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Constant connectivity: rethinking interruptions at work

Wajcman, Judy and Rose, Emily (2011) Constant connectivity: rethinking interruptions at work. Organization Studies, 32 (7). pp. 941-961. ISSN 0170-8406

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Identification Number: 10.1177/0170840611410829

Abstract

While the subject of interruptions has received considerable attention among organizational researchers, the pervasive presence of information and communication technologies has not been adequately conceptualized. Here we consider the way knowledge workers interact with these technologies. We present fine-grained data that reveal the crucial role of mediated communication in the fragmentation of the working day. These mediated interactions, which are both frequent and short, have been commonly viewed as interruptions — as if the issue is the frequency of these single, isolated events. In contrast, we argue that knowledge workers inhabit an environment where communication technologies are ubiquitous, presenting simultaneous, multiple and ever-present calls on their attention. Such a framing employs a sociomaterial approach which reveals how contemporary knowledge work is itself a complex entanglement of social practices and the materiality of technical artefacts. Our findings show that employees engage in new work strategies as they negotiate the constant connectivity of communication media.

Item Type: Article
Official URL: http://oss.sagepub.com/
Additional Information: © 2011 SAGE Publications
Divisions: Sociology
LSE Cities
Subjects: H Social Sciences > HM Sociology
Date Deposited: 29 Jun 2011 12:28
Last Modified: 13 Apr 2024 03:15
URI: http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/37152

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