Cornelia Gerdenitsch

FORE-Watch – the clock that tells you when to use: persuading users to align their energy consumption with green power availability

Besides saving energy, using it at the right time (i.e. when there is a supply surplus, and the power is produced by sustainable power sources such as hydroelectricity or wind) is an important possibility to achieve positive effects for the environment. To enable the user to align their behavior with the dynamics of the energy generation they need to be informed about the current status of power supply and grid capacity. Furthermore, to be able to plan their behavior and possibly delay or advance consumption activities to more proper moments they also need to have access to high-quality forecasts about the future status of green energy supply. In this paper we present an ambient display design solution based on a common watch that is optimized for providing this information in an unobtrusive, ambient and persuasive way. We present and discuss requirements identified by use of literature analysis, focus groups and end-user questionnaires, outline approaches to calculate basic power generation forecasts based on weather forecast data and present an ambient interface concept designed to meet the identified requirements. We conclude that the developed approach has high potential to support desired behavior changes, and that achieving acceptable accuracy levels for the generation forecast is feasible with relatively little effort.

Coworking Spaces: A Source of Social Support for Independent Professionals

Coworking spaces are shared office environments for independent professionals. Such spaces have been increasing rapidly throughout the world, and provide, in addition to basic business infrastructure, the opportunity for social interaction. This article explores social interaction in coworking spaces and reports the results of two studies. Study 1 (N = 69 coworkers) finds that social interaction in coworking spaces can take the form of social support. Study 2 further investigates social support among coworkers (N = 154 coworkers) and contrasts these results with those of social support among colleagues in traditional work organizations (N = 609). A moderated mediation model using time pressure and self-efficacy, based on the conservation of resources theory, is tested. Social support from both sources was positively related to performance satisfaction. Self-efficacy mediated this relationship in the employee sample, while in the coworking sample, self-efficacy only mediated the relationship between social support and performance satisfaction if time pressure was high. Thus, a mobilization of social support seems necessary in coworking spaces. We conclude that coworking spaces, as modern social work environments, should align flexible work infrastructure with well-constructed opportunities for social support.

Changing Working Conditions at the Onset of the Twenty-First Century: Facts from International Datasets

Modern societies are currently undergoing accelerated social change (see also Chap. 4). In this chapter, we are interested in whether these societal changes influence individual working conditions. More specifically, it is argued that the speeding up of production, consumption, and decision processes due to the implementation of new information and communication technologies (ICTs) and increased international competition confront employees with work intensification and increasing job insecurity. Using data from the European Working Conditions Surveys, we analyze trends in work intensity and job insecurity in Europe from 2000 onwards; using data from the Health and Retirement Study as well as the German Socio-Economic Panel, we also model individual change trajectories from 2000 onwards. The results show that employees differ in the extent to which they are confronted with changes in work intensity and job insecurity. European trend data suggest that work intensification occurred basically in conservative welfare states (i.e., Germany, France, and Spain), but not in the United Kingdom or Finland. Individual change trajectories show that nearly 30 % of German and American workers have experienced an increase in work intensity over the past decade. Less-educated workers are the most affected. Moreover, job insecurity has risen for a majority of employees in Europe and America. Especially, well-educated workers who have thus far been in rather stable employment relations perceived an increase in job insecurity.

Need–Supply Fit in an Activity-Based Flexible Office: A Longitudinal Study During Relocation:

Combinations of concentrated work and interactions are facilitated by office environments such as activity-based flexible offices (A-FOs). A-FOs are characterized by activity-based workspaces, an open-plan layout, and desk sharing. Although there is a growing enthusiasm for replacing cellular offices with A-FOs, the effects of such changes on office workers are still unclear. Within this three-wave longitudinal study, we investigated the changes (time lag of 1 and 8 months after the redesign) in perceived need–supply fit, distraction, interaction across teams, and workspace satisfaction during relocation from a cellular office to an A-FO. Moreover, as previous case studies indicated individual differences in the use of A-FOs, we considered participants’ perceived need–supply fit as a moderator indicating an appropriate use of A-FO supplies. We found a linear increase of perceived need–supply fit, a decrease in distraction, and a significant interaction effect where workspace satisfaction and interaction across teams increased more strongly for participants reporting a better perceived need–supply fit.

Scaffolding self-directed learning with personalized learning goal recommendations

Adaptive scaffolding has been proposed as an efficient means for supporting self-directed learning both in educational as well as in adaptive learning systems research However, the effects of adaptation on self-directed learning and the differential contributions of different adaptation models have not been systematically examined In this paper, we examine whether personalized scaffolding in the learning process improves learning We conducted a controlled lab study in which 29 students had to solve several tasks and learn with the help of an adaptive learning system in a within-subjects control condition design In the learning process, participants obtained recommendations for learning goals from the system in three conditions: fixed scaffolding where learning goals were generated from the domain model, personalized scaffolding where these recommendations were ranked according to the user model, and random suggestions of learning goals (control condition) Students in the two experimental conditions clearly outperformed students in the control condition and felt better supported by the system Additionally, students who received personalized scaffolding selected fewer learning goals than participants from the other groups.

Humor at work: validation of the short work-related Humor Styles Questionnaire (swHSQ)

Abstract As part of daily interactions humor is an integral element of work relationships with consequences for well-being or turnover intentions. However, its adequate assessment in the work context has yet to be improved. While the Humor Styles Questionnaire (HSQ; Martin et al. 2003. Individual differences in uses of humor and their relation to psychological well-being: Development of the Humor Styles Questionnaire. Journal of Research in Personality 37. 48–75) covers adaptive and maladaptive functions of humor styles, it assesses humor in general life. With the adaption of the HSQ, that is, the short (12-item) and work-related version of the HSQ (swHSQ), we provide an efficient tool for the assessment of individual humor styles in the work context. We validated and tested the swHSQ in two Austrian-German and one U.S. sample and analyzed its structure and impact by means of confirmatory factor analyses as well as regression analyses. The swHSQ seems valid and reliable (α between 0.62 and 0.86) in a German and an English version, thus representing an efficient self-report tool for field research. Evidence for construct validity is provided with regard to humor styles’ associations with optimism, occupational self-efficacy, irritation, and job satisfaction. While the positive (affiliative, self-enhancing) humor styles showed expected relationships with the outcomes, patterns of relationships of the negative styles suggest intercultural differences in workplace humor. Thus, self-defeating but not aggressive humor seems impactful in the Austrian-German sample, while the contrary was found in the U.S. sample.