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Transitions across work-life boundaries in a connected world: the case of social entrepreneurs

Abstract

Information and communication technologies (ICTs), including mobile technologies, have significant implications for the management of work-life balance (WLB) (e.g. Perrons, 2003) and thus for sustainable work practices within organizations and society at large. Boundary theory (Clark, 2000) argues that individuals maintain boundaries between role identities (e.g. parent, worker) within different social domains (e.g. family, work), and that they regularly have to transition between these domains. WLB may reflect the effectiveness of this transitioning. ICTs have significant implications for the management of these boundaries, particularly as they open up new areas for interaction through mobility and through the potential provision of a variety of easily available connections. In this paper, we report on the findings of 15 social entrepreneurs’ video and interview data. In particular, we explore and advance understanding of the individual experience of switching between roles and domains in relation to ICT use and connectivity

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