The Impact of Digital Distractions and Multitasking on Crowdworkers' Work-life Balance
Lead Research Organisation:
University College London
Department Name: Computer Science
Abstract
With the advent of smartphones, the nature of notifications has subtly changed, with users receiving over 60 alerts per day from various digital sources. The overall objecttive of the research is to investigate the role of digital distractions on work-related stress for crowdworkers and to explore ways in which their work-life balance could be improved with the use of productivity management tools.
In the first phase of the research, the prject will use contextual inquiry to look at the types of notifications crowdworkers encounter while completing tasks in order to understand behaviours and concerns about interruptions. Conversing with users in the context of their work and directly observing them will informa the next phase of the research, in which measures of stress and focus levels and digital activity logs will be used to ascertain their perceived effects on productivity.
The project could progress by exploring how notification fatigue might have an adverse effect on work related tasks for crowdworkers. Furthermore, data analysed via quantitative and qualitative methods will be used to investigate possible means to regain control over digital distractions - these could take the form of digital interventions to help improve productivity and reduce stress in crowdworkers.
In the first phase of the research, the prject will use contextual inquiry to look at the types of notifications crowdworkers encounter while completing tasks in order to understand behaviours and concerns about interruptions. Conversing with users in the context of their work and directly observing them will informa the next phase of the research, in which measures of stress and focus levels and digital activity logs will be used to ascertain their perceived effects on productivity.
The project could progress by exploring how notification fatigue might have an adverse effect on work related tasks for crowdworkers. Furthermore, data analysed via quantitative and qualitative methods will be used to investigate possible means to regain control over digital distractions - these could take the form of digital interventions to help improve productivity and reduce stress in crowdworkers.
Organisations
People |
ORCID iD |
| Anna Cox (Primary Supervisor) | |
| Laura Lascau (Student) |
Studentship Projects
| Project Reference | Relationship | Related To | Start | End | Student Name |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EP/N509577/1 | 01/10/2016 | 24/03/2022 | |||
| 1940310 | Studentship | EP/N509577/1 | 25/09/2017 | 11/07/2022 | Laura Lascau |
| Description | We surveyed 317 Amazon Mechanical Turk workers about their working practices and working preferences. We aimed to understand why workers on AMT multitask and what factors influence their multitasking behaviours. Based on our findings, we describe how workers could alter their working conditions to fit their multitasking preferences, and what requesters and platform designers can do in order to improve the productivity of the workers: We made four recommendations for Requesters on Amazon Mechanical Turk based on the results of the research: 1. Requesters should give workers plenty of time to complete the task. 2. Requesters should make sure their task/s is/are responsive. 3. Requesters should encourage workers to return to the task (or to AMT). 4. Requesters should pay well. We made three recommendations for Platform Designers of crowdsourcing websites like Amazon Mechanical Turk based on the results of the research: 1. Platform designers should allow workers to auto-save work in progress. 2. Platform designers should allow workers to set goals. 3. Platform designers should recontextualize the work on return from a switch. We made three recommendations for Workers on Amazon Mechanical Turk based on the results of the research: 1. Workers could consider dedicating a monitor to AMT work. 2. Workers could consider dedicating a quiet workspace for AMT work that is less likely to lead to interruptions. 3. Workers should keep an eye on times on AMT. |
| Exploitation Route | Based on the outcomes of this funding and research conducted, new tools can be build for Requesters on Amazon Mechanical Turk, Platform Designers and Workers on crowdworking platforms. |
| Sectors | Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software) |
| URL | https://www.crowdproject.uk/publications/ |