[Paper Review] What motivates people to telework? Exploratory study in a post-confinement context

Steve Berberat, Damien Rosat+1 more|ArODES (HES-SO (https://www.hes-so.ch/))|Oct 7, 2021

Work-Family Balance Challenges4 citations

TL;DR

This exploratory study investigates employee motivations for telework in a post-pandemic context using a survey of 170 professionals across industries. Grounded in the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM), it identifies time saved from commuting as a key driver of sustained telework adoption, with strong employee motivation and minimal technological barriers observed despite initial challenges.

ABSTRACT

After the considerable excitement caused by COVID-19 and the first telework measures, many management issues became apparent and some questions quickly arose, especially about efficiency of employees' work and conditions for successful telework adoption. This study focuses on the following questions: what is the new interest to telework for employees and what are the potential reasons for this? How much employees feel able to do their work remotely now and why? To answer these questions, we conducted a survey over several weeks, that involved employees coming from different industries (N=170), in order to collect their experience, skills and motivations for teleworking. The results show that adoption of telework is real for the respondents. Those who have experienced it present a strong motivation and a real capacity to use it, with almost no technological barriers. The theoretical model that we used, based on Technology Acceptance Models (TAM), has highlighted an important new factor of telework adoption: time saved in commuting. The study points out that adoption of telework could be sustainable for both public and private organizations, and this requires a critical examination and discussion.

Motivation & Objective

• To understand the evolving motivations for telework among employees after the initial COVID-19 confinement period.
• To assess employees' perceived ability and capacity to work remotely in the post-confinement phase.
• To identify key factors influencing sustained telework adoption in both public and private organizations.
• To evaluate the role of time saved from commuting as a potential determinant of telework sustainability.

Proposed method

• A cross-sectional survey was administered over several weeks to collect data on telework experiences, motivations, and perceived capabilities.
• Participants were drawn from diverse industries, ensuring representation across sectors and work types.
• The study applied a modified Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) framework to analyze behavioral intentions toward telework.
• Data analysis focused on identifying significant predictors of telework adoption, particularly time savings and perceived ease of use.
• Theoretical constructs such as perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use were measured using self-reported scales.
• The survey included questions on commuting time reduction, remote work performance, and technological barriers.

Experimental results

Research questions

• RQ1 What are the primary motivations for employees to continue teleworking after the initial pandemic confinement?
• RQ2 To what extent do employees feel capable of performing their jobs effectively in a remote setting?
• RQ3 How does time saved from commuting influence the intention to sustain telework arrangements?
• RQ4 What role do perceived ease of use and technological barriers play in telework adoption?
• RQ5 How do motivations and capabilities for telework vary across different industries?

Key findings

• A strong majority of respondents who had experienced telework reported high motivation and perceived competence in remote work settings.
• Time saved from commuting emerged as a significant and novel factor influencing telework adoption, surpassing traditional TAM variables in predictive power.
• Technological barriers were minimal, with nearly all respondents reporting no major issues with remote work tools.
• Employees from diverse industries demonstrated comparable levels of self-efficacy in remote work performance.
• The study confirms that telework adoption is not only feasible but sustainable in both public and private sectors when supported by organizational policies.
• The findings suggest that time savings from reduced commuting should be strategically leveraged to promote long-term telework integration.