Institutional explanations for managers’ attitudes towards telehomeworking

Human Relations · 2010 · Volume 63 · Issue 1

Abstract

Building on recent research that stresses the important role of managers in the adoption process of telehomeworking, or telecommuting, this study examines the influence of the institutional context on managers’ attitude formation. Drawing on large-scale survey data from 96 CEOs and 380 HR managers in Dutch organizations, we show that normative and mimetic pressures affect managers’ beliefs, which are reflected in their perceptions of the relative (dis)advantage of telehomeworking. We also find that the perceived improvements of work outcomes and perceived social costs/benefits vary among managers from different ‘occupational communities’. CEOs’ beliefs are more susceptible to mimetic pressures, while HR managers’ attitudes towards telehomeworking are positively fed by pressures from their occupational community. These findings support the view that current debates on work—life initiatives’ diffusion and organizational changes in relation to these initiatives should pay much more attention to the importance of the institutional environment and managers’ subcultures.

Keywords

cognition, institutional theory, management ideas and practices, subcultures, telecommuting, telework attitudes

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