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Download fileCoworking in homes – mitigating the tensions of the freelance economy
journal contribution
posted on 2022-02-08, 14:08 authored by Darja Reuschke, Nick CliftonNick Clifton, Michael FisherCoworking has increased in popularity in the digital knowledge economy with the rise of independent professional workers who often work from home and lack the social relations that provide feedback, referrals or social support. Rather than studying coworking as a new spatial, social and economic way of working in designated coworking spaces, this study explores coworking in residential homes – the earliest self-organised form of coworking that has received little attention although dedicated home-based coworking networks have developed since. Based on intensive fieldwork material from coworking groups of freelancers across Europe who meet in each other’s homes, we explore why people meet to cowork in homes – when at the same time coworking is driven by the social isolation of working alone in the ‘home office’ as emphasised in previous research on coworking spaces. Our findings highlight the need of freelance workers to learn how to be productive and maintain productivity. The shared experience of homeworking and awareness of the challenges of personalised professional work create cognitive proximity in home-based coworking. Coworkers commit to the production of an affective atmosphere which is facilitated by digital platforms, the role of hosts and the home environment. We discuss the implications of our findings for understanding coworking more generally.
Funding
This study was funded by the European Research Council, the Starting Grant WORKANDHOME (ERC- 2014-STG 639403)
History
Published in
GeoforumPublisher
ElsevierVersion
- AM (Accepted Manuscript)
Citation
Reuschke, D., Clifton, N. and Fisher, M. (2021) 'Coworking in homes–mitigating the tensions of the freelance economy', Geoforum, 119, pp.122-132. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoforum.2021.01.005Print ISSN
0016-7185Cardiff Met Affiliation
- Cardiff School of Management
Cardiff Met Authors
Nick CliftonCardiff Met Research Centre/Group
- Welsh Centre for Business and Management Research
Copyright Holder
- © The Publisher
Language
- en