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‘Mental mobility’ in the digital age: entrepreneurs and the online home‐based business
Author(s) -
Di Domenico MariaLaura,
Daniel Elizabeth,
Nunan Daniel
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
new technology, work and employment
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.889
H-Index - 45
eISSN - 1468-005X
pISSN - 0268-1072
DOI - 10.1111/ntwe.12034
Subject(s) - liminality , mindset , work (physics) , sociology , qualitative research , mobilities , process (computing) , phenomenon , public relations , psychology , business , marketing , computer science , political science , engineering , epistemology , social science , mechanical engineering , artificial intelligence , anthropology , operating system , philosophy
Home‐based online business ventures are an increasingly pervasive yet under‐researched phenomenon. The experiences and mindset of entrepreneurs setting up and running such enterprises require better understanding. Using data from a qualitative study of 23 online home‐based business entrepreneurs, we propose the augmented concept of ‘mental mobility’ to encapsulate how they approach their business activities. Drawing on H oward P . B ecker's early theorising of mobility, together with V ictor T urner's later notion of liminality, we conceptualise mental mobility as the process through which individuals navigate the liminal spaces between the physical and digital spheres of work and the overlapping home/workplace, enabling them to manipulate and partially reconcile the spatial, temporal and emotional tensions that are present in such work environments. Our research also holds important applications for alternative employment contexts and broader social orderings because of the increasingly pervasive and disruptive influence of technology on experiences of remunerated work.