Workplace Information Research Articles

Association of information technology ability, workplace social engagement, and successful ageing: validation of a short measure with three African samples

This study examined the association of workplace social engagement (WSE) and information technology ability (ITA) with successful ageing and validated a brief scale measuring WSE. The interaction of WSE and ITA on successful ageing was also assessed. A cross-sectional design was adopted, and the participants were 1186 older adults living in Kenya (n = 350), Nigeria (n = 260), and Ghana (n = 576). Pearson’s correlation and factor analyses of two datasets (i.e., waves 1 and 2) from the sample were utilised to validate the WSE scale. Hierarchical linear regression analyses with relevant sensitivity analyses were utilised to assess the associations with wave 2 data. The WSE scale produced satisfactory psychometric properties (i.e., reliability and validity) as a unidimensional measure. WSE and ITA were positively associated with successful ageing in Kenya and Ghana and in the consolidated data. The interaction between WSE and ITA was positively associated with successful ageing and its domains (i.e., illness avoidance, functioning, and engagement with life) in Kenya, Ghana, and consolidated data. At higher ITA or the use of information technologies, WSE is less strongly associated with successful ageing. WSE is more strongly associated with successful ageing only at moderate ITA.

Isolated, individualised, and immobilised: information behaviour in the context of academic casualisation

Introduction. Universities rely increasingly on contract academic staff for teaching and research activities; yet, working in precarious conditions, these staff face significant challenges in finding relevant workplace information, in engaging with colleagues, and in building their careers. This study examines contract academic staff perceptions of precarity and workplace marginalisation, focusing on the implications of situational and environmental influences on their information practices. Method. In-depth, semi-structured interviews with 34 contract academic staff, working in various disciplines across Canadian universities, were conducted to examine their information practices. Analysis. Interview data were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis, drawing on everyday life information seeking and information marginalisation theories. Results. Results of the study show that 1) contract academic staff conduct their work within isolated information environments; 2) this isolation leads these staff to develop highly individualised information practices; and 3) the information activities of contract academic staff are often immobilised, due to the precarious contexts that shape their work and personal lives. Conclusion. Precarious employment and information marginalisation are deeply entwined for contract academic staff. This results in frustration, disappointment, and uncertainty with their work and personal circumstances. Institutional challenges can seem intractable, particularly where task-related information provision (when available) cannot address systemic concerns.

Searching for people in the workplace: aims, behaviour, and challenges

Introduction. People have been shown to play an important role in solving search tasks in professional settings. Searching for a person covers a large part of the information retrieval carried out in the workplace. However, it can be challenging to identify relevant people through a query. Thus, to support workplace users, knowledge of the characteristics of people searches is needed to identify which steps can be taken to ease the retrieval process. Method. This study examined the characteristics of people searching in a biotechnology company based on a mixed-methods process consisting of search log data from an in-house enterprise system, a questionnaire survey, and semi-structured interviews with users of the enterprise system. Results. The findings showed that people search accounted for 59.5% of all queries in the search log. Log data and questionnaire data were analysed to determine how the queries were distributed across organisational areas and information sources. The interview data provided insight into how people search was used for locating people and expertise and as part of exploratory, complex subject searches. Challenges in searching for people were also discussed in the interviews. The findings were used to discuss the implications for future workplace information systems.

Workplace digitalization and workload: changes and reciprocal relations across 3 years

This article reports the results of a 33-wave longitudinal study of changes in, and reciprocal relations between, workplace digitalization and workload. Monthly data were collected between April 2020 and December 2022 from n = 1661 employees in Germany. Based on theoretical models of workplace information and communication technology use, stress, and coping, we hypothesized both positive and negative within-person effects of digitalization on workload, and vice versa. Results of an autoregressive latent trajectory model with structured residuals (ALT-SR) showed on-average positive linear trajectories in digitalization, but not in workload over time. Moreover, higher digitalization was associated with subsequently higher levels of workload, and vice versa. This pattern of results suggests a dynamic, reciprocal process wherein positive deviations from one’s average trajectory of digitalization (workload) are associated with subsequently higher levels of workload (digitalization). We additionally find evidence for linear trends in these within-person processes, suggesting that the strength of the within-person effects of digitalization on workload, and of workload on digitalization, becomes more strongly positive over time. Practitioners developing work design interventions could focus on ways to reduce the detrimental impact of digitalization on increased workload, while simultaneously encouraging the potential of digitalization to help employees cope effectively with their workload.

Impact of Work Environment on Job Satisfaction among Interventional Radiologists in Japan: A Cross-sectional Study.

This study aims to measure job satisfaction among interventional radiology physicians in Japan and analyze the factors affecting job satisfaction. A web-based survey was conducted among the members of the Japanese Society of Interventional Radiology between October and December 2021. Participants were questioned regarding their job satisfaction, workplace, work status, and demographic information. Principal component analysis was applied to 15 reasons related to job satisfaction, and the factors affecting job satisfaction were analyzed. Valid responses were obtained from 901 (31.9%) of the 2,824 interventional radiology physicians invited to participate. Job satisfaction was reported as "very satisfied" in 79 (8.8%), "moderately satisfied" in 426 (47.3%), "neither satisfied nor dissatisfied" in 230 (25.5%), "moderately dissatisfied" in 133 (14.8%), and "very dissatisfied" in 33 (3.7%) respondents. Thus, there were 505 (56.0%) satisfied physicians. Three principal components were extracted from the reasons for job satisfaction. Job satisfaction tended to be higher among those who reported performing a higher number of interventional radiology procedures and was positively associated with a higher rate of work time dedicated to interventional radiology and the first principal component (the environment of clinical practice, research, and interventional radiology education). The third principal component (salary and work environment) and the absence of an "IkuBoss" [a boss who takes initiative in creating a work environment supportive of the work-life balance of colleagues] were associated with lower job satisfaction. More than half the participants reported high job satisfaction. Job satisfaction of interventional radiology physicians in Japan was positively associated with a favorable clinical, research, and educational environment and negatively associated with the absence of an "IkuBoss," noninterventional radiology work, overtime work, and salary.

Comparative Study of Exposure Assessment of Dust in Building Materials Enterprises Using ART and Monte Carlo

BackgroundDust generated during the processing of building materials enterprises can pose a serious health risk. The study aimed to compare and analyze the results of ART and the Monte Carlo model for the dust exposure assessment in building materials enterprises, to derive the application scope of the two models. MethodsFirst, ART and the Monte Carlo model were used to assess the exposure to dust in each of the 15 building materials enterprises. Then, a comparative analysis of the exposure assessment results was conducted. Finally, the model factors were analyzed using correlation analysis and the scope of application of the models was determined. ResultsThe results show that ART is mainly influenced by four factors, namely, localized controls, segregation, dispersion, surface contamination, and fugitive emissions, and applies to scenarios where the workplace information of the building materials enterprises is specific and the average dust concentration is greater than or equal to 1.5 mg/m3. The Monte Carlo model is mainly influenced by the dust concentration in the workplace of building materials enterprises and is suitable for scenarios where the dust concentration in the workplace of the building materials enterprises is relatively uniform and the average dust concentration is less than or equal to 6mg/m3. ConclusionART is most accurate when workplace information is specific and average dust concentration is > 1.5 mg/m3; whereas, The Monte Carlo model is the best when dust concentration is homogeneous and average dust concentration is < 6 mg/m3.

A longitudinal investigation of structural empowerment profiles among healthcare employees.

Research on structural empowerment has typically adopted a variable-centered perspective, which is not ideal to study the combined effects of structural empowerment components. This person-centered investigation aims to enhance our knowledge about the configurations, or profiles, of healthcare employees' perceptions of the structural empowerment dimensions present in their workplace (opportunity, information, support, and resources). Furthermore, this study considers the replicability and stability of these profiles over a period of 2 years, and their outcomes (perceived quality of care, and positive and negative affect). Participants completed the same self-reported questionnaires twice, 2 years apart. A sample of 633 healthcare employees (including a majority of nurses and nursing assistants) participated. Latent transition analyses were performed. Five profiles were identified: Low Empowerment, High Information, Normative, Moderately High Empowerment, and High Empowerment. Membership into the Normative and Moderately High Empowerment profiles demonstrated a high level of stability over time (79.1% to 83.2%). Membership in the other profiles was either moderately stable (43.5% for the High Empowerment profile) or relatively unstable (19.7% to 20.4% for the Low Empowerment and High Information profiles) over time. More desirable outcomes (i.e., higher positive affect and quality of care, and lower negative affect) were observed in the High Empowerment profile. These results highlight the benefits of high structural empowerment, in line with prior studies suggesting that structural empowerment can act as a strong organizational resource capable of enhancing the functioning of healthcare professionals. These findings additionally demonstrate that profiles characterized by the highest or lowest levels of structural empowerment were less stable over time than those characterized by more moderate levels. From an intervention perspective, organizations and managers should pay special attention to employees perceiving low levels of structural empowerment, as they experience the worst outcomes. In addition, they should try to maintain high levels of structural empowerment within the High Empowerment profile, as this profile is associated with the most desirable consequences. Such attention should be fruitful, considering the instability of the High Empowerment and Low Empowerment profiles over time. NCT04010773 on ClinicalTrials.gov (4 July, 2019).

Workplace learning and information exchange among gig workers: crowdsourcing and the social media advantage

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to understand the scope and nature of information sharing as a form of workplace learning among gig workers.Design/methodology/approachData were collected from public social media communities of gig workers in Thailand. In total, 338 posts and 3,022 comments on the posts were analyzed (data corpus N = 3,360). Thailand was selected for the context of this study given its high level of social media penetration, a high percentage of digital service consumption of internet users and the prevalence of app-based gig workers. This study used thematic analysis using inductive and semantic coding to generate themes.FindingsFindings showed two overarching themes of information sharing, which included on-the-job experience and inquiries. One surprising finding was the extent to which gig workers used social media to help others even when it potentially undermined their success.Research limitations/implicationsThis study adds evidence to the role of information sharing in workplace learning and illustrates how gig workers who do not have access to traditional training and learning opportunities use social media communities to fill this need.Originality/valueGiven the surge of digitalization and internet infrastructure leading to the rise of gig work worldwide, this study provides a closer look at how gig workers are using social media communities to facilitate workplace learning and support one another amid otherwise difficult and insecure working conditions. It also discusses the role that culture plays in facilitating a cooperative rather than a competitive environment among drivers.

Workplace information literacy in context: scale development and validation

Workplace information literacy in context: scale development and validation

Academic Casualization, Precarity, and Information Practices: Initial Findings

ABSTRACTThere is increasing recognition of the challenges academics working on short‐term contracts experience, as well as universities' increasing reliance on their labor. While discussions of these issues have expanded, there is a lack of empirical research around the information experiences of contract academic staff. This poster reports on initial findings of a qualitative research project that interviewed 34 contract academic staff (CAS) from across Canada, exploring institutional provisions of information, information practices in the workplace, and how marginalization and social inclusion influence workplace information practices. We present preliminary findings in three themes: precarity and uncertainty necessitate holistic and situational understandings, exclusion and isolation are enacted and experienced on many levels, and uncertainty as a barrier to investment and furthering careers, exploring what these findings mean for contract academic staff members.

Workplace socioeconomic characteristics and coronary heart disease: a nationwide follow-up study

ObjectivesImportant gaps in previous research include a lack of studies on the association between socioeconomic characteristics of the workplace and coronary heart disease (CHD).We aimed to examine two contextual factors...

Workplace learning and information literacy in the Kente-weaving landscape

This study investigates how workplace learning is enacted to make a novice Kente (a hand-woven fabric in Ghana) weaver information literate in the Kente-weaving landscape. Ethnography was used as the research design. Interview and participant observation were used as the data collection methods. For the interview, semi-structured interview techniques were used to solicit information from all three levels of weavers (Master, junior and novice weavers) in Bonwire Kente Centre in Ghana. Out of the 62 weavers at the Bonwire Kente Centre, 24 weavers representing 8 each from each level of weavers were purposively chosen. The findings of this study show learning is enacted to make a novice Kente weaver information literate of the Kente-weaving craft by the affordance of guidance provision, conversations, observation and learning by doing. This study contributes to the information literacy literature and workplace learning that learning and becoming information literate do not relate solely to the cognitive activities of the mind, but also to the body through the affordance of the workplace.

Critical workplace information literacy

In this paper, the author explores the prospect of, and the rationale for, the critical workplace information literacy (CWIL) construct, by situating it at the junction of critical information literacy (CIL) and workplace information literacy (WIL), the two hitherto discrete frameworks and subdomains of information literacy (IL). This preliminary attempt at the conceptualisation of a new construct was guided by the question of what role CIL can play in empowering workers to attain decent work. The author frames the conceptualisation around the ‘decent work’ (DW) concept, as a normative goal of the critical workplace information literacy construct, and discusses the rationale for it in the framework of the discussion on the decent work deficits in the contemporary work and information environment. Freire’s critical hermeneutics and dialectics of voice and empowerment are drawn upon. The paper argues positively for the role of CIL in attaining decent work and for the need for a new construct that would help fill the knowledge and discursive gap in IL and its subdomains and overcome the current silos in the IL community. The author concludes that developing a concept requires a broad deliberative process informed by both theoretical and empirical research, and gives suggestions for future research.

Credibility and trust of information privacy at the workplace in Slovakia. The use of intuition

PurposeEmployees may feel overwhelmed with information privacy choices and have difficulties understanding what they are committing to in the digital workplace. This paper aims to analyze the role of different thinking styles for effort reduction, such as the use of intuition, when employees make decisions about the credibility and trustworthiness of workplace information privacy issues in Slovakia. While the General Data Protection Regulation sets precise requirements for valid consent, organizations are classified as data controllers and are subject to credibility judgments by their employees.Design/methodology/approachData was collected from 230 employees in Slovakia using a survey questionnaire. Quantitative analysis using SPSS was conducted to describe employees thinking preferences when judging the credibility of information privacy in their organizations.FindingsThe survey participants revealed their perceived credibility and trust in personal data protection and thinking preferences. Unconscious thinking is the type of effort reduction often reported by participants, who perceive high credibility and trust in personal data protection. This study can help managers and data controllers in small- and medium-sized enterprises in reflecting about the way in which people use different thinking processes for decision-making about information privacy in their organizations.Research limitations/implicationsThis study set out to explore how decision-making processes at the workplace relate to credibility of data practices. Focusing on the use of different types of intuition, the authors explored whether the preference for a specific decision-making style can explain the perceived credibility of data practices. The part of the workforce in the sample did not have a strict predisposition to use either intuitive or rational thinking.Practical implicationsThe contribution provides scholars with an overview of the field of intuition, a field that is likely to grow given the challenges of digitalization for organizations, such as shitstorms, cyberattacks and whistleblowing.Originality/valueThe most well-known concepts from intuition research, e.g. the dual process theory, and practice are tested simultaneously, therewith contributing to the applied literature on domain-specific preferences for intuition and deliberation in decision-making.

지체장애 특수학교 급식의 학생 식생활 개선 전략 분석

This study analyzes diet improvement strategies for students enrolled in special schools for the physically disabled. Six special schools for physical disabilities at the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education were selected for the study. An electronic survey was conducted from November 14 to November 27, 2022, enrolling 107 special school teachers and 227 parents as study subjects. The questionnaire for special school teachers comprised 32 questions related to demographic information of the teachers, workplace information, and diet improvement strategies for students in special schools for the physically disabled. The questionnaire for parents consisted of 36 questions related to the demographic information of parents and students, characteristics of the student’s disability, and diet improvement strategies for students enrolled in special schools. Diet improvement strategies were alphanumeric coded according to the ICF-CY coding guidelines, and frequency analysis and independent samples t-test were conducted for statistical analysis. The significance level of the statistics was 0.05, as determined by a two-tailed test. Results of this study indicate that it is possible to identify diet improvement strategies that can be applied preferentially to meals at special schools for the physically disabled. This is the first study that applied the ICF-CY Framework to school food services and coded the diet improvement strategies for students in special schools into an alphanumeric coding system. This study is meaningful since it provides information expressed in a standardized common language that can be applied in various fields related to the health of students with physical disabilities as well as school meals. These results could also find an application as basic data for the diet of people with brain lesions such as cerebral palsy, and the management and policy of food services for other disabilities.

Fractured academic space: digital literacy and the COVID-19 pandemic

PurposeThe study focussed on information literacy practices, specifically on how higher education staff managed the transition from established and routinised in-person teaching, learning and working practices to institutionally mandated remote or hybrid working patterns during the COVID-19 pandemic.Design/methodology/approachThe qualitative study forms part of a broader research project, examining how information literacy and information practices unfolded during the COVID-19 pandemic. Phase Three of this project, which forms the subject of this paper, employed semi-structured interviews to explore the impact of COVID-19 on the workplace and, in particular, the role that technology and digital literacy plays in enabling or constraining information literacy practices necessary for the operationalisation of work.FindingsThe complexities of the COVID-19 pandemic precipitated a fracturing of workplace information environments and worker information landscapes by disrupting all aspects of academic life. The study recognises that whilst the practice of information literacy is predicated on access to modalities of information, this practice is also shaped by material conditions. This has implications for digital literacy which, in attempting to set itself apart from information literacy practice, has negated the significant role that the body and the corporeal modality play as important sources of information that enable transition to occur. In relation to information resilience, the bridging concept of fracture has enabled the authors to consider the informational impact of crisis and transition on people's information experiences and people's capacity to learn to go on when faced with precarity. The concept of grief is introduced into the analysis.Originality/valueThis study presents original research.

The ANZ hernia repair practices study: low consensus on inguinal and small ventral hernia management and infrequent long-term follow-up.

The ANZ hernia repair practices study: low consensus on inguinal and small ventral hernia management and infrequent long-term follow-up.

Information literacy and relation to workplace: a review of the literature

Purpose This study provides a critical review of the literature on information literacy in the workplace and its relevant issues. The purpose of this study is to examine two elements: how the predominantly academic information literacy is experienced in the workplace; and review how academically based information literacy frameworks can be used to increase performance in the workplace. Design/methodology/approach A critical approach to information literacy was implemented for the introduction and background information by searching for scholarly publications referring to information literacy and information literacy in the workplace. Overall, 65 published articles in English were selected and found suitable. Findings According to the existing literature, very few frameworks tailored to specific workplaces have been discovered and were all found to be pertinent to academic settings that included researchers. The review revealed the perceived positive role of information literacy in raising work performance. The paper concludes that the benefit for information literate employees and employers is apparent, but those differences in academic information literacy and workplace information literacy are significant. Originality/value Information literacy frameworks for the workplace, when used, are still heavily reliant on the educational sector and need to be further researched in order for them to adequately address specific workplace contexts and their socially collaborative information literacy activities.

Can home care work be organized to promote musculoskeletal health for workers? Study protocol for the Norwegian GoldiCare cluster randomized controlled trial

BackgroundHome care workers perform physically strenuous tasks, in particular when handling patients with high care demands. Thus, musculoskeletal pain and sick leave is greater in this group than in the general population. To ease these issues, we will implement a Goldilocks Work intervention (GoldiCare), redistributing schedules between workers to achieve a “just right” weekly structure of physical work that can promote health. This protocol paper describes the content, design, implementation and evaluation of the cluster randomized controlled trial of the GoldiCare intervention in home care.MethodsThe cluster randomized controlled trial is a 16-week workplace organizational intervention implemented through operations managers at the home care units. The operations managers will be introduced to the Goldilocks Work Principle and a GoldiCare tool, to assist the operations managers when composing a “just right” distribution of work schedules throughout the week. The GoldiCare tool provides an overview of the physical strain for each shift, based on the number of patients and their need for care. We expect to include 11 units, which will be randomized to either intervention or control at a 1:1 ratio. Home care workers assigned to the control group will continue to work as normal during the intervention period. Musculoskeletal pain in neck/shoulder and lower back will be the primary outcomes and we will also evaluate the composition of physical behaviors as well as fatigue after work as secondary outcomes. We will collect data using (1) daily questions regarding musculoskeletal pain and fatigue after work, (2) 7 days of objective measurements of physical behavior, (3) questionnaires about the participant’s characteristics, health, and workplace psychosocial stressors and (4) information on the implementation of the GoldiCare tool. In addition, a process evaluation will be conducted using focus group discussions and individual interviews.DiscussionDue to the increasing aging population in need of care, measures that can improve the health of home care workers are paramount for the sustainability of this sector. This organizational intervention is based on information available nation-wide, and therefore has the potential to be scaled to all municipalities in Norway if proven effective.Trial registrationThis clinical trial was registered on 08/05/2022 under NCT05487027.

Burnout syndrome among frontline doctors of secondary and tertiary care hospitals of Bangladesh during COVID-19 pandemic.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, healthcare workers had a high workload and were exposed to multiple psychosocial stressors. However, a knowledge gap exists about the levels of burnout among Bangladeshi frontline doctors during this COVID-19 pandemic. The study investigated burnout syndrome (BOS) among frontline doctors in two public secondary and tertiary care hospitals in Chattogram, Bangladesh. This cross-sectional study involved frontline doctors working at two hospitals treating COVID-19 and non-COVID patients from June to August 2020. A self-administered questionnaire that included Maslach Burnout Inventory for Human Services Survey (MBI-HSS) was used to capture demographic and workplace environment information. ANOVA and t-test were used to determine the statistical differences in the mean values of the three dimensions of MBI-HSS. Scores for three domains of burnout: emotional exhaustion (EE), depersonalization (DP), and personal accomplishment (PA) were calculated. Post-hoc analysis was done to identify the significant pair-wise differences when the ANOVA test result was significant. Multiple logistic regression was performed to determine the influence of factors associated with BOS. A total of 185 frontline doctors were invited to participate by convenience sampling, and 168 responded. The response rate was 90.81%. The overall prevalence of BOS was 55.4% (93/168) (95% CI: 47.5% to 63.0%). Moderate to high levels of EE was found in 95.8% of the participants. High DP and reduced PA were observed in 98.2% and 97% of participants. Younger age (25-29 years), being female, and working as a medical officer were independently associated with high levels of burnout in all three domains. EE was significantly higher in females (P = 0.011). DP was significantly higher in medical officers, those at earlier job periods, and those working more than 8 hours per day. During the COVID-19 outbreak, BOS was common among Bangladeshi frontline doctors. Females, medical officers, and younger doctors tended to be more susceptible to BOS. Less BOS was experienced when working in the non-COVID ward than in the mixed ward.