The use of enterprise social networks for social support within virtual teams

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dc.contributor.advisorLe Roux, Daniel Bartholomeusen_ZA
dc.contributor.advisorParry, Douglas A.en_ZA
dc.contributor.authorHenry, Michael Stephenen_ZA
dc.contributor.otherStellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Information Science.en_ZA
dc.date.accessioned2023-07-27T15:04:17Z
dc.date.accessioned2024-01-08T11:15:57Z
dc.date.available2023-07-27T15:04:17Z
dc.date.available2024-01-08T11:15:57Z
dc.date.issued2023-12
dc.descriptionThesis (PhD)--Stellenbosch University, 2023. en_ZA
dc.description.abstractENGLISH SUMMARY: Communication within organisations has become increasingly virtual, and this increased virtuality has brought more opportunities for distributed work. At the team level, increased distributedness resulted in virtual teams – teams separated by geographic and/or temporal distance. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, virtual teams have become increasingly common and, as a result, there exists a need to understand the communication practices and the implications of these practices for individual team member’s well-being. Enterprise social networks (ESNs) like Slack and Microsoft Teams are a central tool for communication in virtual teams. In particular, ESNs are frequently used to communicate social support among team members. Social support has been associated with a wide range of individual well-being outcomes, making it suitable for examining the effects of ESN use within virtual teams. To this end, this dissertation addresses a single primary objective: Investigate the relationship between social support and ESN use within virtual teams. The objective was addressed through a literature review followed by a three-phase mixed-methods empirical study. The academic literature was explored by completing a systematic review. The review identified the current state of research concerning ESNs, virtual teams, and social support including the integration of those findings across fields. Informed by the results of the systematic review, two research questions were developed for the empirical work and a mixed-methods research design was implemented. First, a qualitative analysis of messages within team channels in an ESN was conducted to examine enacted support behaviours. Building on this, Phase Two involved interviews of distributed workers who use ESNs to identify their enactment and perceptions of social support. In Phase Three a quantitative survey was distributed to corroborate and generalise the results of Phases One and Two. The empirical work resulted in findings from each phase as well as two metainferences: an ESN locations taxonomy and an integrative framework for virtual team social support enactment within ESNs. Findings included the use of messages, threads, and emoji reactions for expressing specific types of social support, such as the use of threads for informational and appraisal support. Expressions of support varied based on location within ESNs (e.g. announcement channels compared to direct messages). Emotional support expressions tended to occur in private locations, including within watercooler interest group channels and private team channels. Descriptive statistical results as well as correlations between various types of ESN use and perceived social support were found in Phase Three. The study produced several artefacts usable by future researchers: a framework for examining distributed work (Chapter 2), a taxonomy for enacted social support within ESNs (Chapter 7), a taxonomy of ESN locations (Chapter 10), and an integrated framework for virtual team social support enactment within ESNs (Chapter 10). An interview guide has been included for future research on ESN use within virtual teams, as has a survey instrument which measures the frequency of ESN location use and enacted social support within ESNs.en_ZA
dc.description.abstractAFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Kommunikasie binne organisasies het toenemend virtueel geword, en hierdie verhoogde virtualiteit het meer geleenthede vir verspreide werk meegebring. Op spanvlak het verhoogde verspreiding gelei tot virtuele spanne – spanne geskei deur geografiese en/of tydelike afstand. Sedert die begin van die COVID-19-pandemie het virtuele spanne al hoe meer algemeen geword en gevolglik bestaan daar ’n behoefte om die kommunikasiepraktyke en die implikasies van hierdie praktyke vir individuele spanlid se welstand te verstaan. Ondernemings sosiale netwerke (ESN’e) soos Slack en Microsoft Teams is ’n sentrale hulpmiddel vir kommunikasie in virtuele spanne. Veral, ESN’e word gereeld gebruik om sosiale ondersteuning tussen spanlede te kommunikeer. Sosiale ondersteuning is geassosieer met ’n wye reeks individuele welstandsuitkomste, wat dit geskik maak om die gevolge van ESN-gebruik binne virtuele spanne te ondersoek. Vir hierdie doel spreek hierdie proefskrif ’n enkele primere doelwit aan: Ondersoek die verhouding tussen sosiale ondersteuning en ESN-gebruik binne virtuele spanne. Die doelwit is aangespreek deur ’n literatuuroorsig gevolg deur ’n drie-fase gemengde metodes empiriese studie. Die akademiese literatuur is verken deur ’n sistematiese oorsig te voltooi. Die oorsig het die huidige stand van navorsing oor ESN’e, virtuele spanne en sosiale ondersteuning geidentifiseer, insluitend die integrasie van daardie bevindinge oor velde heen. Op grond van die resultate van die sistematiese oorsig, is twee navorsingsvrae vir die empiriese werk ontwikkel en ’n gemengde-metode navorsingsontwerp is geimplementeer. Eerstens is ’n kwalitatiewe ontleding van boodskappe binne spankanale in ’n ESN uitgevoer om uitgevaardigde ondersteuningsgedrag te ondersoek. Voortbouend hierop, het Fase Twee onderhoude behels van verspreide werkers wat ESN’e gebruik om hul inwerkingstelling en persepsies van sosiale ondersteuning te identifiseer. In Fase Drie is ’n kwantitatiewe opname versprei om die resultate van Fase Een en Twee te staaf en te veralgemeen. Die empiriese werk het gelei tot bevindinge van elke fase sowel as twee metaafleidings: ’n ESN-liggingstaksonomie en ’n integrerende raamwerk vir virtuele span sosiale ondersteuning inwerkingstelling binne ESN’e. Bevindinge het die gebruik van boodskappe, drade en emoji-reaksies ingesluit om spesifieke tipes sosiale ondersteuning uit te druk, soos die gebruik van drade vir inligtings- en beoordelingsondersteuning. Uitdrukkings van ondersteuning het gewissel op grond van ligging binne ESN’e (bv. aankondigingskanale in vergelyking met direkte boodskappe). Emosionele ondersteuningsuitdrukkings was geneig om op private plekke voor te kom, insluitend binne waterverkoeler-belangegroepkanale en private spankanale. Beskrywende statistiese resultate sowel as korrelasies tussen verskeie tipes ESN-gebruik en waargenome sosiale ondersteuning is in Fase Drie gevind. Hierdie proefskrif het gelei tot verskeie artefakte wat deur toekomstige navorsers bruikbaar is: ’n raamwerk vir die ondersoek van verspreide werk (Hoofstuk 2), ’n taksonomie vir verordende sosiale ondersteuning binne ESN’e (Hoofstuk 7), ’n taksonomie van ESN-liggings (Hoofstuk 10), en ’n geintegreerde raamwerk vir virtuele span sosiale ondersteuning inwerkingtreding binne ESN’e (Hoofstuk 10). ’n Onderhoudsgids is ingesluit vir toekomstige navorsing oor ESN-gebruik binne virtuele spanne, asook ’n opname-instrument wat die frekwensie van ESN-ligginggebruik meet en sosiale ondersteuning binne ESN’e ingestel het.af_ZA
dc.description.versionDoctorate
dc.format.extentxix, 342 pages : illustrations, includes annexures
dc.identifier.urihttps://scholar.sun.ac.za/handle/10019.1/128790
dc.language.isoen_ZAen_ZA
dc.publisherStellenbosch : Stellenbosch University
dc.rights.holderStellenbosch University
dc.subject.lcshTeams in the workplaceen_ZA
dc.subject.lcshVirtual reality in managementen_ZA
dc.subject.lcshBusiness networksen_ZA
dc.subject.nameUCTD
dc.titleThe use of enterprise social networks for social support within virtual teamsen_ZA
dc.typeThesisen_ZA
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