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Paper short abstract:

Workplaces increasingly utilize smartphone apps to improve health, safety and wellbeing. Our study examines the multiple logics that organizations orient towards to guide their decisions of use/non-use. The identified logics are individualization, democratization, resource-optimization, and fashion.

Paper long abstract:

The proliferation and utilization of smartphone apps designed to improve occupational health, safety, and wellbeing (OHS&W) has increased in recent years. Despite this surge, there is a paucity of research exploring the reasons for adoption of such apps, leaving a gap in our understanding of the motivations behind organizations' decisions to integrate these apps into their work processes.

To unravel the motivations and decision-making processes related to the use of OHS&W apps, we conducted an interview study involving ten qualitative interviews with key stakeholders in medium to large organizations, ranging from 150 to 130,000 employees across diverse sectors. The analysis employed a bottom-up approach, drawing on socio-material theory (Orlikowski 2007, Latour 1992) and institutional logics (Jones et al., 2013) to inform a thematic analysis of the interview data.

In the study, we find that organizations orient themselves towards multiple logics to guide their decisions to implement and use OSH&W apps. Or conversely discontinue their use of apps. These include logics of individualization, democratization, resource-optimization, and fashion. The four logics are intrinsically linked to perceptions of what constitutes a 'good organization' and a 'good work environment’, and also interlink and intertwine in the narratives provided by the informants. Examining the contested nature of these logics provides valuable insights into the reasons behind the adoption or rejection of OHS&W apps, shedding light on the diverse perspectives within the professional landscape and the evolving nature of the work environment influenced by technology.’