Year
2023
Authors
LUPU Ioana, LECA Bernard, RUIZ-CASTRO Mayra
Abstract
Many firms and organisations today expect their skilled professionals to identify with the ‘ideal worker’ entailing long working hours, commitment, and availability for work-related tasks. In the professional services firms (PSFs) under study in this research, role expectations, peer pressure, and firm culture make long working hours the norm. Employees can even face sanctions if they attempt to change this. However, some do and this takes the form of role distancing. Researchers Ioana Lupu, Mayra Ruiz-Castro, and Bernard Leca identify a two-stage process in role distancing: role apprehension involving a shift in understanding, thinking and emotions that leads to viewing a professional role as temporary and changeable, followed by role redefinition where workers actually modify their work practices. This insight explores these two processes further, revealing the factors that contribute to triggering the employee’s desire to change their professional roles, and the factors that facilitate – or block – the actual change from occurring.
LUPU, I., RUIZ-CASTRO, M. et LECA, B. (2023). Long working hours and pressure from professional expectations. Dans: Adrián Zicari, Tom Gamble eds. The Employee and the Post-Pandemic Workplace. 1st ed. London & New York: Routledge, pp. 79-86.