Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of figures
- List of tables
- List of cases
- List of contributors
- Acknowledgements
- 1 The individual in the changing working life: introduction
- Part I Threats and challenges
- Part II Individual attempts at restoring the balance
- Part III Intervention and promotion on the organizational level
- Index
- References
1 - The individual in the changing working life: introduction
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 13 October 2009
Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of figures
- List of tables
- List of cases
- List of contributors
- Acknowledgements
- 1 The individual in the changing working life: introduction
- Part I Threats and challenges
- Part II Individual attempts at restoring the balance
- Part III Intervention and promotion on the organizational level
- Index
- References
Summary
Working life has undergone changes since the 1990s that have entailed both threats and challenges for employees. While these transformations have resulted in advances and benefits for some employees, they have been experienced less positively by others. When examining these changes, it is therefore essential not only to focus on what has actually taken place, but also to take the perceptions of individuals into account. By expanding the knowledge of both the negative and positive aspects of working life from the individual's perspective, we can gain a better understanding of the nature of the changing working life. Such knowledge would help provide insight into individuals’ reactions and also aid in determining how different aspects of working life can be dealt with in the most positive way. The purpose of this book is to provide a step in this direction by focusing on how individuals react to the salient phenomena of contemporary working life, and how organizations can provide the most beneficial environment for their employees.
Working life in transition
Observers describing the emerging working life indicate that recent decades have been marked by a number of transitions (e.g. Burke and Nelson, 1998; Tetrick and Quick, 2003). These changes include technological advances that minimize the need for manual labor, improvements in information technology that maximize the accessibility and ease of communication, and expanding globalization that has made it possible for employees from different parts of the world to call each other colleagues.
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- The Individual in the Changing Working Life , pp. 1 - 16Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2008
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