust and reaching sustainable relationships, since distributed teams do not have the same awareness of each other and receive fewer cues to help them ‘read’ situations and handle team-building, motivational problems and conflicts. With new strong technologies that empower the individual, various aggregated levels are important to consider. It has become essential to analyse how trust-building and psychosocial factors contribute to sustainability in these networks. The theoretical models on psychosocial environment and ICT (G. Bradley 1977, 1986, 2001) were useful in the analysis of what factors in the psychosocial environment affect and interact with communication and collaboration in global teams. Learning as well as working in distributed environments is taking place in virtual communities (web-based communities), and they contribute to the creation and strengthening of these communities. We have now reached a stage with integrating technologies, each of which has high and increasing capacity. This has a potential to empower the individual, and therefore various aggregations/levels are important to analyse in depth – organizations, communities and societies. These are all formed by individuals and form the individuals; it is through these formations that relations become sustainable. The results come from some case studies related to collaboration and communication (Jansson and G. Bradley 2004), and are summarized below.

• • •

Teams working in distributed projects go through the same stages and encounter the same problems as any other team. Some problems become harder to overcome, and there are new obstacles as well, but there are also some problems that disappear or decrease in magnitude, and new opportunities open up. It is possible to work at a distance without regular face-to-face meetings, even if it will always be harder. It will always be different, and the big danger is believing that it will not.

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When team members do not see each other daily, the basis for collaboration changes. The team members use media to communicate, and the different media demand changes in behaviour and change how we perceive things. Media as communication tools also change the relationship between the senses and change the perception of and relationships with other people. One area that sometimes turned out to be a problem when working at a distance was that people have to use technology for all their communication, which means they have to be able to choose the right media for the right activity and handle sensitive topics through technology. Team members also have to learn how to use and operate ICT, to feel comfortable with the technology. The main problem with distance work is most of the time not the ICT in itself, but learning how to use it to obtain the best results, learning how to feel comfortable in the new work environment, and learning how to be social and get to know each other through ICT. At a distance it is harder to • keep the motivation • build trust • know each other’s strengths and weaknesses • know other people’s competences • interpret and understand people • keep sustainability in relationships and interactions. At a distance it is more important to • maintain open and direct communication • be proactive • take the initiave • make sure to document the work • actively strive for very clear and open communication • actively work to maintain relationships. To achieve sustainable communication and collaboration it is vital • that the team members get to know each other • to have fun together • to trust each other • to have an organization that supports their work • to have sufficient ICT support • to learn about team-building • to learn about conflict-solving • to have a team space • to learn communication skills

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• • •

to prepare for problems that usually occur in the different stages of a team’s life cycle that somebody is giving the participants guidance and support to keep them on track that somebody keeps the team motivated.

7.5.2 Web-based communities or virtual communities In this section some current research on web-based communities (WBC) is reviewed. There are many different kinds of online communities or WBCs, organized around such diverse online technologies as chat rooms, forums and multi-user dungeons (MUD), games. My conclusion is that creating and studying interactivity in web-based communities have so far been mainly a technical matter, but it is an important field of ICT application for analyses regarding psychosocial communication too. Virtual collaboration spaces are becoming increasingly interesting both from a technological and a social perspective. There are interrelated trends in the development of an online web-based learning community. The first one is integration of services. An online meeting place will become more and more of a portal with access to a wide number of services. The second one is practicality of use. The online meeting place is expected to be the networked desktop of the users at home, at the workplace, at seminars, etc. The last trend is personalization. The platform is expected to adapt to the preferences and competences of its members. The user feels at home in an online community only when he/ she is able to customize the spaces of the community. A community is a group of people related to some extent to each of the following minimal requirements:

• • • • •

a common purpose: some form of shared meaning or reason for the coexistence of the members; a common cultural context: a collective identity that includes values, beliefs, attitudes, behavioural norms, and accumulated experiences; co-location: all members of the community share a common physical and/or virtual space; voluntary participation: the community chooses who participates in the community, and members of the community choose to participate in it; multiple, shifting and overlapping membership and participation: people typically participate in more than one community at a time,

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tend to join and leave the different communities, and more communities may share purpose, location, cultural context or membership. The strength and cohesiveness of the community can be enhanced by common history, shared knowledge, common practices, common action, shared vision of the future and co-created future (Bouras et al. 2005). The Web brings together people from diverse backgrounds and experiences to share common interests, dreams and aspirations. A webbased community (WBC) is a web-enabled communication and social interaction among groups of people sharing common interests. It enables the sharing of experiences through the establishing of discussions and a sense of community. The WBC is also known as a virtual community or an online community in the literature. WBCs were early seen as social phenomena that had no business dimension. However, recent advances in ICT have shown that a WBC could be a business enabler in the digital marketplace. A WBC is hence intentionally designed to promote human interaction, and facilitates customer-driven e-commerce. WBCs do not exist in isolation but serve as interactive communication media for their members. To remain relevant, therefore, WBC research should focus on effective and sustained communication of participants in the community, particularly in managing data generated by members of the community, in order to be beneficial to all participants (Adiele and Ehikioya 2005). Online communities are often a parallel phenomenon to on-site community building. Thus they are a way to shape social interaction and provide a common foundation for connectedness. They represent people who interact to satisfy their own needs or roles, have a shared purpose, act within a determined set of policies and are supported by ICT that facilitates interaction, information sharing and social connectedness. Researchers study these online or virtual communities (OCs and VCs) that have been created only in cyberspace or are extensions of real communities. In reality, most physical communities coexist with the creation of their own online or Web presence. The WBC could be considered as an infrastructure that coexists with the physical community in a temporary or permanent way. It can provide a virtual place as a copy of the real place, coexisting in an intelligent way for its members and citizens to participate in meetings and contribute ideas when they could otherwise not attend physically (Chu and Carrión 2005). The perspective of community sustainability extends the notion of processes of sustainability as just an activity that keeps going.

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Definitions of sustainability are basically about the extension of human activities over a longer period of time, based on the established social relationship among the participants. This description is comparative to the definition of community as well. Based on the participants ’ interests in learning about a common topic and creating social relationships, sustainability in WBCs is about what people do together and the conditions created using the online environment for communication. We have to extend the focus to other processes and examine the important aspects of WBCs (Jobring and Carlén 2005). 7.5.3 Communication circle and psychosocial communication in the Net era Since people are working more and more from their computers, we have to remember that ‘the computerization of the work environment places greater demands upon the social and emotional components of communication’ (G. Bradley et al. 1993: 157). This is true for communication between people in the Net era where people are ‘working together when being apart’ (Jansson 2005) as well as being together when being apart. The analyses by Jansson and G. Bradley (2004) (see section 7.5.1), were based on the theoretical model, the Communication Circle, and the empirical experiences from team collaboration globally (Jansson 2002). At a distance, collaboration and communication have a tendency to fade away if not maintained. There is normally less motivation to interact with and contact others when not meeting regularly, especially before knowing each other and if interactions need to be scheduled. A way to create more sustainable distributed collaborative environments is to support random interactions and social communication. This way people become aware of each other. They get to know each other and learn about each other’s knowledge, strengths and weaknesses. They build trust and see the value of communication and collaboration; thus a sustainable collaboration in a networked organization can be created. To be able to reach sustainable and efficient work situations, effects on individuals are of the utmost importance. An environment where people trust each other, have the feeling that they belong together and are part of a group, are aware of each other’s competences, and where the communication is open and frequent, will have a much higher chance of

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being sustainable. To be able to reach this, all different areas in the communication circle have to be considered. It is vital to know what to strive for and what the goals of the activities are, to be able to adjust the objective environment and create a pleasant and efficient work environment. In collaboration in a distributed project, team problems are common, but can be solved. Complications are easier to prevent and overcome if considered and discussed early in a project, or, even better, already at the planning stage. The identified variables grouped in sections in the communication circle are factors that it is important to be aware of. These factors can serve as a basis to form a work environment where teams handle conflicts and problems as they arise. Jansson (2005) described action strategies, how to handle distance and design the psychosocial work environment. Examples of activities are given that concern different areas in the distributed communication circle:

• • • • • • • • • • • • •

objective work environment; organizational structure; power structure; how important the project is considered to be; leadership and time management; reward system that supports the building of an environment that is motivating and comfortable to work in; team composition; the organizational design of a project; the content of the work tasks and the communication patterns; physical environment; distance per se; subjective work environment; the individual level.

All teams, distributed or co-located, are different and will run into different problems, because of the psychosocial and physical environment, the people involved and the type of work performed. Most problems that distributed teams encounter are the same as for teams working in a local setting. Some become worse and there are problems added, but there are also problems that disappear or decrease in magnitude, and new opportunities open up. Some problems are more common than others; by obtaining guidance, guidelines and information, teams can be helped to get an idea of what to expect and become aware of common problems. Provision of support

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will not remove all problems, but certain problems may disappear and others may be detected earlier and therefore be easier to handle (Jansson and G. Bradley 2004). 7.6 Towards sustainability – action strategies for collaboration in distributed environments In the following lists, the recommendations that Jansson’s research (Jansson 2005) made are summarized as recommendations first to management (section 7.6.1) and then to the employees (sections 7.6.2 and 7.6.3). Desirable behaviour and skills for distributed teams and distributed environments could be formulated as verbal recommendations and correspond to the managerial aspects of supporting distributed teams. Section 7.6.3 presents activities to achieve a good psychosocial environment for distributed collaboration – not primarily technology, but rather learning. 7.6.1 Managerial aspects of supporting distributed teams (DT)

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Continuous support needed – in combining theory and practice. Guidelines, seminars, team-building activities – not too formal. Opportunities for social activities and interactions. Objective environments that promote factors above. Create open communication (trust, dare to ask questions, being creative). Create predictability through clear information and communication structure. Create project structure that supports the work. Most important: facilitating ‘getting to know each other’. Clarify goals. Decide norms of conduct for the team. Make sure that the tasks are meaningful or ‘real’. Make the expectations on team members clear. Shape awareness of different communication styles. Give explicit feedback. Adapt the size of the team to the task. Elaborate personal planning for DT environments (time planning, etc.). Suitable individual and collective rewards.

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7.6.2 Desirable behaviour and skills for distributed teams (DT) and distributed environments (DE)

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Be proactive – get things started. Take the initiative. Be self-motivated. Plan ahead and set goals. Specify norms of conduct agreements (openness to revising norms). Communication skills applicable in DT and DE. How to use different media. How to behave in different media. How to feel comfortable with different media. Emphasize clear, open and explicit communication to reduce opportunities for miscommunications. Be open-minded, e.g. for various cultures, to take advantage of different perspectives. Be sensitive to others’ needs and feelings. Be aware of cultural and personality differences. Avoid taking over because of individual advantages (language, experience of working at a distance with ICT, project content, personality). Avoid being afraid of dealing with conflicts.

7.6.3 Activities to reach a good psychosocial environment for distributed collaboration (DC) Learning

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Learning how to use ICT to get results. Learning how to feel comfortable in the new work environment. Learning how to be social and get to know each other. Learning to prioritize relevant information.

ICT

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Reduce the amount of communication channels. Avoid change of ICT during the project. Discuss ICT – what, when and why. Use ICT to document the team process. Choose stable technologies. Have back-ups. Use the right ICT for specific purposes. Adjust ICT to task and content, personality and earlier experience of DC.

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7.7 Sustainability and communication/collaboration in the ICT society To achieve a sustainable distributed work environment it is important that people are aware of what variables affect the collaboration and communication. Preparation for and planning of the distributed project work becomes even more important in international team work. Training is needed for handling the communication problems as they occur in the actual work and in collaborative relations globally. Our model provides an aid to clarify what variables are important to consider in collaboration in distributed teams and from a psychosocial and organizational perspective. The following converging circles (Figure 7.2) can summarize how to perceive sustainability in distributed work environments as well as in society as a whole. Defining sustainability, there may be alternative concepts to be added in the discussion on sustainability, e.g. connection between sustainability and social capital, time, virtual space, geographical and network sustainability, power relations in networking. The term ‘sustainability’ was brought to the fore by the World Commission for Environment and Development, often called the Brundtland Commission (1987), which was a follow-up to the first UN World Conference on the Environment, at Stockholm in 1972. The so-called ‘Agenda 21’ (1992) at the Rio ‘Earth Summit’ stated four mutually independent dimensions of sustainability with a holistic

Figure 7.2 Sustainability as convergence

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approach: ecological, social, economic, cultural. It turned out to reflect various opinions in different countries, and discussions started on issues such as: who has the responsibility for sustainability, how should we act and what priorities should be set? Aspects more directly connected to the e-workplace and e-society were raised in a recent report. Key areas in sustainable development cover a broad spectrum: future physical environment, climate changes, health and population, social coherence, welfare and security, employment and learning in the e-society, sustainable economic growth and competition, regional development, sustainable social change (Swedish Ministry of Environment 2003). Printed in italics are the items that could be related to the ICT society. Hence, a new focus comes into play: societal and compassionate sustainability in the ICT age. Key perspectives in this context are: system perspective, holism, human aspects, bottom-up, common good, and equality. The converging parts of three circles entitled ‘environmental sustainability’, ‘economic sustainability’, and ‘social and cultural sustainability’ are major components of sustainability.

8 ICT and stress

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What is stress?

ICT and stress

Stress and the ‘paper office’ Stress and the batch-processing environment Stress and display terminals Stress in the Net era Stress and health (and ICT) Conclusions

8.1 What is stress? Medically speaking, stress is a combination of defence and adjustment measures that is the organism’s reaction to frustrations and other sources of irritation in its surroundings. In many cases this is a positive and appropriate reaction, while in other cases it is unsuitable or misdirected. The term ‘stress’ in everyday speech normally refers to these deleterious and harmful reactions, even though stress also can be a positive reaction. Hans Selye (1936) introduced the term ‘psychological stress’. The word ‘stress’, which is now a part of everyone’s vocabulary, has been in use for about fifty years. Selye developed theories on stress, using the concepts of overstimulation and understimulation. He also divided people into two types, the racehorse and the tortoise, with different tolerances of stress. Marianne Frankenhauser and Lennart Levi in Sweden are stress researchers who early achieved international repute, but that tradition has been followed by many contributors specializing in various problem areas. Stress occurs in many different situations and has often been associated with working life. One typical work-related stress situation is when individual achievement is inhibited and the satisfaction of individual needs are frustrated by demands and expectations from the organization (from managers or a group of co-workers) or from people outside the organization – customers, for instance. The lack of clearly stated

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requirements is also a common cause of stress, and various combinations of technology (ICT) can be a direct or indirect cause of stress reactions. At the present stage, when human roles are merging and borders between work and free time are dissolving, the stressors are changing. Stress occurs when an individual sees a situation as threatening and frustrating and cannot reduce his/her frustration by means of socially acceptable and generally appropriate behaviour. Thus individuals are often frustrated in their work when they cannot express the anxiety, anger, etc., that they feel, and are compelled to subdue these feelings. Psychosocial tensions or opposing pairs of factors occur in working life as well as private life, and these opposites give rise to stress. Such stress can cause discomfort in various parts of the body. We may feel heavy-headed, have a stabbing sensation in the heart and pain in the midriff, tension in the jaw muscles, disturbed sleep and breathing difficulties. Prolonged irritation can cause psychosomatic illnesses, the most common of which are stomach ulcers, high blood pressure and vascular diseases. These may be called the ‘long-term effects’ of bad environments. Research shows that prolonged continuous work at a VDU can cause problems in the neck, shoulders and back. These are caused mainly by poor seating posture and the fact that people spend far too long sitting and working at a VDU. However, it is reasonable to assume that these problems stem in part from the stress phenomena indirectly related to the use of technology, and attributable to the opposite pairs in Figure 8.1. Neither of these opposites, i.e. too much or too little of the different factors in the job situation, is good for the individual ’s mental well-being. These pairs were used in the early research in the RAM project questionnaires to study changes in conditions of work brought about by computerization during various phases of ICT history. (Most of the 400 questions are, however, of a different type.) Studies under the heading ‘Stress and display terminals’ in this chapter led to much investment in workstation design, and more so when ‘computer workstation’ become the more general term, covering various combinations of video display, keyboard, and mouse or other pointer-manipulating devices. For many years researchers and practitioners met at the so-called WWDU (work with display units) international conferences. The perspective was continually broadened to encompass not solely the display terminal but the workstation and, in addition, the organization of work tasks and professional roles.

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Figure 8.1 Stress – overstimulation (too much) – understimulation (too little)

The inconsistencies between the needs of the individual (as defined in one of the theories on human needs) and those of the physical and psychosocial work environment cause stress and are expressed in the phenomena illustrated by these opposing pairs. For many centuries during industrialization, most problems could derive from an individual being understimulated at work (the right-hand side of Figure 8.1). In both the blue- and white-collar sectors, large groups of people had jobs that were closely supervised, had the same repetitive work operations where operators were confined by their equipment – conditions which led to understimulation and a low degree of involvement in the job. The opposite condition – overstimulation – is taking over and is recognized as a dominant work environment problem, and the same tendencies towards overstimulation can be seen in the labour market as well as private life. Rationalization, mainly in the form of the use of ICT, has eliminated the routine type of white-collar duties first. People who carried out these tasks have retired or undertaken through training the jobs and duties that earlier were performed by people drawn from the upper echelons of white-collar workers – that is, specialists and the like. A total upgrading of qualifications occurred that went in the opposite direction to prognoses made by many work scientists in the 1970s. These new jobs in their turn faced restructuring when ICT became a daily tool for highly educated people and specialists.

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In the white-collar area a number of closely supervised and fragmented jobs and work tasks were created in the first stage of automation. However, these were eliminated in the next stage in the automation process. It was difficult to make long-term predictions in the mid-1970s of what changes would occur, because measures introduced at different levels gradually became integrated in the total picture. Extensive training programmes and other activities were undertaken, which had a strong effect on the development. An important point of departure in the analysis of people’s work, working and life conditions in a computerized society was the formation of theories that apply the concept of understimulation and overstimulation. The focus can be on psycho-physiological and psychosocial aspects and on aspects of management theory, or combinations of all of these. This is illustrated by the theoretical models described in Chapter 2. The areas at work, i.e. the different aspects of the work environment that were examined in the RAM project, are in the box to the left of Figure 8.2 under the heading ‘Objective Work Environment’. Each of the opposite pairs in Figure 8.2 – the box on the right – is related to factors in the ‘objective work environment’. Figure 8.2 describes only one way of reacting, namely stress. There are a number of other reactions that may be attributed to people’s perceptions of work and their working conditions, which are in turn dependent on different objective factors at work. During industrialization, researchers in work sociology/psychology frequently cited powerlessness and alienation, or their opposites, involvement and commitment. Other reactions include behaviour related to people’s private lives and leisure activities. Both passive and active reactions can be identified (see Figure 2.2 in Chapter 2). The theoretical models in Chapter 2 form a whole. As we are discussing stress and psychological strain, a brief comment on some of the terms that appear in the initial model in Figure 2.1 is appropriate to repeat here. Concepts in the model Labour market and company goals Society’s norms and values Computerized information systems Technology

Comments Efficiency The ‘rational society’ Aids to automation Replacement of mental and muscle power with machines, in pursuit of efficiency

(G. Bradley 1986, 1989, 2001)

Figure 8.2 Relationship between computer technology, work environment and stress

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When we examine the forces in play at the level of society and the organization, it is not surprising that stress is a social phenomenon. This may also explain why measures have more often been directed towards ‘coping with stress’ – using ‘social support’ to modify stress reactions, for instance – instead of attacking the causes of stress at different levels of analysis. Both strategies (prevention and prophylaxis) must be applied. Here we shall follow a chronological sequence, beginning with the old, still existing, paper office and its implications both past and present in terms of stress, then focusing on the stress in traditional batch-processing environments, then stress in an online environment using display terminals, and finally we shall examine stress in the Net era. A similar view on stress to the one presented here can be found in NIOSH (1999): ‘Job stress can be defined as the harmful physical and emotional responses that occur when the requirements of the job do not match the capabilities, resources, or needs of the worker. Job stress can lead to poor health and even injury.’ 8.1.1 A theoretical model on stress The models presented in Chapter 2 could easily be applied to stress, since stress is one phenomenon listed in the figures at the right under the label ‘Effects on the Individual’ or ‘Reactions’. The corresponding model is presented below. The stressors related to work and work situations could be related to the factors under the headline ‘Objective work environment’ as manifested in the subjective work environment – either as too much (overstimulation) or too little (understimulation). In Appendix 2 the indices derived in the RAM project are listed as examples. A checklist is also presented in Appendix 1. Even if these are derived from comprehensive research which concerned earlier phases of computerization, they may serve as examples of how one can explore the field. A more limited number of categories could be identified and entitled ‘second order of factors in the work environment’. The transformation of the variables in the objective work environment to the subjective, perceived environment occurs through the intervening variables that are ‘expectations’ that an individual has on the factor/ aspect in the job situation, in addition the ‘aspiration level’ that an individual has developed, and finally how important the individual perceives the ‘weight attached to specific work environment areas’ to be.

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The concepts mentioned are found in Figure 8.2. If salary is not important for an individual, it might be less stressful for the person when the salary system is not adequate for some reason. The outcome of the intervening variables and the role they play in the subjective work environment and in the individual reaction such as stress reactions are due to both the objective work environment and the background situation, such as social background, education, family circumstances and direct conditions outside work. The relationship between work environment and stress could be of various kinds. It is possible to talk about necessary or contributing prerequisites for stress. In some cases it is possible to find a direct causal relationship, and a direct cause can be identified. In other cases the work environment can accelerate, aggregate and trigger stress (Levi 2000). Stress can lead to disease and death, and can be manifested in symptoms that are mainly emotional, cognitive, behavioural or physiological, but are mostly combined. Present research about the relationship between stress and health often deals with heart diseases and strokes, cancer and musculoskeletal diseases, but there are many new fields that need to be explored because of the ongoing accelerated speed and changed time perceptions in the ICT society. 8.1.2 Empirical research – state of the art The following review, mainly based on European Commission (2000b), supports the position that stress is a societal problem in Western cultures. The European Foundation’s Second European Survey of Working Conditions (Paoli 1997) calls attention to the pronounced transformation of European working life – from the industrial to the service sector, with a consequent change in job profile: introduction of new technology and more client-oriented jobs. The organizational structure, the organization of work tasks and the professional roles have also changed, with new management models, teamwork, just-in-time and Total Quality Management (TQM). At the same time, the workforce profile has changed. European workers are getting older; they tend to work more often on fixed-term or temporary contracts; there is a rapid growth in the proportion of female workers; the traditional employee–employer relationship is slowly

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disappearing; and the unemployment rate remains very high (Paoli 1997). In two reports commissioned by the European Foundation, costs at both enterprise (Cooper 1996) and community level (Levi and Lund-Jensen 1996) have been analysed. Based on three European case studies at the enterprise level, Cooper (1996) describes costs caused by (a) occupational stress, (b) interventions chosen by the enterprises to reduce stressors and stress, and (c) resulting cost benefits. Interventions included job enlargement and enrichment and the creation of autonomous work teams (Sweden), improvement of communication and consultative structure, and provision of individual skills training for managers (the Netherlands), and improvement of individuals’ skills and resources and creation of organizational awareness and support (United Kingdom). Physical factors such as excessive noise, heat, humidity, vibration or work with toxic or dangerous substances may cause stress or make people more susceptible to other workplace stressors. Psychological and social factors such as exposure to human suffering, sickness or injury and also physical danger for the employees constitute severe emotional demands and lead to stress. Management and psychosocial factors are the focus of this book. There is much evidence that these factors are increasing in the information society. The main factors are described and analysed in Chapter 4. Cooper (1998) argues that the opposite of absenteeism, namely presenteeism, can create problems both for organizations and workers. Employees exhibiting presenteeism have/feel job insecurity and have a need to show organizational commitment even at the expense of their personal or family life – by working overtime, nights and weekends. Presenteeism can result in stress and illness. 8.2 Stress and the ‘paper office’ The photo in Figure 8.3 is from the 1960s, but when looking at people ’s desks today, things seem much the same, and the vision of the paperless office seems to be hard to reach. Even today, in spite of the use of ICT for most functions, we like to make print-outs before reading. Books have had a renaissance, and bookshop-cafés are popular meeting places.

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Figure 8.3 Stress in the ‘paper office’

8.3 Stress and the batch-processing environment The data-processing system studied in the first company (see Chapter 3) was a batch-processing system. Some work tasks were done by people, while others were automated. In that process there was no direct contact with the computer. The work documentation often took the form of data lists instead of, for example, a text display on a VDU. It was mostly personnel from the data processing departments and operational departments (book-keeping) who reported more dissatisfaction and more health problems than other groups from changes connected to the introduction of the EDP system. The staff in the bookkeeping departments had less education and lower qualification requirements, while data processing department staff had more education. Some 2000 people, most of them women, worked in the operational departments, but the number had decreased, or was expected to decrease,

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at every stage of the process of automation. Here, staff reacted against the fact that the ‘interesting’ and ‘stimulating’ work tasks had been removed. Little variety remained in the work, and staff thought that they had been deprived of the responsibility they previously enjoyed. They felt insecure: ‘the computer is taking over’, they said, and they were worried about being relocated. They were easily replaceable and this affected their self-esteem. Their influence had decreased, mainly regarding influence over the planning of their own work. When the big computers in the huge computer room were ‘down’, this often caused overtime and irregular working hours, which made it difficult to arrange leisure and family time. The pace of work, which was intensive and controlled by the machines, was considered to be too high; deadlines were an inherent part of the daily work and this served to increase workloads in all departments. The former good cooperation had been worsened by work pressures. The introduction of computer technology had aggravated certain physio-ergonomic problems, revealing substantial problems in a traditional white-collar workplace. The number of staff – mostly men – in the data processing department increased. The staff in this department also felt more secure: computer-literate people were still in short supply. The data processing department staff were not noticeably different from those in other departments in their attitude to job content. However, it was difficult for them to leave their job behind them when they left work, and they often went to work even when they were unwell. They felt psychological pressure, partly due to the fact that there was no one to stand in for them at work if they had to take a vacation. Their interchangeability was low, which had both positive and negative implications. The staff in the data processing department had also lost some influence over their work – mainly over the pace of work and choice of work methods. The computer system appeared to cause various types of psychological strain among the computer staff, one reason being the risk of errors occurring in the work, which made people nervous and worried about making mistakes. Errors had far-reaching consequences, affecting both the operational departments in the company and the company ’s customers. The data processing department staff felt that they had to bear too much responsibility. The data processing department had become an isolated unit within the organization, and was described as being ‘behind an iron curtain’. The

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data processing department could be described as the organization ’s ‘buffer department’. Demands, often contradictory, from various quarters appeared to be concentrated or accentuated in this department. Computerization resulted in work tasks/jobs that can be classified in one of four categories: ‘too much’, ‘too difficult’, ‘too little’, or ‘too easy’. All of these categories caused stress, and the organization was divided into sub-units with an impact on personal relationships at work. From a purely organizational perspective, the operational departments had a number of work environment problems related to understimulation (both qualitative and quantitative), while the data processing department showed signs of problems related to overstimulation (both qualitative and quantitative) (G. Bradley and Nilsson 1976, G. Bradley 1979b). It is now 30 years since this research was carried out. New technology has been introduced since then and the old technology has been modified. So-called ‘employee consultants’ became involved in the computerization for some years. There was intensive trade union activity, and important government commissions have presented their final reports (see Chapter 9). The batch environment no longer exists, but it might give a sharp background for understanding what type of questions will dominate in the future ICT society. One needs to look back to understand the future. What will the environment be like, when nanotechnology, pervasive computing, etc., will dominate? Will it be of relevance to talk about environment? Or rather is it more necessary than ever to trace the complexity of objective factors behind our feelings, reactions and well-being, even if or just because they are invisible? The introduction and use of batch processing systems was the first step in a very rapid process of office automation; the industrialized countries have that experience, but developing countries are mainly by-passing that period, going directly to microcomputerization, the network era and the widespread use of mobile technology. 8.4 Stress and display terminals Stress factors at work: comparisons between display terminal users and non-terminal users In the investigations carried out at the insurance company as part of the RAM project (see Chapter 5), the people interviewed were asked to give

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a direct description of a number of aspects in their work situation that broadly corresponded to the columns for ‘understimulation’ and ‘overstimulation’ in Figure 8.2. It is these work aspects that are referred to as stress factors: for instance, too large or too small a volume of work, too much or too little contact with other people, and a work pace that is too fast or too slow. The estimates were made on a scale of 1 to 5, 1 being too little, 5 being too much, and 3 being equivalent to neither too much nor too little. One comparison was done between users and non-users of VDTs at work. This type of comparison, with a test of significant differences, is increasingly difficult to carry out: in certain sectors and companies, most personnel already use a display terminal or will be doing so in the near future. The results below were statistically significant. Terminal users reported more often than non-terminal users that their volume of work was too great, that they were given too little information and that there was too little consultation/group cooperation. Terminal users noted more often than non-terminal users that promotion/ development prospects were too small, that they were too confined to their workstation and too heavy demands were placed upon their physical abilities. None of the groups’ mean values for these factors is at the top or bottom of the scale. Rather surprisingly, ‘contact with other people’ is also close to value 3 for terminal users, i.e. not too much and not too little. One explanation for this may be that many display terminal users at the company in the study used the telephone a great deal. Also, contact among the staff often increases during the introduction of a new system. The factors related to security at work and the demand situation were also close to value 3. Non-terminal users considered more often than terminal users that they had too little responsibility and power. Stress factors at work: comparisons between display terminal users who worked at the terminal for different lengths of time Comparisons were made within the group of display terminal users between people who used the terminal for less than 30 minutes a day and people who used the terminal for more than two hours a day. In what follows, the differences are marked with an asterisk when they are statistically significant. The results in the previous section are repeated here to some extent: the relationship between the terminal user and the non-terminal user sometimes corresponds to the relationship between the people who spent a long time at the display terminal every day and people with shorter daily spells of work at the terminal.

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People who spent longer periods at the display terminal every day reported more frequently than people who spent a shorter daily time at the terminal every day that they were given too little information ( *), that they had too few promotion and personal development opportunities in their work, and that the educational/further training requirements were too modest. The people who spent more time daily at the terminal more often reported a considerable degree of confinement to the workstation (*), that they had too little contact with other people at work, and that physical loads (e.g. on the back, muscles and eyes) were too great (*). More people who used the display terminal for longer periods every day felt more secure in their work. They thought more often than the people who worked shorter daily spells at the display terminal that it was far too difficult to find someone to stand in for them at work (*), that there was too little consultation at the workplace (see above), and that the management was rather too authoritarian. Terminal users at the company that was studied were predominantly women. It was also the female personnel who worked at the display terminal for long periods every day. 8.4.1 VDT work, workloads and psychological strain The concept of stress can also be examined indirectly by putting questions on other aspects of work pace, workload, psychological strain and various health problems. Here, the respondents were asked to what extent or with what frequency they suffered from certain complaints, or the extent to which they experienced certain phenomena in their work. These areas were analysed with the aid of some of the indices set out in Figure 2.4. Some of the more important (statistically significant) stress-related results from the insurance company are summarized here. These results are discussed in Chapter 9 in relation to actions taken. The comparison between terminal users and non-terminal users indicates that display terminal users experienced ‘stress’ to a greater extent (age and sex were constant). The differences were demonstrated in an index with the following content, expressed in separate questions:

• • • • •

experienced more strain in the job; thought the work pace was too high; felt that the work was hectic and stressed; reported undermanning; reported too high efficiency requirements.

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Furthermore, the display terminal users reported more often than non- terminal users that:

• • • • •

The work pace was too irregular. The work pace was dictated too much by other people. The work pace was too high at certain times. The demand situation had increased at work (the buffer role). Attentiveness, accuracy and responsibility requirements had increased.

The display terminal is an instrument that helps us retrieve, process and store information, and as such is a means of increasing efficiency. Making efficient and appropriate use of people’s resources should be of benefit to both the company and the employee. A rapid throughput of work per unit of time may initially be perceived as a ‘personal success’ at work, but soon becomes a ‘normal level’ of performance. Thus, there is a risk that the work pace at display terminals will also affect our time rhythms and that its impact will spread to other areas, for example, individual contact at work and contacts outside working hours. Terminal users stated more often than non-terminal users that they had general bodily pain and headaches, both at work and in their leisure time. The group of younger terminal users referred to health problems more frequently. Younger terminal users said that the introduction of terminals had increased the risk of physical and psychological complaints, and mentioned that they occasionally suffered from eye problems. The Trygg-Hansa study shows that display terminal work can be reconciled with satisfying the individual’s need for job autonomy and interesting job content. The introduction of terminals does not need to lead to job depletion and the fragmentation of work tasks, as it did in the Postal Giro survey, where a batch-type system was studied. Comparisons between groups that spend different times at the display terminal each day illustrate the importance of discussing ways of combining display terminal work with other duties and avoiding constant work at the display terminal. Staff that worked short daily periods at the display terminal:

• •

were more satisfied with their opportunities to use their own knowledge in their work (men and older staff); felt to a lesser degree that the buffer role (demands from different

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•

persons or groups that are related to their professional roles) was accentuated by the introduction of display terminals; complained less of general pain during working hours.

Staff working longer daily periods at display terminals expressed various kinds of stress reaction, and, more frequently than personnel who worked for short periods each day at the display terminal, described their work situation as having the following characteristics:

• • • • • • • •

too little information too little scope for personal development in the work too low educational/further training requirements too confined to the workstation too little contact with other staff too heavy physical demands too little consultation at work far too difficult to find people to stand in for them.

Staff who spent long periods each day at the display terminal were more positive in the following respects. They felt that the introduction of display terminals meant less risk of error and anxiety about making mistakes; more chances of correcting errors; and that the computer system had reduced the risk of error. Terminal users with more contact with the general public/customers were more aware of their buffer role and felt more often than people with less contact that the job involved stress and psychological strain. They meant that:

• • •

The work pace was too high, the work was too stressed, and there was undermanning. The work pace was too irregular or influenced too much by other people. The work required far too much attentiveness and accuracy.

More than other departments, the customer service department has a great deal of contact with the public/customers. The results indicated that the ancillary equipment to the terminal system did not enhance the quality of personal contact in the job. On the contrary, too heavy a workload and stress appear to have reduced this aspect of the work environment. At the same time, an important goal of terminal systems was to facilitate contact with customers. Comparisons were made between different professional groups, namely between secretaries and other female personnel (administrators) at the

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insurance company. The secretaries were more dissatisfied with those areas of their work that are normally seen as being crucial to job satisfaction. This was confirmed by the fact that their health was significantly worse – they suffered more frequently from stomach ailments and nervous complaints. What opinions did the secretaries express on the terminal system and the data processing system in general? The secretaries reported less often than other female personnel that the introduction of the terminal system worsened their work situation. They had a significantly more positive attitude to the new technology in relation to effects of the terminal system on the pace of work, attentiveness and responsibility and effects on physical and psychological complaints. Thus they saw the new technology as a chance of being ‘released’ from an unsuitable professional role and job design. The amount of work at a display terminal, for longer or shorter periods each day, and the length of continuous viewing of a VDT, are dictated by the general content of a company’s operation, people’s positions in the organization, and the structure and content of their jobs. In some departments, efforts were made to make gradual improvements in job content by making changes in work organization. One example was in the personal insurance sector, where five new insurance groups were designated and efforts were made to integrate the issuing of insurance policies with preliminary examinations, risk assessment, etc. The aim was to avoid specialized jobs and instead create positions that allow one person to deal with an insurance case from the beginning to the end, i.e. a type of job enlargement. See Chapter 9 for a description of the action taken at the company level to prevent and avoid constant work at display terminals. 8.4.2 What was lost and what was gained when display terminals were introduced? The people interviewed at the insurance company were asked to name the conditions that had improved as a result of the introduction of display terminals and three aspects that had worsened. The ‘free responses’ were subsequently grouped under different headings. What did we gain? Ninety-four people (38 per cent) of the total group answered the question about factors that had improved. Together, they reported a total of 175 work environmental factors that had improved:

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More rapid (time-saving) work and less paperwork Simpler or easier, i.e. all information was supplied More reliable information, including updated details Less paperwork, other aspects Better customer service (customers need not wait)

83% 32% 22% 16% 15%

In summary, the dominant response was that display terminals speeded everything up – as they were time-saving. What is worse? Thirty-eight people (15 per cent) of the total group answered the question on factors that had deteriorated, and these people reported a total of 57 work environment factors that had worsened. The list below is based on ‘free responses’ that were subsequently coded in groups. It is difficult to make interdepartmental comparisons because so few departments reported aspects that had worsened. The following factors were mentioned:

• • • • • • • •

far too dependent on the display terminal; eye complaints, general; sitting still, i.e. it was tiring to sit for long periods at the display terminal, back fatigue, wrong working position; different kinds of ‘stress’, e.g. lack of time, work input can be monitored and checked afterwards; queues forming at the display terminal, or the terminal is too far away; irritation caused by systems breakdowns; type of work task (e.g. simple, monotonous); volume of work.

In summary, roughly half of the responses were related to stress! Research at another Swedish insurance company also used physiological measurements to examine display terminal work (Johansson and Aronsson 1984). Blood pressure, cardiac activity, and the secretion of adrenalin and noradrenalin were measured. It was noted that delayed response times and systems breakdowns caused stress and mental strain. Temporary systems breakdowns caused an increase in both blood pressure and the production of adrenalin. What are the stress factors in the 2000s? What are the main symptoms and expressions today? The following section will deal with stress in the Net era and under the headlines: ICT stress; Internet stress; stress and mobile technology; stress factors in the future.

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8.5 Stress in the Net era With the use of ICT our tempo is increasing. Our perception of time and space is changing. New opportunities for flexible work (tele-work) and to work and learn independently of location have changed our perception of space. The requirements we put on ourselves regarding pace and tempo are increasing all the time – there is a change in the level of our expectations (aspiration) (compare theoretical model). People adapt to the machine and its tempo. We become unconsciously affected by the speed of the machine. The words ‘slowly’ and ‘quickly’ have acquired quite new meanings. The same is true of the words ‘close’ and ‘far away’. There is a basic level of stress in our technological environments in large cities. It used to be entitled ‘techno-stress’, a phenomenon at the societal level. Techno-stress is a completely accelerated tempo, which to a large extent is a result of effectiveness and efficiency. It may be that technology fits better into a societal structure at the macro level, where small-scaleness and closeness to the environment, to nature, to the woods, lakes and sea exist. One could talk about overstimulation, often in the big cities, and understimulation, often in rural areas, as promoting stress. These two opposites should be balanced to prevent stress in society (see Chapter 6). The phenomenon called ‘ICT stress’ can be characterized by too much or too little of various aspects or areas such as workload, amount of work, information, communication, contact with people, responsibility, flexibility, dependency, mobility, demands on development and training. I think that we should revise the plans discussed in the 1970s, where there was a striving towards a ‘society of moderation’. With use of stress-related terminology it should be a goal for the future to achieve a balanced ICT society that has neither too much nor too little of the essential qualities for human life. There are reasons to talk about ‘Internet stress’ (see below). Certain ICT stress is related to the fact that we have an increased dependency on computers and networks and an increased expectation that these technologies will function well. Besides the phone, the Internet nowadays dominates electronic communications in business and private life. Stress phenomena in the Internet world are information overload, contact overload, demands for availability, lack of organizational filters, difficulty of separating ‘noise’ from essentials, changing level of expectations and an altered perception of time and space in general.

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8.5.1 Technostress – the societal level The first large transition related to ‘production life’ occurred many hundreds of years ago when the nomadic tribes became farmers and agriculture became dominant. The next large transition started only about two hundred years ago – the industrial revolution. Now we have experienced various phases related to the use of computers, which could be summarized as the ICT revolution. There is a deep transformation of society due to the convergence of technologies; mainly computer technology, teletechnology and media technology (see the Convergence Model in Chapter 2). The convergence on the macro level deals with labour market, values and economy, and the phenomenon could be summarized as ‘globalization’. These types of large changes are inserting stress at the society level as well as on the individual. In the present Net era we are experiencing a renewal of a nomadic lifestyle because of the increased use of mobile and wireless technology. Also huge catastrophes such as earthquakes and wars result in stress phenomena. Stress related to understimulation and overstimulation on the national and organizational level in the e-society is increased. It could also be diminished as a result of how we handle ‘the digital divide’, which is a subdivision into those who have access to ICT and those who do not. There is also a digital divide within countries depending on variables such as age, sex and social background. Present action plans are addressing this issue (see Chapter 9). In the near future it will probably be a discussion of a move ‘from access for all to the quality of life for all’ (G. Bradley 2004). 8.5.2 ICT stress In Figure 8.1 were listed the factors and aspects in the psychosocial work environment that our research has shown are causing stress if they are perceived as either too much or too little – overstimulation or understimulation. It is important to strive for a balance regarding the following aspects:

• • • •

amount of work communication information responsibility

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• • • • • •

security demands for training/learning influence and power flexibility/change dependency mobility.

8.5.3 Internet stress What is stress in the Internet world? Our research shows that the following factors and aspects of the psychosocial work environment are the dominating stress factors:

• • • • • • •

information overload contact overload requirements on availability no organizational ‘filters’ noise–essentials change in level of expectations changed perception of time and space.

8.5.4 Stress and mobility Mobility is a word of honour in Europe and in the world. At the same time as we have achieved a technological level that makes it possible to work at a distance, to have tele-meetings and video conferences to connect with each other virtually, there is a striving for high mobility – especially in Europe at the formation and deepening of the European Union. There are new centres which focus on mobility technology and centres to facilitate mobility of people. This development is of course very healthy for the individual as well as society – with new opportunities for deepening mutual understanding. But even here there is need for balance. Mobility suits a person during certain periods in the life cycle. The main issue here is self-determination and avoiding too much or too little mobility – a striving towards balance. 8.5.5 Stress factors in the future organization In our study on young IT people in the city centre of Stockholm, stress was very frequent at the same time as they perceived a high degree of

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involvement in the job and job content. One might talk about positive stress, but it manifested itself in muscular symptoms and anxiety. It seems that the stressors have moved away from the close environment and are more and more related to phenomena that exist outside the control of the individual. These factors are located to the left in the Convergence Model – the global labour market, the phenomenon of outsourcing, high risk related to trust in the advanced technology, dependency, etc. In the study of young IT people, both men and women experienced positive and negative stress, depending on interest and the time allocated to their work. But it was mainly stress, fatigue and anxiousness that they related to a poor work environment. Four out of ten had problems with pains in their backs and shoulders. Many of the interviewees experienced worries about their work, and had problems sleeping. For them to experience complete relaxation from work, they had to engage their body in some kind of physical activity that demanded deep concentration. Below some characteristics of ‘young IT people in the IT business’ and their different roles are given in bullet points. Italics mark overlaps between ‘the private role’ and ‘the professional role’ (Danielsson 2002). Private role

• • • • •

Don’t have children and live in a central location in a big city (according to definition of the studied group). Goal of life is to ‘feel good’ (both physically and psychologically). Have strong social networks. Are flexible and social. Consider that everyone is responsible for planning their own time.

Professional role

• • • • • • •

Work at companies around Stureplan (central location in Stockholm) (according to definition of the studied group). Believe in their own responsibility. Are flexible. Experience both positive and negative stress. Experience worry. Consider the professional role to give meaning to their lives. Cannot plan holidays.

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• •

Are experts in their area. Have strong social networks.

Regarding the citizen role, the young IT people have been engaged in society issues, e.g. politics, but this engagement has ended. Looking back at Figure 4.3, we get the answer to many of the future stress phenomena, especially in form of the analysis of the flexible company. At the centre there is a core workforce that is permanently decreasing and consists of permanent full-time employees who enjoy a wide range of employment rights and benefits. The other part is called the peripheral workforce. This part is growing and consists of part-time staff, self-employed consultants, sub-contracted and outsourced workers, and temporary and agency employees. One common trait is that the peripheral workers are so-called free agents: they take care of their own security, skills development and personal marketing. They are very loosely, if at all, tied into the welfare system. They are strong when health and good times are present, but are in a high-risk situation when health or family relations take away their energy and motivation. 8.6 Stress and health (and ICT) A great majority of the dominant diseases in today’s Europe have a complex causality, with multiple interacting causes, and work-related stress is one of many components (Harrison and Ziglio 1998) in the causality chain. (Deeper causal analyses use various terms, for example, ‘accelerating’, ‘triggering’ and ‘modifying’ to indicate the functions of various factors.) A WHO publication by Marmot and Wilkinson (1998) in collaboration with a group of other UK experts analyses whether and to what extent social factors can influence or even determine poor health. They conclude that:

• • • •

Social and economic circumstances strongly affect people’s health throughout life. Work-related stress increases the risk of disease, as do unemployment and job insecurity. Social exclusion creates health risks, while social support promotes health and well-being. Individuals may turn to alcohol, drugs and tobacco, and suffer as a

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result of their use, but this process is also influenced by the wider social setting, which is often beyond individual control. Again an important goal in the e-society is to strive for balance and thereby prevent over- and understimulation on an organizational, community and society level. 8.7 Conclusions The introduction and use of computer technology at an early stage stimulated the creation of professional roles that were characterized by either understimulation or overstimulation. The technology has continuously become a more mature technology, and the converging technologies (ICT) should help create work tasks and working situations in which as few people as possible are overstimulated or understimulated. This must be an individual subjective assessment. Ideas have been brought forward on a ‘society of moderation’, and perhaps we should start to think more about moderation at our workplaces and in our homes; about environments that avoid extremes, that have neither too much nor too little of the components that make up the environment and that nullify the extremes of the opposing pairs mentioned in the previous chapter. There are both quantitative and qualitative aspects to overstimulation and understimulation. One quantitative aspect is the amount of work to be completed per unit of time, while the complexity of the work, for example, is a qualitative aspect. There is a risk that the future labour market will have one group of highly qualified, highly educated people who are difficult to replace, and a second group with very low qualifications and a high degree of interchangeability. The gulf between these groups will tend to widen. A third group, consisting of people not gainfully employed or receiving only unearned income (outcasts, marginalized groups or fringe groups) will increase, and the rate of this increase will depend on how we conduct the inevitable overall long-term restructuring of our society to an ICT society. The following are reasons why tasks and environments that may expose people to one of the two poles of overstimulation and understimulation should be avoided in our society (G. Bradley 1989):

• •

the risk of stress (the individual level); the risk of a fragmented labour force (group/organization levels);

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• •

the risk for a digital divide in nation states; the risk of marginalization and exclusion from the mainstream of society (individual, group and societal levels)

The last phenomenon is often entitled the digital divide in the ongoing Net era. Demands and requirements on work and life environments that arise from ICT can be formulated in different ways when seen from different viewpoints. Stress-related criteria have been discussed in this chapter. A list of general requirements for the psychosocial work environment developed in the RAM project should be considered when introducing computer technology, and could be transferred and applied to people ’s life environment (see Chapter 9 on actions). Some types of stress that occur in display terminal work were counteracted with technical aids – aids that affect phenomena that occurred during the early phases of computerization, e.g. response times, availability, screen layout, standardization, etc. New stress factors have appeared and therefore new technical aids to counteract stress have been developed, which more often than before relate to communication systems, e.g. filtering spam, handling viruses, etc. However, most stress problems have to do with work organization and psychosocial factors. Chapter 9 contains a more general treatment of different ways of approaching these issues. When introducing the technology, not only the lateral division of work tasks but also the vertical division of work must be considered. The design of work content and the organization of work should suit people’s needs and aptitudes. In structuring professional roles when new technology is introduced, consideration should be given to the five factors affecting job content. Attention should therefore be given to some questions of principle:

• • • •

What procedures apply in other professions at the same level in the organization? What constitutes ‘too much’ or ‘too little’ at other levels? Which tasks should be computerized and which tasks are performed better by people? Are there any work tasks that should not be computerized at all?

Applied to other roles in society, e.g. the private and the citizen ’s roles:

•

What procedures apply in other life roles in society?

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• • • • •

What tasks and obligations constitute ‘too much’ or ‘too little’ in our lives? Which tasks should be replaced or facilitated by ICT and which tasks are better performed by people? Are there any tasks that should not be computerized at all? What ICT support should be offered at home? What do we want to do ourselves? What functions should not be supported or replaced by ICT at all?

One must also attempt to define and make a concrete description of the desirable development of one’s own professional, private and citizen’s roles. Each of us will contribute with our personal viewpoints, and we can then join forces to put the pieces together to form a whole. But all this requires knowledge, and the courage and self-confidence to apply it. This is why ‘self-confidence’ and hence confidence-building constitutes one sub-branch of the ‘tree of action’ in the larger branch entitled ‘the individual’, see Figure 9.1. Actions to prevent and to cure stress will be described in Chapter 9 under headings such as the importance of the individual level, requirements regarding the psychosocial life environment, actions at the organizational level and finally some aspects that concern society as a whole.

9 From theory to actions: how to achieve the good ICT society – a tree of action

• • • • • • • • •

The national level

The good ICT society – a tree of action

The individual level: its importance The psychosocial work environment: requirements and preferences Actions at the corporate level Roles Actions regarding stress Towards an information society for all From an information society for all to quality of life for all Concluding remarks

This chapter can be divided into two main parts. The first part (sections 9.1–9.4) mainly describes the actions undertaken in the first steps of computerization and according to the Swedish model, which is – or rather was – a middle way between a capitalist economy and a socialist economy as a basis for general welfare politics, with much influence from the labour market parties. The description can be seen as a historical review on action strategies regarding ICT in Sweden. Some comments about the relevance of the action strategies with respect to the present situation in ICT and the labour market are presented in this part. The second part (sections 9.5–9.8) deals with action strategies on the international level as well as the present Swedish action policy. It mentions the global efforts to use ICT to bridge the digital divide and to reduce poverty in the developing countries. The chapter could be read in parallel with Chapter 2 and both the initial theories presented in Figures 2.1 and 2.2 and the convergence theory presented in Figure 2.5. The Convergence Model is replicated in Figure 9.2. Let me start with an overview picture of the actions – a tree of actions. This tree was first developed in 1986.

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The good work life in the information society

Figure 9.1 Action strategies in Sweden – an overview (G. Bradley 1989)

A tree of action could summarize the actions on various levels. The one in Figure 9.1 was derived during the first phases of computerization and reflects the way the introduction of the technology was handled in a country such as Sweden and with the so-called Swedish model. From that tree, special concerns are discussed, valid for ICT and the network period of technological development. For a tree of action that is valid in 2006, some changes have to be inserted, which show the process that the implementation of ICT is going through.

• • •

One branch entitled ‘the international level’ should be added, and a sub-branch for revitalization and revision of human rights. One branch entitled ‘the regional level’ should be added. The branch entitled ‘technology’ must be divided into three main

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•

sub-branches: teletechnology, computer technology, and media technology. The technology in focus in 2006 is ICT, i.e. the integration and convergence of the technologies above. Regarding the ‘company level’ branch, many factors have lost their steering functions in the new flexible companies, which are more often organized in networks (see Chapter 4 on ongoing changes in work life). Trade unions are not active in the same way in the field of technology and the work environment, but have to take on new forms of strategies and collaborative structures.

New branches should be added, and new sub-branches. Other branches in the tree of action have lost their relevance. 9.1 The national level At the national level, laws and agreements were important instruments. Work environment design was treated in detail in the rules and regulations produced by the Swedish National Board of Occupational Safety and Health in collaboration with trade unions and employers ’ organizations, among others. In addition, the Swedish state allocated funds for training and information and for research in the area of computerization/working life. In articles and debates, the mass media also generated greater awareness and more recognition of work environment issues. Family policy was also a part of constructive work environment actions when data processing systems were introduced. 9.1.1 State committees and computer policy At the end of the 1970s two government committees were set up to investigate the problem areas highlighted in the RAM project (G. Bradley 1977). Under the Ministry of Labour, a committee examined ‘the impact of data processing technology on employment and the work environment’. Under the Department of Industry, a committee examined the impact of data processing technology on changes in trade and commerce. A rough review of about thirty government committees, etc., related to EDP was compiled by the Committee for Electronic Data Processing and Electronics. This review was jokingly dubbed the ‘jungle map’. It reflected the ambition level of society, the ambitions of Parliament, the government, the political parties and the trade unions and employers’ organizations in terms of the level of monitoring as well as assessing the use of computers in working life and in the community in

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general. For several years now Sweden has had a Minister for Computer Technology, served by a delegation on data processing technology. With the aim of improving democracy and helping the process of renewal in the public sector, it was stated that the general public should be given easier access to information, and the public should have better and more efficient service. Data processing power should be decentralized. The main points covered issues of integrity and vulnerability. 9.1.2 Laws and agreements Legislation was one way at the national level of improving the work environment. What laws and agreements affect actions on computer-related work environment issues? The Work Environment Act, the Co-determination Act and the Acts on Security of Employment and on Sex Discrimination, and the legislation to promote equality of employment among the young and among disadvantaged groups applied to these issues as well as to other actions taken to create better work environments. The Work Environment Act says: The work environment shall be kept in a satisfactory state with regard to the nature of the work involved and the social and technological progress occurring in the community at large [italics in original]. Working conditions must be adapted to human physical and mental aptitudes. The aim must be for work to be arranged in such a way that the employee himself can influence his work situation.

9.1.3 Trade unions and employers At the national level in the TCO, LO and SACO/SR there were special work groups for computer-related questions. (TCO organizes the salaried employees, LO the workers and SACO/SR academic and highly educated employees. The terminology is old-fashioned in many ways, but the trade unions have so far kept their original structure.) Their job was to prepare policy and advice on these issues. As trade union confederations or professional associations, all three national organizations made public their standpoints on data processing technology. With regard to the white-collar sphere, a report Computers and Working Life in 1979 by a TCO working group described guidelines for action. The report dealt with the following main areas:

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• • • • • •

the computer industry and the computer market computerization and employment work organization and information computerization and the work environment co-determination in systems development training and research.

The trade unions – at both local and national levels – initiated research and investigations in the area of work environment and computers. Guidelines for local union work were set out in national agreements (e.g. the work environment agreement, the rationalization agreement, the codetermination agreement, the technology agreement and the agreement on equality). These agreements supplemented the laws. 9.1.4 The mass media The mass media played a vital role in spreading knowledge, contributing to a factual debate on computerization, and allowing contradictory and complementary views to be aired regarding the structure of our future work and our private lives. In 1980 an intensive debate took place in Sweden on the national referendum on nuclear power. The debate on the computer society of the future was at its height at the beginning of 1980, but came to an abrupt halt. However, at that time no issue was brought forward that was sufficiently clear-cut to be the subject of a referendum. There was a change of government in Sweden in the autumn of 1982, which heralded an increase in investment in Swedish technology. The debate focused on different ways of introducing a computerized information society and less on the type of society that would come out of the change. The information brought forward at the national level (see above) contained details that enabled the mass media to give extensive coverage to matters such as the long-term goals of an information society. The debate on the impact of computerization embraced in the 1980s new groups, for example, people with higher education, partly because the development and use of so-called expert systems involved entirely new groups such as engineers/designers and doctors. The development of systems that aim to rationalize the work of systems development itself has affected the terms and conditions of work of systems development engineers. There was no strategy for an action programme on the

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advanced use of computers, e.g. expert systems. New types of work-related problems of an ethical and legal nature had an indirect effect on the work of systems development engineers, and the psychosocial aspects of their work. 9.1.5 The National Board of Occupational Safety and Health The National Board of Occupational Safety and Health formulated directives, codes of practice and regulations on aspects of particular importance to people’s psychological situation. The directives were divided into the following areas, all of which had a bearing on computerization/the work environment: work organization, personal and professional development, social contacts, a greater awareness of health and safety, physical and chemical factors, automation and the scheduling of working hours. The ergonomic aspects of display terminal work were highlighted under the heading of automation. Particular efforts were recommended to avoid automated production methods which could create isolated or unskilled work tasks or lead to a greater degree of confinement to the workstation. Two other codes from the National Board of Occupational Safety and Health dealt with computerization: the code on solitary work and the code on working positions and work movements. The general standards for a good working environment were embodied in the National Board of Occupational Safety and Health codes of practice. At the beginning of 1980s medical research was investigating the links between work on video display terminals (VDTs) and miscarriages. The debate in the trade press had shown how important it was to conduct research on changes brought about by the introduction of new technology; research that integrated different disciplines and research methods. Hypotheses on the correlation between miscarriages and VDT work that embraced more complex cause-and-effect chains, with psychosocial factors and/or stress factors as intervening variables, were tested. In the spring of 1985 the Ministry of Labour contacted both employers and trade union organizations to discuss agreements to give pregnant women working on VDTs the right to transfer to other work, while waiting for more reliable research findings. In summary, there was a deep concern about health issues and computerization in the 1980s, and in 1986 Sweden arranged the first international conference on Work With Display Units (WWDU).

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9.1.6 Education and research Whether or not computerization will split the labour force into well-qualified and poorly qualified parts, or whether there will be an overall lowering or raising of qualification levels, is dependent (at least in countries like Sweden) both on the role given in the community to training and on the applications of new technology. The function and content of education in the ICT society is still in 2006 a hot topic. To develop, spread, allocate and use knowledge in working life and private life has become increasingly important both as a practical measure and also as an area for research both in preparation for the ICT society and in the ICT society itself. 9.1.7 Action on equality, influence and power The reforms and strategies in the area of family policy that serves to reduce the conflict between family life and working life are closely linked to constructive action on the work environment and computerization. This is also true for work for equality in the broad sense that is carried on at workplaces and in various groups and associations. Data processing technology affected women’s work situations, partly because machines took over traditional female tasks and partly because new positions in the field tended to attract males. However, the traditional boy/girl separation of education and career choice has become continuously less pronounced in recent years, but is still a problem that needs action. ICT not only affects employment and occupational structures. It also changes the work environment itself, causing among other things qualitative changes in job content and in the relationship between work and leisure time/private life. ICT affects both the extrinsic and intrinsic aspects of equality. Thus it is important that ICT is analysed by authorities and bodies that deal with equality issues at both national and corporate/local trade union levels and also at the level of individual women. Much of the discussion on action in the field of data processing in the 1980s centred on the struggle for power and influence over the process of computerization. Scientific reports and more popular books analysing various strategies for systems development were published. They had advanced ideas for replacing the one-sided planning and implementation of the automation process that had dominated with a democratic process

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(Docherty 1977, Docherty and Loman 1983, Ehn and Sandberg 1979, Sandberg 1984). A synchronous process involving the recognition, structuring, description, and analysis of work environment problems related to organizational and psychosocial matters, which should be given particular attention when introducing computer technology, is equally important as focusing processes for influence. Which are the dominant work environment problems? What are the good and bad aspects? Which aspects do we want to improve? What goals should we set? These questions should be important components in the applications in progress and at the deployment of ICT. The little book Professional Roles and Life Environments (G. Bradley 1979a), frequently used by practitioners and in university courses, was a contribution to this type of activity. Another example was the course material entitled The Meaning of Work: A Report on Clerical Occupations, primarily in the behavioural sciences and for practitioners in human resources, and study circle material aimed at strengthening solidarity at workplaces. Awareness and recognition of work environment-related problems and their underlying causes were gradually spreading. If computerization was conducted strictly as a power issue, it was considered as resulting in a change of the elite. The issue of power is still a crucial one, but power must have content and meaning reaching out to workplaces and homes. An understanding of the interplay of individuals, organizations, and society is just as important as knowledge of the technology itself. 9.2 The individual level: its importance If people are to have a real chance of influencing their work situation, i.e. having influence both as individuals and collectively on politicians locally and centrally, trade unions and policy-makers, they will need knowledge of and insight into relevant issues. For that reason it is important that people try to understand the underlying causes of both dissatisfaction and well-being at work and accept that they are personally responsible for finding information and learning more.

•

When ICT is applied for various functions at our workplaces and becomes an integral part of the daily work routines, it is important that we express our wishes as individuals for future development and help to answer the basic questions: compare Bradley (1989: Chapter 1).

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• •

What conditions of life (leisure time, family life, social life outside what we now call work) do we wish to have in the future? What are the desirable characteristics of a good work environment as well as a home environment? What is desirable content for our future professional, private and citizen’s roles?

In the analysis of the life environment, the interaction between different levels of the environment was pointed out. At a personal level the individual is affected by the environment, but the individual also has an effect upon his/her environment. We have been given a number of instruments such as laws and agreements at national and corporate levels, and the conditions have been created for broad-based action to improve the work and private environments and for work to bring about corporate, community and societal change. But it is up to us as individuals to give this work its content, in terms of both desirable goals and ways in which we can work towards attaining these goals. Thus this interplay is also an important factor when we take action in this field. Just as important as the existence of laws and agreements is what we ourselves attempt to achieve on the basis of these laws and agreements. The level of the individual is important in terms of the working environment. All organizations are built on and created by individuals. Phenomena at the organizational level often reflect phenomena at the national level and become part of our ‘selves’. It is important – not least in terms of the work environment – to improve ‘ourselves’, to develop our personalities in different ways. When we work to bring about change, for example, when ICT in the workplace is deeply integrated, it is important that we feel ‘good’, i.e. that the scope for neurotic defence mechanisms is minimized. The work of bringing about change may sometimes have to be preceded by courses which improve self-confidence, so that we dare to voice our opinions and apply our experience. 9.3 The psychosocial work environment: requirements and preferences There are different ways to put forward our preferences and requirements for the environment in the use of ICT, for example:

•

General requirements may be set for an acceptable work environment, along with group-based requirements for a particular industry, a particular community, a particular labour market organization, e.g. labour union, etc.

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• •

Checklists may be used for suggestions on which work environment issues should be considered in the process of computerization, as well as what work tasks can be supported. Questionnaires or interviews may be used to evaluate planned computer systems or systems already in operation.

9.3.1 General requirements General psychosocial work environment requirements may be set out and put forward in many ways. It is important that we create professional roles that are not characterized by either understimulation or overstimulation (see Figure 8.1; the opposing pairs in the figure were also used in the RAM project questionnaire). Under ‘Conclusions’ in Chapter 7, three reasons were given for avoiding work tasks and work environments that can be labelled as either understimulating or overstimulating. When planning the installation of new technology, it is important to create professional roles that avoid the ‘poles’ of overstimulation and understimulation, a factor that is related to stress. The RAM project also produced some proposals for more general demands on the psychosocial work environment as follows (G. Bradley 1986). The work environment should provide:

• • • • • • •

a work pace that can be adjusted to suit individual capabilities (workload per time unit); a reasonably even work pace, not too dependent on other people ’s work pace and/or equipment; the opportunity to influence the structure and planning of work and working hours, e.g. the scheduling of breaks and the length and scheduling of display terminal use; the opportunity for training/further training and personal development at work; the opportunity to satisfy people’s need for personal contact and communication as part of their daily work – they should have the chance to confer with others at work; an adequate flow of information, both vertically and laterally in the hierarchical organizational structure, and the information must reach the people for whom it is intended; special support to people whose work unavoidably involves them in the intermediate position/buffer role, and the negative effects of this position must be counteracted or prevented;

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• • • •

help to avoid and prevent physical strain on the eyes, neck and back muscles; jobs that have neither a low nor high replaceability factor, i.e. too high a degree of vertical and lateral specialization in the organization, must be avoided; a more even allocation of work tasks between the sexes, so-called extrinsic equality; new professional roles and changes in jobs and positions that make use of the traditional male and female experience, interests and values, i.e. so-called intrinsic equality.

Many of these general requirements were formulated at the beginning of the 1980s, but they are classical. We are still the same human beings, but at the beginning of the 2000s I would like to add some requirements and underline some others. 9.3.2 Checklists Checklists may be used as an aid in making a rapid assessment of which aspects of the work and/or home environment should be improved and developed at the planning stage of installation of a new system or when ICT is already applied. This type of checklist was produced for the Postal Giro Centre survey (see Chapter 4). The checklists that were used in the RAM project are reproduced in Appendix 1. 9.3.3 Questionnaires and interviews The work environment can also be evaluated by questioning personnel and the key people in the organization, with the use of questions with fixed response alternatives and with open questions. Online questions can be assembled quickly and give a good overview. But confidentiality is necessary. A comprehensive group of measurements, both interview guides and questionnaires (approximately 400 questions), were developed in the RAM project. The areas covered by the questions are detailed in G. Bradley (1989: Chapter 5) and are replicated in Appendix 1 of the present book. Figure 2.4 in Chapter 2 of the present book gives an overview of the indices, which are placed in a theoretical context in the figure. The questions that comprise each index are set out in Appendix 2 here. Chapter 2 contains a table of four fields (Table 2.1) describing the

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methods applied in the RAM project. Carrying out all the descriptions and analyses that comprised the sub-studies in the RAM project is, of course, far too time- and resource-consuming a process. One must choose the areas and strategies that suit the purpose. In the present ICT society, the requirements and preferences for our total environment need to be discussed in terms of structure, content and quality. The structures and definitions that apply to our lives today will change. For example, the principles of what is to be classified as paid work need to be analysed by various groups representing different interests in the community, and political standpoints must be adopted on the basis of their findings. 9.4 Actions at the corporate level Most companies developed action strategy groups during the first four phases of the ICT development. The strategies concerned organization of systems development, information (from the company and the trade union), education and training/retraining, company health care, ergonomic factors, research and consultation, and local trade union action (G. Bradley 1986: Chapter 9). The structure of the actions corresponded to the structure of strategies undertaken at the national level (see section 9.1). 9.5 Roles The concept of role is common in social psychology. It refers to the various tasks, functions and positions that an individual has in a certain context, including the norms and expectations associated with the position or tasks. Every individual has a set of roles which she/he plays in various contexts, e.g. professional role, private role, citizen ’s role. Role conflicts arise when it is hard to combine these roles. With reference to the Convergence Model in Chapter 2 one can conclude that the work environment, home environment and public environment are converging to a life environment. A similar process is going on regarding the professional role (work life), private role (private life) and citizen’s role (public life), which are converging to become a life role. Effects on the individual are different from before and have become more complex. Finally we could talk about virtual human roles. People undertake the various roles independently of time and space, using the electronic network to function in these roles. The new professional role

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was analysed in Chapter 4, the private role in the home environment was described in Chapter 5 and the citizen’s role or the community role is dealt with in Chapters 5 and 6. The virtual role and the other roles collide for more and more young persons – mainly boys – when addicted to computers. One work environment factor that needs separate attention is the intermediate position/buffer role. Employees with more contact with customers can easily find themselves in an intermediate position or buffer role. Various ways of ‘lightening’ the buffer role – for example, by reviewing the manning level in these positions, both in general and over time – should be introduced. Some examples are:

• • • • •

attempting to balance the business objective against the personnel and material resources available; attempting to minimize the contradictory content of work objectives; checking that the staff’s responsibilities and powers coincide; describing jobs – for example, when advertising positions – setting out the conflicting demands that are an inherent part of the same job; having an open discussion on whether or not staff have to deal with irreconcilable demands and conflicting expectations, and trying to bring these problems up at the right level.

9.5.1 New roles and lifestyles in the Net era Lindgren et al. (2005) have made an extensive analysis of the next generation and their values and habits among young persons in the Scandinavian countries, and call them the MeWe Generation. They were born in the 1980s and raised during the turbulent 1990s and early 2000s. Lindgren et al. base their analysis on empirical data in Scandinavia, but believe that global trendsetters also exist in other parts of the world. Many of the hypotheses formulated at the beginning of the 1990s on psychosocial communication (see Chapter 4) have been verified, and also some conclusions about the main changes in human roles described in the Convergence Model (Chapter 2) (see also Figure 9.2). The following, in short, are the way the authors characterize the MeWe Generation:

• • •

MeWes are interpersonal individualists. The main goal is to maximize opportunities. They are ‘Dividuals’ having more than one identity – a whole wardrobe of ‘Mes’.

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• • • • •

Friends are what matters. They trust the people they know. They need to stay in constant contact with friends. Work is fun and is regarded as an opportunity that opens doors. Consumption is an instrument for self-realization and identity experiments and is used for transforming themselves into different personalities.

Individualism: from we to me Individualization is a process that has been going on for centuries and that has accelerated during the last few decades. Young Scandinavians are individualists, but individualization essentially means having an increased focus on self-reliance and self-realization, and increased variation in self-expression. MeWes are interpersonal individualists. Although they are collectivists on a society level, they are not ‘mind your own business’ individualists: this is part of the MeWe dimensions. Opportunities: maximize The MeWes’ main goal in life is to increase their opportunities; they value alternatives according to whether or not these will increase their opportunities. They are afraid of being stuck with no alternatives. They are optimists in terms of their own future. They believe that they will be able to achieve what they strive for. The big question for the future is whether they will be disappointed or not. Identities: multiple me and the death of lifestyles The MeWes are what postmodern thinkers call ‘dividuals’. They do not have one single identity, but an entire wardrobe of Mes that they wear depending on the occasions. The idea from the 1990s about the tribal society is nothing more than an idea. Young people will not be labelled with narrow tribe labels. They consider themselves to be much more complex and multifaceted than that. They have soul. What counts are inner qualities, not the superficial looks; although most of them subconsciously realize that looks become important in a high-speed society. Treasures: it’s all about relations Although, or maybe as a consequence of, the MeWes’ high-speed life, friends are what matters most. But the number of friends who matter is relatively small. The number of loose acquaintances is, however, growing as the world gets smaller. Culturally, many MeWes are

Figure 9.2 The Convergence Model and role formation

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becoming globalists. The strong aversion to ‘getting stuck’ is something that will probably affect the MeWes, even more strongly than their older siblings born in the late 1960s or 1970s. Being adult is no longer something that is considered inevitable. It is an option; a lifestyle you can choose among other alternative lifestyles. Trust: it’s personal Authenticity: that is what counts for the MeWes. They trust the people they know, or the ones they believe are authentic. Most of all they trust a few, highly valued, friends. Friends are the ones you can rely on, no matter what happens. MeWes organize their friends in different circles, circles of friends that seldom mix. Some are friends because you share a common interest. Some are friends by habit. The MeWes live dividual lives. Since credibility is derived from trust and authenticity, to be taken seriously, commercial entities and other players have to learn to deliver authentic experiences. To be considered authentic and trustworthy, they have to build those experiences around trustworthy humans, and base them on genuine relationships. Technology: keeping the herd together The MeWes are no tech freaks: quite the opposite. Most MeWes consider technology as a means to keep the herd of friends and phonebook friends together. What matters is not the technology itself but what you can do with it. And becoming an engineer is not something many MeWes would choose as their ideal vocation. The great importance of technology in young people’s lives results in many becoming tech-addicts. They can never turn off the mobile phone or the computer. They need to stay in constant contact with their network. They are not happy about it, but they cannot get the technical monkey off their backs. To most MeWes, technological gadgets are less important than travelling. Being forced to choose between travelling, mobile phone, computer and TV, most would keep the opportunity to travel. Work: opportunity vehicle and coffee shop Work is for fun for the MeWes. And it is absolutely not a duty. They consider work an opportunity vehicle. But all MeWes are not equal. MeWes are often motivated either solely by money and benefits (extrinsic motivation) or by interest in the work content per se (intrinsic motivation), even though there are still employees/co-workers in the traditional sense among them. Employers therefore have to consider

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possible cultural clashes when they hire young people. The question is, who goes with whom and where? What is a platform that helps in their transformation to be together as well as to be someone themselves? Consumption: self-realization and identity experiments To consume or not consume is not the question for the MeWe generation. Consumption for them is both experience and means of transformation. They use their consumption as an instrument for selfrealization and identity experiments. The big question for MeWes is whether to remain what they are or to become something different. They use their consumption to transform themselves into different identities – to have fun, but also to make a difference. Gender: who is master and who is servant? Men and women are different. We are brought up to believe that men are strong, ambitious and active, and that women are primarily passive and caring. This does not describe the full complexity of the MeWes. Among the MeWes, the young women are assuming the traditional male virtues and ambitions. The female MeWes are climbing into the driver’s seat, taking the lead not only at home but also in work life and politics. The future now The MeWes have been raised during a period full of change, with multiple perspectives and complex paradigms. The MeWes are a generation so full of inner contradictions and paradoxes. They are a generation with aspirations, dreams and ideals about a highspeed life in balance, which seems a contradiction in itself. In a historic context they could be considered romanticists, putting ideas and ideals first, not money and fame – going for inner emotions rather than looks and superficial surface. The question is whether these youngsters will continue as romanticists or whether they will balance emotions with reason and bring society into a flourishing new renaissance (compare balance between rational and emotional aspects). 9.6 Actions regarding stress Stress can be handled on various levels. In section 9.2 the individual level was described, and some further comments on the corporate level as well as the societal level will be addressed here.

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9.6.1 Actions at the organizational/corporate level regarding stress Here we shall return to the RAM project findings, using the study at the insurance company as an example, but keeping the discussion as general as possible so that companies which intend to computerize their operations – or have already done so – will be able to apply these experiences. Comparisons between display terminal users and non-terminal users show that display terminal users feel more ‘stress’ than non-users, if the background variables are kept constant. This is expressed in several ways. Differences have been shown in an index containing the following questions (see also below) as to whether users:

• • • • •

feel more strain at work; feel that the work pace is too high; feel pressure and stress; report if the number of workers is too low for a certain task (undermanning); report excessive demands for efficiency.

The display terminal users also say that:

• • • • •

the work pace is too irregular; the work pace is too dependent on other people; the work pace is periodically too hectic; the buffer role (role ambiguity) at work has become more acute; the need for attentiveness, accuracy and responsibility has increased.

The display terminal is an instrument that facilitates the retrieval and processing of information and as such is a means of improving efficiency. In itself, this does not need to run counter to individual interests; it all depends on what is meant by the term ‘efficiency’. Nevertheless, the display terminal as an aid involves real risks. A rapid throughput of work per time unit may initially be experienced as stimulating, but can soon become the ‘standard’ of performance. Thus there is a risk that the work pace of the display terminal could affect our future pace of life, and its effects could also spread to other areas of our lives, for example, our personal contacts at work and during our leisure time (G. Bradley 1986, 1989). 9.6.2 Actions at a societal level regarding stress The most important legal framework for work-related stress within the EU is the EU Framework Directive on health and safety at work

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(89/391/EEC): employers have a ‘duty to ensure the safety and health of workers in every aspect related to the work’, on the basis of the following general principles of prevention:

• • • •

•

avoiding risks; evaluating the risks which cannot be avoided; combating the risks at source; adapting the work to the individual, especially as regards the design of workplaces, the choices of work equipment and the choice of working and production methods, with a view, in particular, to alleviating monotonous work and work at a predetermined work rate and to reducing their effects on health; developing a coherent overall prevention policy which covers technology, organization of work, working conditions, social relationships and the influence of factors related to the working environment.

To implement this, strategies need to address the root causes (primary prevention), to reduce their effects on health (secondary prevention), and also to treat the resulting ill-health (tertiary prevention). The Framework Directive emphasizes particularly the first of these three preventive approaches (European Commission 2000b). Investment in R&D is an important action at the society level. For some years the EU’s so-called Frame Programme made it a priority to finance the ICT area, mostly international collaboration on various applications and socioeconomic issues. However, in the preparation of the 7th Frame Programme there is some move towards ‘people orientation’. The time lines of the initiatives reviewed above are reflected in EU Resolution A4–0050/99, and the European Parliament draws attention to similar areas and emphasizes (European Commission 2000b) that:

• •

• •

Muscular-skeletal diseases and psychosocial factors constitute the greatest modern threat to workers’ health. Work must be adapted to people’s abilities and needs and not vice versa, and that should be accomplished by preventing the gap between the demands of work and the capacities of the workers by lifelong training and retraining. Attention should be paid to the importance of ergonomics to the improvement of health and safety conditions at the workplace. The Commission should investigate the new problem areas which are

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•

• •

not covered by current legislation: i.e. stress, burn-out syndromes, violence and the threat of violence by customers, and harassment at the workplace. The problems resulting from a lack of autonomy at the workplace should be prevented, as well as monotonous and repetitive work and work with a narrow variety of content – all features which are typical of women’s work in particular. The health and safety at work of groups which now largely fall outside the scope of legislative protection, such as home workers and the self-employed, should be taken care of. The principle of safety management whereby the management of the risks of the working environment and development of the safety and welfare of workers should be regarded as part of the normal activity of the workplace, and that this should be done in cooperation with the management and workforce.

The specific programmes within the 7th Frame Programme, under preparation in 2005, are:

• • • •

cooperation – collaborative research ideas – frontier research people – human potential capacities – research capacity.

Within ‘cooperation – collaborative research’, nine thematic priorities were specified:

• • • • • • • • •

health food, agriculture and biotechnology information and communication technologies nanoscience, nanotechnologies and new production technologies energy environment including climate change transport including aeronautics socioeconomic sciences and the humanities security and space.

Within ‘information and communication technologies’ above, the following headings are described:

• • • •

ICT technology pillars integration of technologies applications research future and emerging technologies.

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A huge problem is that research in ICT is handled at the European level by quite different bodies, and quite different professionals and practitioners are involved. In my view it is highly important that the goals formulated as desirable in the area of well-being and quality of life are integrated with the goals for developing new technologies – both the basic ones and the applications, and with special emphasis on ICT. 9.7 Towards an information society for all As a coincidence the ODAM conference with the subtitle ‘Development, introduction and use of new technology – Challenges for human organization and human resource development in a changing world ’ was held in Stockholm in 1994, the same year as the first IT commission summoned by the Swedish government. All the ministries were invited to the ODAM conference. The former industry minister Anna-Greta Leijon opened the conference, and Stig Hagström, former university chancellor, was another keynote speaker. Hagström was appointed to be the chair of the first IT commission. After the conference Leijon (Lion) became the CEO of all the lions in the Skansen zoological park and open-air museum in Stockholm, and G. Bradley disappeared from Stockholm to the north of Sweden to start up research in informatics at a newly established university college – which became a full university, Mid-Sweden University, in 2005. Current international IT policy and Swedish IT policy are described under the next headings. The main source has been Facts on information and communication in Sweden 2004 (SIKA 2004). The eEurope Action Plan provides the basis for European IT policy. The Swedish government presented an IT proposal that described the country ’s overall IT goals in March 2000. The Swedish law on electronic communication came into effect in July 2003, and the content of this legislation is summarized in section 9.7.2. In addition, different working parties that are active in the IT field as well as an evaluation of the IT policy are summarized. 9.7.1 International IT policy eEurope – a joint IT policy Within the EU, collaboration with regard to IT policy takes place within the framework of the ‘eEurope – An Information Society for All’

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initiative. This initiative is a part of the strategy that state and government heads within the EU decided on at a meeting in Lisbon in 2000. The goal established at that time was to make Europe the most competitive, strongest and most dynamic knowledge-based economy, with increased employment and social cohesion, by 2010. Action plans So far, two action plans have been drawn up for eEurope. The first action plan ran until the end of 2002, and the current plan runs until 2005. The eEurope 2005 action plan is intended to create an environment that is favourable to private investment and the creation of new employment opportunities, to increasing productivity, modernizing public services and providing the opportunity for everyone to participate in the global information society. In summary, the goals are that by 2005 Europe shall have:

• • • • •

modern public services on the Internet e-government services for e-learning e-healthcare services a dynamic environment for e-businesses.

Among the technical requirements to facilitate the goals are comprehensive access to broadband connections at competitive prices and a secure information infrastructure. The action plan is structured around four measures:

• • • •

political measures to adapt legislation at national and European levels, strengthen competition and compatibility, increase awareness and show political leadership; development, analysis and dissemination of good practices; monitoring of the political measures by assigning them direction in order to make them more goal-oriented; overall coordination of existing IT policy in order to attain synergy effects between the proposed measures.

Responsibility for implementing eEurope 2005 falls on the individual member countries. (More information about eEurope can be found on the European Commission’s website about eEurope, www.europa.eu.int/ eeurope.) A special programme entitled Modinis was running during 2003–2005 to monitor the eEurope 2005 action plan, share good practices and improve network and information security. The

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programme was intended to finance follow-ups and the sharing of good practices. (More information about the Modinis programme is available on the Swedish Parliament’s website (www.riksdagen.se) and the European Commission’s website (www.europa.eu.int).) Other international collaborations At the global level, collaboration is under way concerning IT policy measures and positions within the framework of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS). The first meeting was held in Geneva in December 2003 and the second meeting was held in Tunis in 2005. The purpose is to reach a common vision of the information society that is to be put into writing in an action plan. In the second phase of WSIS, efforts are being made to put the plan of action into motion and working groups have been set up to find solutions and reach agreements in the field of Internet governance and financing mechanisms. The OECD conducts work to follow up and analyse developments within the IT area. For more information about WSIS, see below under the heading ‘From a national to a global tree of action – the World Summit on Information Society’. 9.7.2 Swedish IT policy The overall goal of Swedish policies for electronic communication and IT and postal services is that everyone shall have access to a socially and economically effective infrastructure and associated social services with long term sustainability. The Swedish parliament has clarified this overall goal in, among other things, the IT policy goal and the goals for the electronic communication sector. Already in March 1994 the Swedish government founded a national commission for IT, the Swedish ICT Commission. This was composed of key persons from Swedish society in the field of IT. The Swedish ICT Commission’s task was to contribute to the benefits of information technology in Sweden in order to improve quality of life for the population and to increase the country’s international competitive standing. The Commission drew up visions of how Sweden could become a leading information society, primarily within seven areas: education, judiciary system, public administration, healthcare and nursing, communication networks, industry, commerce and research within IT.

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IT goals With the proposal An Information Society for All (Swedish government 2000) from March 2000, the government set the objective for its IT policy – for Sweden to be the first country to become an information society for all. The Swedish parliament adopted this idea. The proposal includes an action plan in which the government suggests how the goal should be reached. Broad investments in a number of areas were necessary if Sweden was to have a sustainable foundation to stand on and to be able to assert itself internationally. The action plan proposed endeavours within three prioritized areas:

• • •

trust in information technology competency to use information technology access to ICT; information society services made available to all.

Infrastructure In order to increase accessibility, the Swedish government formulated an objective that all companies and households in all parts of Sweden ought to gain access to an IT infrastructure with high-speed connections and within the next few years. This should take place initially through market forces. The market players have been and are building a number of different networks for electronic communication. These networks are both physical line-based networks and wireless networks for mobile communication that can be used for data transfer and Internet connections. The Swedish state’s efforts include a programme for broadband expansion in rural areas where market drivers are too weak. This includes assistance for municipalities and individuals, as well as the expansion of the backbone network to all municipalities. The decision on the programme was made in conjunction with the IT proposal in 2000, and the support came into effect in 2001. In total, the Swedish Parliament has reserved SEK 5.25 billion to support the expansion of the country’s IT infrastructure with high-speed connections. This support covers only a part of the estimated cost of the expansion. The digital terrestrial TV network is also an important electronic infrastructure. Currently, it reaches about 90 per cent of Sweden’s permanent population. Swedish law on electronic communication The new Swedish law on electronic communication from 2003 encompasses electronic communication networks and the

The good ICT society – a tree of action • 221

communication services mediated via the networks. Electronic communication, primarily the use of the Internet, has a deep impact on our work and private life as well as business. This law has indirectly an impact on the psychosocial life environment. Examples of networks are the telephony network, the cable TV network and other broadband networks. The new law encompasses the technical infrastructure, but not the actual content of the services. The purpose is to create uniform and technically neutral legislation for all electronic communication, in order to align legislation with the facts that it is becoming increasingly difficult to draw a line between telephony and data traffic and that those services can be mediated via different types of network. The law also includes regulations on reasonable requirements being placed on telephony services in terms of functionality, technical security, reliability and accessibility in the case of extraordinary events during peacetime, such as natural disasters and accidents. In the new law, protection of integrity for both private individuals and companies is reinforced. According to the law, everyone visiting a website with cookies must receive information about the fact that the website contains cookies, what these cookies are used for, and how cookies can be avoided. A cookie is a small text file stored on the computer when visiting certain websites; the cookie can be used to track a user’s web-surfing habits. Effective government Creating an effective electronic government (e-government) or 24-hour agencies is one of the European goals for attaining an eEurope. This is also one of the ten Swedish IT goals. The member states’ public sectors and the EU institutions should provide good examples of the use of IT in order to stimulate efficiency, openness and quality service. According to eEurope, the challenge lies in coping with the organizational changes required and developing common solutions for information exchange. According to the eEurope 2005 Action Plan, member states shall develop access to public information services and other electronic services, as well as simplify administration for businesses. In order to develop the service offered by the authorities and to increase citizen participation, the Swedish government has initiated a number of projects to help realize 24-hour agencies. Among other things, a special delegation for the development of public e-services has been appointed.

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According to proposals in the report Digital Services – but how?:

• •

• • •

The Swedish government ought to stimulate democratic debate on the evolving society, the decisions and prioritizations that are necessary and the opportunities and dangers this development can entail. The Swedish government ought to collaborate with, among others, non-governmental organizations, research institutes and representatives of trade and industry in order to promote the production of forecasts, future analyses and other factual publications as background material for, among other things, such a debate. The opportunity to utilize ‘IT as a tool for debating IT’ ought to be taken. Adult education organizations ought to collaborate with other nongovernmental organizations in taking an initiative in a broad educational programme to support the democratic debate. Different forms of virtual future forums about our digital future ought to be stimulated and supported.

Working parties appointed by the Swedish government The Swedish government has appointed a number of different groups – delegations to work with different areas of IT, a delegation for e-services, an IT strategy group, a forum for IT and the environment, a board for electronic government and a democracy group. The proposals in the ICT commission’s final report are summarized here. ICT commission Since 1994, the Swedish government has summoned a total of four ICT commissions. The fourth, and final, commission was summoned in 1998 with its appointment lasting five years. Its primary task was to analyse the effects of information technology on societal development. The goal of promoting broad use of information technology has remained, along with participation in the spread of information among the public. In May 2003, the Swedish ICT Commission submitted its final report to the government,‘Digital Services – but how’? The report contains a description of the current situation and an analysis, as well as proposals for the government about the new direction for ICT policy that the ICT commission previously outlined. In one of the chapters, the digital service society is described from a democratic perspective, and the Commission provides suggestions for how the continued work ought to be carried out. Delegation for e-services In July 2003, the Swedish government decided to appoint a delegation for e-services. This delegation is to focus in particular on electronic

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services that can create major benefits for citizens and companies and which can be expected to optimize the public sector. The delegation is to work until 1 November 2006 and as a new agency ‘Verva’ (Swedish Administrative Development Agency). ICT strategy group The government decided during the autumn of 2003 to appoint a working party within the Swedish government offices – an ICT policy strategy group assigned to promote the continued development of the information society in Sweden. The strategy group will work until 1 November 2006, and its efforts should contribute to sustainable growth and the fulfilment of the government’s IT policy goal of Sweden becoming the first country acting as an information society for all, thereby contributing to long-term sustainable growth and benefits for the country’s citizens. The interesting tasks of the ICT strategy group are:

•

• •

•

Within the framework of a free market, act to ensure accessible, competition-neutral and technology-neutral coherent electronic communication methods. The strategy group shall establish a forum for the discussion of these issues and work to establish voluntary collaborations where necessary. Identify the areas within which the Swedish state ought to play a role in increasing trust in IT. Also direct attention to soft values, that is, needs that improve quality of life, community, culture and so on, in the information society, and thereby assess risks and opportunities with regard to aspects such as the information society’s social and cultural effects. Propose how IT policy and the concept of an information society ought to be developed in the future, and work for the fulfilment of the goal of an information society for all.

Board for electronic government The Swedish government has set up a board to establish common standards for different authorities’ electronic communications with one another and with citizens and companies. Among other things, the websites of different authorities should be improved through this initiative. The purpose is to create secure and effective exchange of electronic information between authorities and between authorities and citizens.

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The Board will play an important role in the development of the 24-hour agency, which, among other things, will require increased cooperation between authorities. Democracy group ICT plays an important role in the possibilities for democratic development. The ability of the citizens to search for and find information, to acquire knowledge and to conduct dialogues on the Internet will be of major importance to their participation in political processes in the future. This assessment was made by the Swedish government in its proposal Democracy for the New Century. As a result, a special working group was appointed within the Ministry of Justice with the task of following and promoting the development of democratic processes with IT support. The group has produced reports on electronic voting and on the digital divide now and in the future (both in Swedish). A collaborative project is also under way concerning, among other things, how IT can be better used by elected representatives in their work. The group’s website www.demokratitorget.gov.se is intended to create a virtual meeting place for debate, discussion and acquiring knowledge about democracy, among other things. Forum for ICT and the environment A special forum for ICT and the environment has been established in order to draw up proposals on how the use of ICT can be handled to reduce environmental impact and contribute to ecologically sustainable development. 9.7.3 Evaluation of Swedish IT policy Swedish ICT policy was evaluated and the findings were reported in November 2003 (ITPS 2003). The evaluation illuminates aspects of national IT policy and deals with different policy and application areas. Three demands on IT policy were stated:

• • •

Long-term perspective and focus on strategic societal problem areas. Policy shall be consistent and enduring, that is, pedagogic loops of evaluating, learning, relearning are emphasized. Policy shall be user- and not product-oriented.

Three policy themes were proposed:

The good ICT society – a tree of action • 225

• • •

ICT-assisted business development for growth and welfare. From broadband to network society? The information society as a learning society.

Some recommendations from the evaluation group at ITPS are reported below: An information society for all The government pays extra attention to those groups that risk permanent exclusion from the information society. In particular, the issue of stagnating IT use among immigrants ought to be studied more closely. Trust The concept of trust as one of the founding principles of IT policy has not been defined, and is therefore difficult to interpret and integrate into evaluation and follow-up work. ITPS therefore recommends that, if the concept is to continue to hold a central position in IT policy, it ought to be clarified. Sustainable development ITPS suggests that the strategy group and concerned government ministries and authorities contribute to finding forms and financing for the work that has been initiated within the Forum for ICT and the Environment so that work within this area does not cease as the Forum’s mandate period expires. Culture An inventory of the role of IT in culture, regardless of which government ministry is responsible for the relevant policy, ought to be carried out jointly by the strategy group and the delegation. Furthermore, a working party formed by the Ministry of Culture, the strategy group and the delegation should initiate the work to draw up a common vision of IT in culture policy and formulate different goals for this area. The public sector as a pioneer in IT use It is necessary that the visions surrounding electronically coherent network government and 24-hour agencies are developed and elaborated. State authorities should be role models for how ‘a few can do more and better than many’ – increase productivity, in other words. The state ought to develop incentives so that authorities, municipalities and county councils together develop common platforms for the citizenry and

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24-hour agencies and work with electronically homogeneous government. They ought to work openly with their sights set on mutual learning in relation to trade and industry. PPP (public–private partnership) solutions ought to be developed in these areas. 9.7.4 From IT policy for society to policy for the IT society The above is the expressive title of the Swedish government bill (2005), and the main goal is to be a sustainable IT society for all. Priority is given to the healthcare sector and care in general, for example, efforts to make it possible for people to stay longer in their own homes and have a better quality of life. Words that appear again and again in the IT bill are ‘welfare, quality of life and well-being with limited resources’. Politics has thus moved from being concerned with ICT infrastructure to becoming focused on the use of the technology. It is important to strengthen the so-called weak groups (the elderly, the unemployed and immigrants) and prevent/reduce gaps in society. An important difference compared with the 2001 IT government bill is that sustainability is added, and this underlines that IT should equally contribute to economic, social, and environmental aspects. The main goal is subdivided into:

• • •

IT should contribute to improving quality of life and to improving and simplifying everyday life for humans and companies. IT should be used to contribute to sustainable growth. An effective and secure IT infrastructure with a high level of transmission capacity should be available all over the country, for example, to provide humans with interactive public e-services.

The bill deals with two necessary prerequisites for these goals which are specified as the importance of trust and the importance of coordination. 9.8 From an information society for all to quality of life for all Headings such as ‘From an Information Society for all to Quality of Life for All’ and ‘ICT for Deepening Human Qualities’ have been titles of some of my keynote speeches during the last few years. They connect with my vision of the information society that has been expressed implicitly and explicitly throughout this book.

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9.8.1 Key issues in computerization

• • • • •

The data processing technological arms race: the competition focused on technology, and no side-effects were identified. Energy questions and data processing questions: computer power was perceived as an ‘industry’ with low energy requirement. The allocation question: the allocation question is described in Chapter 4, section 4.5. Home computer revolution: personal computers (PCs) had appeared and were perceived as the new home tool. Aspects of equality: balance between cultures regarding male–female, religion, ethnicity, etc. This has in the 2000s been dominated by discussion on the digital divide.

(G. Bradley 1979, also 1981 at the International Conference on Quality of Life, Montreal) 9.8.2 Opportunities and risks in computerization (Swedish version (1986) of G. Bradley 1989: 243)

• • •

• • • •

Employment and job structure Organization of work (ibid.: 248) Work content (ibid.: 249) • vulnerability • personal integrity on the job • abstraction of task and knowledge • formalization • standardization Stress (ibid.: 251) Leadership and the role of leaders (ibid.: 254, 256) Communication and quality of personal contacts (ibid.: 257) Aspects of equality (ibid.: 258).

9.8.3 What kind of shift? In the mid-1990s discussion took place on the ICT society (the IT society, e-society, digital society) especially because of the penetration of Internet and Web technology into society. Paradigm shifts were discussed. (Theories on the information society are described in Chapter 2, section 2.3.) As an example I refer to Ewerman (1996):

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Present world view

Future world view

Political ideology Global Large-scale Professionalism Knowledge Taking apart Mastering nature

Individual ideology Local Small-scale and large-scale Amateurism Knowing Bringing together Nature as a source for inspiration

9.8.4 Focus on some major psychosocial processes as policy statements One way to summarize the discussion of the interaction between the IT society and the individual is to address the issue of psychosocial processes. They could be formulated as policy statements or viewed as research questions. As pointed out earlier, there are reasons to start up normative research which later on could be discussed across wider cultures.

• • • • • • •

Integration: normatively, ICT should contribute to enrichment in the social contact between people and should be used to prevent social isolation and facilitate integration. Autonomy: ICT should contribute to greater autonomy for the individual. Control or freedom is a classic issue often described in terms of ‘privacy–integrity’. Balance/harmony: ICT should facilitate information access for all and support individual learning, but at the same time prohibit various kinds of overload, e.g. information overload, contact overload. Humanization: ICT should contribute to the deepening and development of true human qualities and be used to provide time for people to develop themselves as human beings. E-cooperation (peace): e-conflicts must be avoided. E-cooperation and peace are major concerns. Need to focus on syntheses. Research for achieving human welfare and life quality for all as the crucial societal goal.

(G. Bradley 1997 at IFIP – Namur lecture; 2001 in Humans on the Net; 2002 at the Hamahaa conference, Rome; 2003 at World IT Forum, Vilnius, Lithuania; 2004 at IADIS conference on the Information Society, Avila, Spain; 2005 at ODAM, Maui)

The good ICT society – a tree of action • 229

9.8.5 World Information Technology Forum 2003 Before my travel to Vilnius for WITFOR 2003 I was reflecting on what are the main concerns:

• • • • •

Globalization (culture, economy, labour) – how best to deal with them? The divide/gap is threatening the survival of the present societal structures. It seemed to be met with a kind of e-war and digital war. Highly professional programmers seemed to be behind a new type of virus attack. Targets were societal structures (Microsoft home page, mail servers). Organized criminal actions and e-sabotage could be identified. Vulnerability – security – dependency seemed to have resulted in a huge issue concerning trust.

At the same time a potential for health and well-being for all is present more than ever. My concern was about a ‘tree of action’ for the 2000s. An invitation to contribute at WITFOR 2003 was just a MUST. Actions that were discussed at the time were the enforcing of the security built into the hardware, software and networks, and increased control of information flow and content. More proactive actions, I thought, would be to invest in the infrastructure in the developing countries, combine the goal education for all with access for all, carefully explore the type of applications (depending on culture, basic needs) and thereby involve local actors and foremost bridge the economical gap. Research should comprise critical analysis and:

• • • •

focus on the interplay between humans – ICT and societal change; focus on ICT use for deepening and broadening democracy, welfare and quality of life for all (developed and developing countries); not be dependent on/adapt to the stock market; focus on ICT and sustainability, including both environmental sustainability and human, e.g. stress prevention.

ICT is a beautiful technology – with a high potential for the good society for all (GSA) – an embryo for democracy, well-being, health, quality of life for all. Urgent actions are needed at all levels – international, national, regional, local and personal. This was my ‘baggage’ when entering Lithuania and Vilnius. The first official statement internationally in the direction of my visions was at the first World Information Technology Forum in 2003. The

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following is a quote about the primary goals from the document: ‘IFIP World Information Technology Forum: Vilnius Declaration’ (www.witfor.lt/witfor_vilnius _declaration.pdf): ‘We, the participants from 68 countries at The First World Information Technology Forum (WITFOR), organized by IFIP (International Federation of Information Processing) under the auspices of UNESCO and hosted by the Government of Lithuania, gathered in Vilnius, Lithuania, 27–29 August 2003, address through the Forum the following major goals:

• • • • • • • • • •

bridging the digital divide between rich and poor in the world; urban and rural societies; men and women; and different generations; ensuring the freedom of expression enshrined in Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other such instruments; reducing poverty through the use of education and information and communications technology (ICT); facilitating the social integration of excluded segments of societies; respecting linguistic and cultural diversity; fostering the creation of public domains with full respect of intellectual property rights (IPR); supporting communities in fighting illiteracy; encouraging e-governance and e-democracy initiatives; improving the quality of life through effective health service systems; protecting the local and global environment for future generations. ’

(Vilnius Declaration 2003, p. 2; see also Khakhar (2003)) 9.8.6 The human element – humanization The Vilnius Declaration addresses the political and societal level. Above all, the visions concern human factors and the humanization of life conditions. One way to formulate this is to use the Declaration of Human Rights. The list below, with some short comments on each of the key words, originates from Schultz (1994). The phrasing ‘human element’ is applicable primarily in democratic societies, but is thought-provoking and gives strength to humans.

• • •

dimensions: inclusion, control and openness are basic dimensions of human functioning; self-esteem: the core of each person, from which creativity, motivation, and productive work issue: all behaviour derives from self-esteem; truth: the grand simplifier, energizer and clarifier;

The good ICT society – a tree of action • 231

• • • • • • • •

choice: we choose our own life – thoughts, feelings, memories; simplicity: often the most profound solution; holism: all aspects of a person (thoughts, behaviour, feelings, body) are interrelated; completion: joy and effectiveness are enhanced by the completion of unfinished experiences; collaboration: poor collaboration does not arise from differences but from rigidities, which result in low self-esteem; empowerment: only through giving power; accountability: everyone involved is 100 per cent responsible; ethics: if people feel good about themselves, they act ethically.

9.8.7 From a national to a global tree of action – the World Summit on Information Society At the meetings of the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) held in Geneva in 2003 and in Tunis 2005, a wide range of players worked together to develop principles and prioritize actions to move towards democratic, inclusive, participatory and developmentoriented information societies at the local, national and international levels (Civil Society 2005). Issues addressed during the Tunis WSIS meeting were: Social justice, financing and people-centred development : One broad mandate for WSIS was to address issues in economic and social development from the emerging perspectives of the opportunities and risks raised by the revolution in information and communications technologies. The summit was expected to identify and articulate new development possibilities and paradigms, possible in the information society, and to develop public policy for realizing these opportunities. Human rights: At an early stage it was stated that the information society must be based on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights – including civil and political rights, as well as social, economic and cultural rights. To move from declarations and commitments into action is the big challenge. Internet governance: An Internet Governance Forum (IGF) was formed. It is under debate how this should be organized to achieve independence and be more than a place for dialogue. Global governance: In a world that is increasingly more connected and

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interdependent there is a growing need for global governance institutions and processes. The role of the United Nations system as the present legitimate inter-governmental forum becomes a key question. Participation: Improvements in Civil Society participation in the WSIS processes were achieved, and roles and responsibilities for Civil Society were specified, e.g.:

• • • • • •

Raise awareness and build capacity. Mobilize citizens in democratic processes. Bring perspectives of marginalized groups. Engage in policy processes. Bring expertise, skills, experience and knowledge in a range of ICT policy areas with more bottom-up, people-centred and inclusive approaches. Contribute to shaping visions of information societies based on human rights, sustainable development, social justice and empowerment.

Issues that the Civil Society addressed in the both Geneva and Tunis WSIS meetings were: Gender equality: ‘Without full, material and engaged commitment to the principle of gender equality, women’s empowerment and non-discrimination, the vision of a just and equitable Information Society cannot be achieved’ (Civil Society 2005: 9). Culture, knowledge, and the public domain: The public domain of global knowledge was the dominant theme, and the fact that humankind can share knowledge in real time and at almost no cost. Access to free software is an integral part of this ability and determines who may participate in the digital world. Education, research, and practice: Community informatics and social informatics must be promoted. Academic research should focus on both the technology and the evaluation of ‘whether ICT meets and serves the individuals’ and the public’s multiple needs and interests – as workers, women, migrants, and racial, ethnic and sexual minorities, among others – across very uneven information societies throughout the world ’ (ibid.: 10). Power relations and social orientations are embedded in the designs of ICT and should be identified. The special role that the computing, information science, and engineering professions have in helping to shape the information society to meet human needs was emphasized in the Civil Society report.

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Media: Freedom of expression addressed already in the WITFOR discussions was reaffirmed in the WSIS Tunis texts. Health information: Access to health information and knowledge so closely connected to ICT use was again identified as a critical factor in public healthcare around the world. Children and young people in the information society : Strategies are needed to protect children and young people from the risks from new technologies, including access to inappropriate content, unwanted contact and commercial pressures (pornography, paedophilia and sexual trafficking) while at the same time respecting freedom of expression. The views of young people are needed in shaping the new ICT world. Ethical dimensions: Ethical values brought up at WSIS were respect for peace and the fundamental values of freedom, equality, solidarity, tolerance, shared responsibility, and respect for nature, trust, stewardship and shared responsibility, digital solidarity, and social cohesion. It was clear that the Civil Society will continue with its involvement in the future mechanisms for policy debate, implementation and follow-up on information society issues. In 2006 the NGO network Association for Progressive Communication (APC) presented its verdict on WSIS, and concludes that the outcomes are primarily in the virtual areas of networking and political debate, not concrete decisions. However, they add that all kinds of changes and actions are set in motion and that the possible impacts will be evident in the next few years. People and organisations have the capacity to be creative, and to innovate. Did WSIS produce the political will from governments that would provide a suitable backdrop for this creativity? The answer varies from country to country, but in many developing countries post-WSIS there is now far more focus on the integration of ICTs and information and communications with social, economic and political development than there was before. (APC 2006)

9.9 Concluding remarks The great interest of official bodies at the national and international level described above mirrors the strength and depth of changes related to the

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use of ICT. Questions raised in the first period of computerization are still relevant: What type of society do we wish to have in the future? What life conditions do we want? What factors are contributing to well-being, creativity, and trust in the future? As we have moved to an ICT society on a global scale, the issues have however widened. At the present technology stage the questions could be extended to encompass:

• •

•

•

How can ICT be used to deepen human qualities and societal qualities? How can ICT be used for dialogue in the world? How can research improve the dialogue? How can ICT and, more specifically, the Internet, the Web, SMS, blogs, etc., be used to promote dialogue between cultures, increase mutual understanding, and enrich us all? How can ICT be used to prevent violence and weapon aggression? Violence creates violence; worldwide dialogue and Web-based non-violent actions in civil society and at the grass-roots level are a new force in global politics. How could human rights be more deeply understood, exemplified and applied in the ICT society? Who are the present players, and what new player(s) globally are crucial to the promotion of human rights in the ICT society?

Visions and actions can be formulated in various ways and with various focuses and perspectives. This book has brought forward some examples in various areas of life. However, to get closer to the individual, I have repeatedly mentioned physical and psychosocial life environment, human needs, human requirements and human rights. These are and will be challenged in the ICT society with opportunities and risks. We have new chances to deepen human qualities and societal qualities, and bring people around the world closer together. Coming back to social and community informatics, this book has tried to give a picture of and exemplify what the field is about. There are various definitions out there, but they all share a vision of and work towards goals such as increasing well-being, and deepening democracy and the quality of life for all. We can all be actors in this process. We all have a responsibility – politicians, NGOs, companies, researchers, IT professionals, customers and, not least, the individual, to get involved. In the current era, there is a need for unified actions and IT strategies to support the survival of future generations as well as assuring a healthy

The good ICT society – a tree of action • 235

psychosocial life environment for present and coming generations. The tree of action on the front cover of this book can symbolize the efforts to reach these goals. Also, we are in a unique position in history where we should take on the responsibility to use the technology to promote peace and deepen democracy and the quality of life for all.

Appendices

Appendix 1 A sample checklist for evaluating the working environment of computer systems, both planned and in use

Appendices

This checklist may be used in the evaluation of a projected computer system or a system which is already online, to give a rapid assessment of which aspects of the work and working conditions are to be improved and developed. The keywords in the checklist below are indicated as headings (work content, job autonomy, security/safety, etc.) and after each keyword examples are presented of areas to be selected for analysis and action. Aspect of work and the working environment – examples Work content

• • • • • • • • • • • •

the value of the work to the company the value of the work to society the value/significance of the work to the individual the number of work operations in the job opportunities to apply one’s own knowledge and ideas (professional skills) the opportunity to ‘follow through’ on assignments monotony, repetitive work operations the opportunity to relate one’s work to the work of the organization as a whole supervision/monitoring of the job being confined by certain work routines being confined to a workstation variety in the job

238 • Appendices

• • •

the degree of complexity in the work the qualifications required for the job the degree of independence.

Job autonomy

• • • • • • • • •

influence on the way the job is performed (work method) influence on work design influence on work planning influence on the pace of work influence on working hours influence on rest and work break scheduling influence on the choice of co-workers influence on the employment of personnel influence on the planning and implementation of rationalization measures.

Security/safety

• • • • • •

security of employment security and development opportunities in one’s present position transfers reductions in personnel the opportunity to take another position (at the same level) recruitment.

Contact/cooperation with co-workers

• • • • • • •

contact/cooperation with other people at work communication between people and computers compared with communication between people confinement to the workplace isolation (physical and psychological) too much/too little contact with others knowledge of other people’s work group work/individual work.

Workload

• • • • •

the pace of work (manning levels) the extent to which machines/equipment dictate one’s pace of work the extent to which other people dictate one’s pace of work (e.g. co-workers, other departments) the opportunity to take work breaks the need for attentiveness in the work

Appendices • 239

• • •

the need for precision replaceability (can one be replaced at work in the event of sickness, etc.?: the difficulty of finding a replacement) perception of personal efficiency at work.

Responsibility

•

different aspects of responsibility (compare with job autonomy).

Working hours

• • •

the scope of working hours (full-/part-time) the scheduling of working hours (flexible working hours, shift work) overtime work, unscheduled working hours.

The effects on leisure time/family life

• • • • • • •

home and family life further training/courses trade union/political activities hobbies taking exercise watching TV, reading spending time with friends.

Promotion/development

• • • •

the opportunity to develop in the job prospects of traditional professional advancement prospects of getting more qualified work at the same level the possibility of ‘declining’ promotion – psychologically.

Pay and income

• •

the design of the pay system pay according to • the work performed • other groups in the company • others with similar work in the company.

Relationship to the company (in general)

• • •

distance (psychological and physical) commitment conflicting demands • superior/subordinate • other departments

240 • Appendices

•

• •

the general public/customers private life information flow (upward, downward, lateral) • quantitative • qualitative.

Status

• •

status vis-à-vis other departments prestige, status vis-à-vis fellow-workers.

Educational aspects

• • • • •

changes in qualification requirements (higher, lower) in-house training training for new work tasks training in the EDP system interest in acquiring more knowledge.

Physio-ergonomic conditions, health aspects

• • • • • • • • •

are the work premises suited to the nature of the work? work position furniture work tools/equipment (mechanical equipment) lighting sound and noise temperature smoking risks of physical and psychological complaints.

Work organization

• • • • • • • • •

the operational goals formal structure informal structure the design of the rewards system the management system merging departments (lateral changes) vertical changes (transferring responsibility, the managerial function) the representation of the sexes (positive action in recruitment and appointments) the age profile.

Appendices • 241

Technical/mechanical aspects

• •

• • • •

information on processing stoppages manual errors • worry about making mistakes • the possibility of correcting errors • the consequences of errors response times accessibility utilization of technical capacity problems of confidentiality.

Appendix 2 The main content of the indices The main content of the indices is described here in the form of composite questions related to the questions in the indices. The questions are set out in full in the corresponding RAM research reports on work environment and display terminals. The S indices: psychosocial work environment factors Interesting work – meaningfulness (SIME) Do you enjoy your work? Are your work tasks interesting and enjoyable? Do you feel that your work is pointless? Do you feel as though you are simply ‘putting in hours at work’? Interesting work – human resources (SIMR) Is your work not complex enough? Do you want your job to include a large number of work operations? Does it allow you to use your own knowledge and skills? Job autonomy (SSJA) Do you have the opportunity to discuss the way your work is structured and performed? Is there enough self-determination in your work? Is your work too strictly monitored? Are you able to influence your work conditions?

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Opportunities for contact with co-workers (SKONT) Are you too confined to your workplace or too isolated? Do you have sufficient opportunities for contact with your fellow-workers and with other departments in the company? Cooperation with co-workers (SSAM) Do you enjoy good cooperation with your co-workers? Do you get on well with your closest co-workers? Do you work well together? Wage conditions (SLÖN) Are you underpaid compared to others outside the company or in consideration of the work you perform? Do you feel that wage differences are too great in your company? Promotion – positive (SBEFP) Will promotion give you a more interesting job? Is this a positive stimulus for the individual? Will promotion give you more influence over your work? Promotion – negative (SBEFN) Are there rumours of intrigue when people are promoted? Does promotion create competitive relationships? Promotion prospects (SBEFM) Does the company place sufficient value on long experience/professional skills? Do you have good prospects of advancing to work tasks demanding higher qualifications? Is there scope in your present position for personal development? Information (SINFO) Are you given adequate information on events in the company, changes at the workplace, e.g. rationalization? Are you given adequate information on the conditions that affect your own job, and information on events in other departments? Intermediate position – the buffer role (SBUFF) Do you feel that other groups, e.g. the general public/customers, make far too high demands of you? Do other departments or personnel groups within the company make far too high demands?

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Work pace/workload (SARBT) Is the work pace usually too high? Is your work hectic and stressed? Is your department undermanned? Does the demand for efficiency dominate? Does the job generate psychological strain? Irregular work pace/workload (SOJA) Is the pace of work too uneven, too dependent upon other people? Are you bothered by too high work peaks at certain times of the year? The status of the work (SAANS) Does your job have high status in the company and among your friends? Attentiveness/responsibility (SUPPA) Does the work require excessive attentiveness and precision, and does it involve too much responsibility? Efficiency (SEFF) Can you be as efficient as you yourself would wish with regard to the people in your own department and in other departments that you depend upon, and with regard to the essential equipment you have? The F indices (physio-ergonomic work environment factors) Work premises (FA) Are you satisfied with your work premises? Are the premises well suited to the work performed there? Are you troubled by the lighting conditions or by noise at your workplace? Temperature/air (FT) Are you satisfied with the temperature and ventilation of your workplace? Ergonomic factors (FE) Are the furniture, the aids, the work tools and other equipment you use suitable for the work and do they make the work easier to perform? Is your work position comfortable? Are lighting conditions suitable for the work you perform? Odours (FL) Are you troubled by smells or by your co-workers’ smoking?

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The DEM indices: democracy at work Work democracy (DEMA) How much influence do you have on the planning of your own work, regulating your work tempo, your choice of work method? Do you have enough influence on your own work and working conditions? Company democracy (DEMF) How much influence do you have on the planning and implementation of rationalization, the choice of your immediate co-workers (not employment), the employment of personnel at the company, questions that are of general interest to the company? Company democracy – preferences (DEMFÖ) Do you consider that there should be a change in your influence in terms of the planning and implementation of rationalization, appointments to positions and matters that are of general interest to the company? Work/leisure time democracy (DEMAL) How much influence do you have on the scheduling of breaks, holidays and working hours (within the framework of ‘flexitime’)? Work/leisure time democracy – preferences (DEMALÖ) Do you consider that there should be a change in the amount of influence you have on the scheduling of holidays, working hours and breaks? The T indices: effects of the terminal system Interesting work/job autonomy – T (TISJA) Has the introduction of the terminal system led to any changes (increase or decrease) in the following: varied work assignments, the amount of stimulus and tension, the amount of interesting job content, the number of different operations that the work consists of, opportunities to apply your own ideas, knowledge and skills? Errors in work – T (TFEL) Has the introduction of the terminal system led to changes (increase or decrease) in the following: the risk of making mistakes, anxiety about making mistakes and the consequences of errors, the opportunities to correct errors?

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Opportunities for contact with co-workers/cooperation – T (TKONTSAM) Has the terminal system had any effect on the unity/cooperation of yourself and your immediate co-workers, and among employees throughout the department? Has there been any effect on the opportunities for contact with co-workers who have similar types of work, with personnel in your department, with your immediate co-workers, or with other departments within the company? Has the opportunity for contact with your immediate superiors and your ability to get on with them been affected by the introduction of the terminal system? Intermediate position – the buffer role – T/D (TDBUFF) Has the introduction of the terminal or data processing system brought about changes (increase or decrease) in the following: demands from other departments or personnel groups within the company, simultaneous demands from both superiors and subordinates, demands from other associated groups? Influence – work democracy – T (TINFLAD) Has the introduction of the terminal system led to any change (increase or decrease) in influence over the following: your own work pace, planning your work, choice of work methods, scheduling breaks? Influence – company democracy – T (TINFLED) Has the introduction of the terminal system had any effect on or influence over the following: appointing people to positions, choice of your immediate co-workers, planning and implementing rationalization measures? Irregular work pace – T (TOJA) Has the introduction of the terminal system led to a decrease or increase in the unevenness of the work pace and the degree to which your work pace is dictated by others? Attentiveness/responsibility – T (TUPPA) Has the introduction of the terminal system had an effect upon your responsibility at work and the requirement for your attentiveness and precision?

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Wages – T/D (TDLÖN) Has the introduction of the terminal or data processing system otherwise affected the salary levels at the company, your own pay and your own prospects of pay increases? Working hours – T/D (TARBTID) Has computerization meant that you have working hours that suit your home and family life and leisure activities? Do you now have more secure working hours and less overtime work? Interest in training – requirements – T (TUTIK) Has the introduction of the terminal system had any effect on your own interest in training or upon the company’s demands for training/ further training? Ergonomic factors – T (TERGO) Has the introduction of the terminal system led to improvements or deterioration in the following: furniture, lighting, work positions, the adaptation of the work premises to the work performed in them, and to the equipment in use? Temperature/air – T (TTEMPL) Has the introduction of the terminal system led to changes in terms of temperature and ventilation? Health hazards – T (THÄLSOR) Have conditions related to the introduction of terminals reduced the risk of mental and physical complaints? The D indices: other effects of the computer system Interesting work/job autonomy – D (DISJA) Have there been any changes (increase or decrease) in the following as a result of the other effects of the computer system: variety at work; the degree of stimulus and tension and the amount of interesting job content; the opportunity to use ideas, knowledge and skills; autonomy/freedom of action in the work, the status of the job; the number of different operations included in the work?

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Errors in the work – D (DFEL) Has the introduction of the computer system otherwise led to change (increase or decrease) in the following: risks of making mistakes, anxiety about making mistakes, opportunity to correct errors? Contact opportunities – D (DKONT) Has the computer system otherwise affected your opportunities for contact with your immediate co-workers, with your immediate superior, with co-workers with similar work tasks/positions, with the other personnel in the same department? Cooperation – D (DSAM) Has the introduction of the computer system otherwise affected the cooperation and sense of affinity between yourself and your immediate co-workers, with your immediate superiors, among employees in the department, among co-workers with similar work assignments/positions? Influence – work democracy – D (DINFLAD) Has the introduction of the computer system otherwise led to any change (increase or decrease) in influence over the following: your own work pace, planning your work, choice of work methods? Influence – company democracy – D (DINFLFD) Has the introduction of the computer system otherwise had any effect on or influence over the following: appointing people to positions, choice of your immediate co-workers, planning and implementing rationalization measures, influence in matters of general interest to the company? Work pace/workloads – D (DATAB) Has the introduction of the computer system led to a general decrease or increase in the dependence of the work pace on other people, unevenness in work pace, stress of work, dependence of the work pace on machines, equipment, etc.? Interest in training – requirements – D (DUTIK) Has the introduction of the computer system had any general effect on your own interest in training or upon the company’s requirements for training/further training?

248 • Appendices

Ergonomic – D (ERGO) Has the introduction of the computer system otherwise led to improvements or deterioration in the following: lighting conditions, furniture, the work position, the modification of the work premises to suit the work that is performed there? Temperature/air – D (DTEMPL) Has the introduction of the computer system led to changes of temperature and ventilation? Health risks – D (DHÄLSOR) Have conditions related to the introduction of the computer system reduced the risk of mental and physical complaints? The HA indices: health problems at work Nervous complaints – A (HAN) Have you been troubled by depression, nervousness (worry, anxiety), restlessness, irritation, fatigue, irregular heartbeat, or periods in which you have found it difficult to summon the energy to achieve anything at work? Eye complaints – A (HÄO) Have you ever been troubled by fatigue, burning sensations or other eye complaints at work? General pain – A (HAV) Have you been troubled by pain or fatigue in your shoulders and neck, had hand or finger joint problems, swollen feet and/or legs, or suffered from back complaints at work? Stomach complaints – A (HAM) Have you been troubled by stomach/intestinal complaints, nausea or diarrhoea at work? Headaches, etc. – A (HAH) Have you been troubled by migraine or headaches at work?

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The HF indices: health problems during leisure time Nervous complaints – F (HFN) Have you been troubled by depression, nervousness (worry, anxiety), restlessness, irritation, fatigue, irregular heartbeat, or periods in which you have found it difficult to summon the energy to achieve anything in your leisure time? Eye complaints – A (HFO) Have you been troubled by fatigue, burning sensations or other eye complaints in your leisure time? General pain – A (HFV) Have you been troubled by pain or fatigue in your shoulders and neck, had hand or finger joint problems, swollen feet and/or legs, or suffered from back complaints in your leisure time? Stomach complaints – A (HFM) Have you been troubled by stomach/intestinal complaints, nausea or diarrhoea in your leisure time? Headaches etc. – A (HEH) Have you been troubled by migraine or headaches in your leisure time? Sleeping problems – F (HFS) Have you had difficulties in sleeping or used sleeping tablets or tranquillizers during the last twelve months? The AF indices: the effects of work on leisure time/family life The effects of work on leisure time/family life (AF) Do you feel that your current position makes too great inroads into your home and family life or your leisure time activities? Do you do too much overtime work? Is it difficult to plan your leisure time because of an unpredictable work schedule?

250 • Appendices

The DF indices: the effects of computerization on opportunities for leisure activities Leisure activities – D (DFSYM) Do you consider that computerization at the company directly or indirectly had an effect on your opportunities to go to the cinema, the theatre, dancing, restaurants, your opportunities to read, take part in open-air pursuits, take exercise, take part in sports or go shopping or window-shopping? Contact – D (FKM) Do you consider that computerization at the company has directly or indirectly reduced your opportunities for a home and family life, association with friends or your chances of studying or attending courses of further education? The V indices: the weight attached to specific work environment factors and the general attitude to work Weighting – external (VY) What factors are important in helping you enjoy your job: good working hours, good physical work environment, a job with a calm and even pace of work, a job that does not impinge on family life/leisure time? Weighting – internal (VI) What factors are important for your enjoyment of your job: having varied work, having a job that gives you the opportunity for personal development, having influence on decisions that apply to your own work and your own working conditions, having contact with people at work, having an interesting job? Weighting – development (VU) What factors are important for your enjoyment of your job: having good promotion prospects, good opportunities for training/further training, having a job with scope for personal development? Interest in promotion (VB) Are you interested in applying for promotion, do you feel the need to advance, are you interested in further education to prepare yourself for other work tasks within your department? (Low values of these V indices mean that you consider the work environment aspect to be important.)

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Index

Acker-Hocevar, M. 20, 21 ‘Agenda 21’ 170 aggression: prevention of 234 agreements 200 alienation: poor work environment and 37–8 allocation issue 84–5 anonymity: Internet and 124 architecture and infrastructure 70–1 Armenia 107 Association for Progressive Communication (APC) 233 automation 77, 175; complex systems 66–7 autonomy 22–3, 62, 90 Bagnara, S. 23 balance 62; balance theory 23 banking industry: women in 7, 8 Barthes, R. 60 batch-processing environment: stress and 180–2 Baudrillard, J. 60 Berleur, J. 18 bioinformatics 69, 70 Bloch Rasmussen, L. 24–5 books 105–6 borders/boundaries 26–7, 113–14 Botswana Basket Weavers online 149 Bradley, G. 161, 162, 166 broadband connections 25 Brundtland Commission 170 buffer roles 209 business schools 3

Index

Carayon, P. 23 care work 78–9 cars: ICT in (telematics) 65 Castells, Manuel 60–1 Central Federation for Salaried Employees (TCO; Sweden) 6, 8 centralization 151 change: continuous 73–6 checklists 207; sample 237–41 children 233 citizenship 113, 117 cochlear implants 65–6 collaboration: distributed teams 161–4, 168–9, 170–1; network structures 83 comfort 110 communication 80–3, 110, 124–5, 152–7; circumstances where contacts are desired 160; collaboration in distributed teams 161–4, 168–9, 170–1; communication circle 157–9, 166–8; during use of applied AI and knowledge-based systems 160–1; hypotheses on 81–3; IT challenges for 155–7; microcomputerization period 159–60; mobile see mobile communications; Net era 161–8; Open.Net and open communication 143–7; Organizational Design and Management (ODAM) communication circle 157–9; quality in 159–60; Swedish law on electronic communication 220–1; web-based communities 164–6

260 • Index

communities 130–2, 151; Botswana Basket Weavers online 149; community informatics 142–3, 234; global villages 88–9, 130; Internet Learning Centres (ILC) project 147; living in 108, 113; Open.Net and open communication 143–7; Remote IT Village project 146–7; Sámi people 144–6; Slow Cities movement 150–1; SPIDER project 149; Telehealth project 147–8; web-based 107, 155, 162, 164–6; see also ‘Computers in the Bakery’ project companies see organizations competencies 78; ICT and quality of working life and 21–3 competitiveness: individuals 34 complex systems 66–7 computers see information and communications technology (ICT) ‘Computers in the Bakery’ project 88–9, 130, 132–5; comments and discussion 140–2; motivation and action research 132–4; purpose and problems 135–6; results 136–40; rural community 132–4, 136–8, 141; suburban community 134–5, 138–9, 141–2; urban community 135, 139–40, 142 conceptual skills 22 conflict: online communities and 155 consumers 125, 213 continuous change 73–6 control 111 convenience 110 Convergence Model of ICT 29, 52–61, 82, 131; connected home and 128–9; methodologies for testing 57–8; other theories on information society and 58–61; roles and 208–9 critical theories 59 culture 225, 232; dialogue between cultures 234; global 107 data protection 112 data-processing environment: stress and 180–2 decentralization 151

decision-making 35; employee participation 24–5, 35 delegation for e-services 222–3 Delors, Jacques 87 democracy 83, 224 demographics: private life and 111 Denmark 25 development 63–4 dialogue 234 digital divide 25–6, 124, 190; SPIDER project 149 disintermediation 103 distance: distance education 86; economy of 103 distributed teams: collaboration in 161–4, 168–9, 170–1 domains: national 91 Dray, S. 155 Dream Society 61 e-commerce 106, 112 economics 2 e-cooperation 62, 91 education 3, 79, 232; distance 86; Sweden 203; updating skills and knowledge 109 eEurope 18–19, 217–18 effective government 221–2 electricity 5 electronic government 223–4 electronics manufacturing 10 Eloranta, E. 21 employees 76–7; flexible work 73–4; participation in decision-making 24–5, 35; subjective work environment and 35; see also work environment employers: ICT and 200–1 engineers 3 entertainment technology 69, 71; interactive entertainment 103, 104 environment 224; environmental informatics 69, 70; see also life environment; private life; work environment equality: action on 203–4; gender and 232; see also digital divide ergonomics 23–4

Index • 261

ethical dimension 233 European Union 214, 215; eEurope 18–19, 217–18 exclusion from labour market: poor work environment and 37 experience economy 93 family 111; see also private life field studies: model of ICT and work environment 44–50 flexible work 73–4 fraud 124 future research 61–2 gender 213; equality 232; ICT use and 82 Giddens, Anthony 59, 60 global culture 107 global governance 231–2 Global Positioning System (GPS) 65 global villages 88–9, 130 globalization 22, 54, 60; home environment and 106–8 ‘glocalization’ 106 governance 231–2 government see national governments grid computing 71 Habermas, Jürgen 59 Haims, M. C. 23 health: information 233; psychosomatic illness 37; Swedish National Board of Occupation Safety and Health 202; Telehealth project 147–8; see also stress home environment: background and purpose of study 96–7; convergence model of ICT and 128–9; design of home of the future 114–15; driving factors of ICT in 123–4; globalization and 106–8; human needs and behaviour 101–2; hypotheses of study 98–101; ICT in 3–4, 26–7, 95–129; information management centre (IMC) in 125; integration of professional and private roles 26–7; interactive entertainment 103, 104; interview

structure 98; Japanese study 117–25; kitchens 105; localization and 106–8; as marketplace 115; metamediaries and 103–4; methods of study 97–8; new housing environments 108; online services in 102, 103; opposing factors hindering ICT in 121–3; paperless home 105–6; private life 111–15, 116; problems 97; smart home technology 100–1; virtual companionship 104–5; virtual home 113–14; work and 108–10, 111, 127 Hotspot Laponia project 145–6 housework 124; robots and 104 human needs 101–2, 234; stress and 174 human rights 231, 234 humanization 91, 230–1 identity 82; multiple identities 210 individuals 33, 79, 204–5; actions regarding stress 213; autonomy 22–3, 62, 90; competitiveness 34; future research on effects on 61–2; individualism 210 industrial injuries: poor work environment and 37 inequalities see digital divide infopreneurship 109 informatics 3, 13–15, 28, 69–70, 72; community informatics 142–3; intellectual capital perspectives 17–18 information and communications technology (ICT) 15–16, 28; characteristics of IT information flows 154; characteristics of IT network interactions 153–4; functions 153; see also individual topics information management centre (IMC) 125 information processing 69–70 information society 18–19, 30, 217, 225; international IT policy 217–19; theories on 58–61 infrastructure 70–1; Sweden 220

262 • Index

insurance industry 10; field studies for model of ICT and work environment 45–50 integration 62, 90; professional and private roles 26–7 intellectual capital 17–18 interactive entertainment 103, 104 interfaces 67–8, 113–14 international IT policy 217–19 Internet 81–2; architecture and infrastructure 70–1; continuous change and 73–6; e-commerce 112; fraud 124; governance 231–2; home environment and 102, 103; mobile see mobile communications and Internet; Net informatics 69, 70; Open.Net and open communication 143–7; privacy 124; stress and 84, 189, 191; web-based communities 107, 155, 162, 164–6 Internet Learning Centres (ILC) project 147 interviews 207–8 Italy: Slow Cities movement 150–1 Jansson, E. 161, 162, 166 Japan: communications in 124–5; home environment study 98, 117–25 Järvenpää, E. 21 Jensen, J. 61 job satisfaction 36 justice 151, 231 Kambara, M. 124–5 Keenan, J. 17, 156–7 kitchens 105 knowledge 232; transfer 85–6; updating 109 Krarup, G. 24 Laos: Internet Learning Centres (ILC) project 147; Remote IT Village project 146–7 learning: ICT and 86–8; see also education learning organizations 24–5; dynamics of change and power in 20–1 legislation 200

life environment 1, 30, 234; convergence model and 54, 56; future research 61; research 91–2; see also private life; work environment lifestyles 209–13 listening 156 Lyotard, J.-F. 60 Malaysia 116 management systems 67 marginalization: poor work environment and 37 Marx, Karl 37 mechatronics 65 media 233; Internet compared with 103; Sweden 201–2 metamediaries 103–4 Moberg, Wilhelm 132 mobile communications and Internet 26, 109, 113; Remote IT Village project 146–7; Sámi people 144–6 mobility: stress and 191 Moore’s Law 64 nanotechnology 65 national domains 91 national governments: agreements 200; computer policy 199–200; effective 221–2; electronic government 223–4; laws 200, 220–1; state committees 199–200 needs 101–2, 234; stress and 174 neo-Marxist theories 59 Net informatics 69, 70 networks 74; characteristics of IT network interactions 153–4; collaboration in network structures 83; Network of Excellence 27–8; participation in decision-making and 24–5; power and 74; psychosocial communication and 80–3 New Economy 111 nomadic computing 109 Nomura, S. 125 objective work environment 33, 34–5, 36, 39, 175, 177 online communities 107, 155, 162, 164–6

Index • 263

Open.Net and open communication 143–7 opportunities 210, 227 Organizational Design and Management (ODAM) Conference 12–13, 132, 217; communication circle 157–9 organizations 77–80; action at corporate level 208, 214; continuous change and 73–6; countering stress 214; organizational structure 35, 74, 77; see also work environment overstimulation 90, 174, 183, 194 pacemakers 66 paperless home 105–6 paperless offices 74, 105, 179 participation in decision-making 24–5, 35, 232 peace and e-cooperation 62, 91 Philips Electronic Industries: quality in communication at 159–60 Pihlajamäki, K. 156 policies: computer/IT policy in Sweden 199–200, 219–26; international IT policy 217–19; policy statements 62, 90–1 Post Office 10; field studies for model of ICT and work environment 44–5 postmodernism 60 power 21, 35, 203; networks and 74 printing 105–6 privacy: Internet and 124 private life 116; changes in 112–13; demographics and 111; objective conditions outside work 40–1, 51; poor work environment and 38 psychology: psychosocial processes as policy statements 62, 90–1; social 5–6; work environment and psychological variables 39, 51 psychosocial communication see communication psychosomatic illness: poor work environment and 37 public sector 225–6 public sphere 59 quality 234; in psychosocial

communication 159–60; quality of life for all 226–33; working life 21–4 questionnaires 207–8 Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) 66 regulation theory 59–60 Remote IT Village project 146–7 research 28, 61–2, 89–90, 232; Sweden 203 road informatics 69, 70 robots 104 roles 208–13 routine jobs 22 rural areas 112–13; ‘Computers in the Bakery’ project 132–4, 136–8, 141; Remote IT Village project 146–7; Sámi people 144–6; Telehealth project 147–8 safety 111, 114–15; Swedish National Board of Occupation Safety and Health 202 Sámi people: Hotspot Laponia project 145–6; SameNet project 144–5 Schiller, Herbert 59 second homes 112–13 security 111, 114–15; e-commerce 112 Selye, Hans 172 service sector: quality of working life in 23–4 Siegel, D. 155 Silicon Valley 13, 111 Singapore 25, 116 skills: conceptual skills 22; social skills 22; updating 109 Slow Cities movement 150–1 Snyder, C. 20, 21 social informatics 72, 234 social psychology 5–6 social skills 22 SOHO (small office/home office) 110 South Africa: Telehealth project 147–8 specialization 108 SPIDER project 149 Stanford University 13 stimulation: over- and understimulation 90, 174, 183, 194

264 • Index

Stockholm Challenge Award 147; Botswana Basket Weavers online 149; Telehealth project 147–8 strategy group 223 stress 172–7; actions regarding 213–17; batch-processing environment 180–2; coping with 177; corporate actions 214; future organizations 191–3; health and 193–4; ICT and 83–4, 90, 173, 179–96; individual actions 213; Internet and 84, 189, 191; mobility and 191; Net era 189–93; over- and understimulation and 90, 174, 183, 194; paper office and 179; research 178–9; society level actions 214–17; theoretical model 177–8; VDU terminals and 173, 182–8, 214; work environment and 36, 174–5, 177–8, 179–96 subjective work environment 33, 35–6, 39 surveillance 59 sustainability 79, 91; collaboration in distributed teams and 161–4, 168–9, 170–1; sustainable development 225 Sweden 117; action on equality 203–4; agreements 200; board for electronic government 223–4; Central Federation for Salaried Employees (TCO) 6, 8; Commissions 222; computer/IT policy 199–200, 219–26; data protection in 112; delegation for e-services 222–3; democracy group 224; education and research 203; effective government 221–2; environmental concerns 224; evaluation of computer/IT policy 224–6; global villages in 88; goals for IT 220; infrastructure 220; IT University 3; laws 200, 220–1; mass media 201–2; National Board of Occupation Safety and Health 202; public sector 225–6; state committees 199–200; strategy group 223; Swedish model 197; Umeå University 13–15; working parties 222; see also ‘Computers in the Bakery’ project

syntheses: research and 93 systems: achieving balanced system 23; complex systems 66–7; interfaces 67–8, 113–14; management systems 67; system-on-a-chip (SoC) 65 Tan, M. 25 target audience for book 2, 3–4 team work 22; collaboration in distributed teams 161–4, 168–9, 170–1 techno-stress 83, 189, 190 telematics 65 trade unions: ICT and 200–1; participation in decision-making 24–5 treasures 210, 212 trust 125, 162, 212, 225 ubiquitous computing (IT everywhere) 65–6 Umeå University 13–15 understimulation 90, 174, 183, 194 unemployment 111, 133 United States of America: data protection in 112; Silicon Valley 13, 111 universities 3 user interface 67–8, 113–14 Valenduc, G. 18 variety 22 Vatimo, J. 60 VDU terminals 202; stress and 173, 182–8, 214 violence: prevention of 234 virtual companionship 104–5 virtual home 113–14 virtual identities 66 virtual (online) communities 107, 155, 162, 164–6 virtual reality 54, 78 vision 234 visualization 68 Webster, Frank 58 welfare systems 79, 93 well-being: ICT and quality of working life and 21–3

Index • 265

women 7, 8; ICT use and 82 work environment 8, 10, 11, 212; achieving balanced system 23; checklists, questionnaires and interviews 207–8; competencies and 22; continuous change and 73–6; different levels 33–4; effects of good work environment 39; effects of poor work environment 36–9; field studies 44–50; home and 108–10, 111, 127; indices 241–50; measurement of concepts 41–4; model of ICT and 29, 30–52; objective 33, 34–5, 36, 39, 175, 177; objective conditions outside work 40–1, 51; psychological variables and 39, 51; requirements and preferences 205–7; research 91–2; service sector 23–4; stress and 36, 174–5, 177–8, 179–96; subjective 33, 35–6, 39; Swedish National Board of Occupation Safety and Health 202; well-being 21–3; see also ‘Computers in the Bakery’ project working parties 222 World Commission for Environment and Development 170 World IT Forum 6–7, 57, 229–30 World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) 219, 231–3 young people 233