GÖT_F_04 Cohesion in Digital Worlds of Work
Objectives/ Research Questions
Employment is in the process of a far-reaching digital transformation that directly affects not only company cohesion but also social cohesion. Digitization is leading to profound upheavals in the world of work. Far-reaching consequences of the digital revolution are predicted in terms of the effects of rationalization (job cuts or qualification requirements), polarization (winners and losers of digitization), and deregulation of labour (weakening the protection and position of employees). It is still unclear how these upheavals will affect social relations and company regulations.
Against this background, the project empirically investigates the question to what extent and in what form the transformation of work in the digital upheaval (fragmentation, virtualization, data-based competitive comparisons, polarization, etc.) affects meso-social (organizational and institutional) practices as well as micro-social (individual and group) practices of cohesion and confrontation in companies, including changes in terms of inclusion/exclusion and lines of division.
In addition to the analysis of the consequences for the corporate and work-related social fabric, the study also includes the spillover effects on the private and social spheres. These effects will be investigated along two research questions. First, to what extent do changes in the work environment influence micro-social practices of cohesion in the private sphere (family, friends, and neighbours) and in the social sphere (volunteering, political, or social engagement)? Second, whether and to what extent do spillover effects on these spheres in turn find consideration at the meso-level of organizational and institutional corporate action?
The project is based on a qualitative research design, which is based on a content-analytical evaluation of interview transcripts and relevant documents with reference to the relevant secondary literature. The investigation consists of exemplary case studies in five companies or operational areas, which cover different phenomena of digitally organized and structured work, for example virtual and changing project work or crowd-sourcing, internal social media platforms, highly controlled and digitally Taylorized work, and self-determined work with high degrees of freedom regarding place and time. At least one operational case study should take place in a jointly selected region of the empirical projects applied for by the Soziologische Forschungsinstitut Goettingen (SOFI) in order to enable integrated evaluation and joint transfer activities. In the selected companies or company areas, guided topic- and problem-centred interviews with management, work councils, and employees will be conducted, with the latter also in group interviews.
Thematic Reference to Social Cohesion
Contemporary societies are work societies. Work and employment represent a central mechanism of social integration. They determine the economic and material position in the social structure, social status, and social recognition. At the same time, the employment relationship is a social relationship that is experienced and lived through. Companies are social spaces and thus experiential spaces of the practice of cohesion and conflict (around questions of recognition, distribution, participation, and shaping). In addition, the work and employment situation has an impact on everyday life and the family situation and shapes the possibilities and limits of (voluntary) social commitment.
The current digital revolution is linked to fundamental changes in work processes, occupational structures, business models, and competitive structures. Professional competencies are being questioned, and fields of activity are being reorganized. Uncertainties not only among employees (in view of the threat of devaluation of their previous work experience and qualifications, combined with fears of being left behind or overburdened) but also in management are already observable today.
Work and employment are in the process of a far-reaching digital transformation, which, in all likelihood, will directly affect not only company cohesion but also social cohesion.
