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Reconfiguring workplaces
(Gajendran & Harrison, 2007). However, the available technology can also create expectations about needing to be constantly connected, which employees cope with by strategically using technology to increase the perceived distance (Leonardi et al., 2010). Also, being remote from colleagues often requires additional effort to signal commitment to the organization (Cristea & Leonardi, 2019), and it tends to take longer to socialize and develop shared identities (MacDuffie, 2007; Walther, 1992).
From studies on distributed settings, we have learned that the impact of distance on work relationships is often negative (Kiesler & Cummings, 2002; Vayre & Pignault, 2014). In turn, decreasing the geographical distance, for example, even temporarily through site visits, improves work relationships (Hinds & Cramton, 2014). Many studies focus on geographical proximity (e.g., Allen, 1977; Kiesler & Cummings, 2002) but Wilson et al. developed the concept of perceived proximity, which “reflects one person’s perception of how close or how far another person is” (2008, p. 983). In a subsequent mixed methods study, their findings challenged the traditional notion that sharing an office is equal to close relationships – and consequently, that working distributed means to have weak relationships (O’Leary et al., 2014). Overall, distributed workers seem to experience more difficulty forming strong relationships because they lack unplanned encounters (Kiesler & Cummings, 2002) and personal disclosures (Kurland & Egan, 1999).
Research is scarce regarding settings where co-location and distributed work are studied at the same time. One noteworthy study by Rockmann and Pratt (2015) found that while individuals wanted to work in a shared office, the employees decided to work more remotely as their colleagues did so as well – thereby creating a ‘lonely office’.
3.2.2 Introducing workplace configurations
Although extant research addresses some aspects of the place- relationship link, little is said about how working across multiple locations shapes work relationships. The extant literature often studied individuals
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