Would you like to participate in research on the productivity of hybrid work and be part of a change towards a new kind of working life? Many workplaces are experimenting with new ways to combine remote and office work – i.e., hybrid work. Perceptions of this type of work vary, and prejudices exist too. The research project “The Visibilities and Invisibilities of Hybrid Work: Productivity in the Spaces of (Post-)Pandemic Knowledge Work” will examine employee and employer experiences of hybrid work and develop good practices for Finnish hybrid work. Of particular interest are the lived spaces of this kind of work and their significance in daily hybrid work.
If you a) conducted most of your work remotely during the pandemic, b) still conduct more remote work than before the pandemic and c) work in an employment relationship, you are the kind of research participant I am looking for. You can work and live anywhere in Finland. As for your role in the research, you will be asked to give one interview, either face to face or remotely, in which your experiences of hybrid work and your future expectations concerning your work and its spaces will be discussed. The interview will include some general background questions (age, gender, etc.). I hope to interview you while you are in your remote workspace. The interview will last roughly 45 minutes to an hour. In addition, I ask you to provide me with a photo of an important remote workspace of yours and a short description of the meaning of that space in your work. There are no other restrictions to the photo. The interviews and the collection of photos will take place in the autumn of 2023. The research will be conducted with full confidentiality, and its results will be reported without identifying information.
In return for research participation, the participants will get a summary of preliminary research results, and a personal follow-up discussion on the results remotely/over the phone if they so wish.
This research targets three different knowledge work industries: software development, graphic design and municipal psychology/psychotherapy services. By participating in this research, you will help develop the working conditions and culture of your industry. I hope to recruit a total of 45 employees (15 from each industry) for the research. I will also interview nine employer representatives, three from each industry.
This research will be conducted at the Faculty of Social Sciences, Tampere University, and funded by the Finnish Work Environment Fund. The research will take place from 1 August 2023 to 31 July 2024.
If the above caught your interest, please do not hesitate to contact me promptly! I will be happy to provide more information on the research.
Wishing you a joyous and productive autumn,
Hanne Vesala
Postdoctoral researcher, DSocSci
Faculty of Social Sciences
Tampere University
hanne.vesala@tuni.fi, tel. 040 5554563
The conduct, confidentiality and anonymity of the research
The interviews will be recorded in audio format only. Participation in the research is always voluntary. All the information given for the research will be treated confidentially and stored securely. The research information will be reported without any details that could allow the research participants or their workplaces to be identified. Two scientific articles will be published as the outcome of the research project. Photos may be published as part of scientific publications. The research data without identifying information will be offered to the Finnish Social Science Data Archive after the research project for permanent archiving. The Data Archive can provide research data for its registered customers for research purposes and for upper-level theses. Further information on the data security, execution of the research and the Research Privacy Notice are available from Hanne Vesala, who also acts as the register holder of the research project.