Cyber-slacking or cyber-loafing is defined as, "the use of an employer's Internet and e-mail for personal activities during work hours" by dictionary.com. This blog will try to explore cyber-slacking and all of its aspects.
For this inaugural post I am going to ask a question. How do you, the reader, view cyberslacking at work? A bad thing? A non-issue? or somewhere in between? If you do a Google search for cyberslacking in the workplace you get articles that talk about how it is detrimental to productivity and articles that talk about how it boosts productivity. It is detrimental for the obvious reasons. It takes your focus away from your work. But in an article put out by the Telegraph, "'Cyberslacking' at work has benefits, claims study", it says that companies that try to clamp down and eradicate the problem is futile since our world is becoming more interconnected and complex. The study within the article claims that by allowing employees taking mini-breaks throughout the work day they are actually more productive than working straight through. So I ask the question again, do you view cyber-slacking as a good thing or a bad thing?
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/3357631/Cyberslacking-at-work-has-benefits-claims-study.html
I actually work in an office job and I can tell you that cyberslacking does not increase productivity among workers. It is true that breaks keep workers going, but I believe the place for internet surfing is on the lunch break. According to Psychology Today the number one visited site for cyberslacking is Facebook. It really begs the question of how addicted people are to social networks today. I believe that is the real problem that needs to be addressed. If your status update can't wait until you get home, there may be a real issue. Another problem I have found with cyberslacking is that it causes other employees to pick up the slack. I once had to do a two person presentation by myself because my team member spent all of her time on social networks. I believe the internet can lead to many problems in the workplace, inefficiency being number one.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/mr-personality/201103/can-cyber-slacking-be-good
DeleteGreat points, Scott and Tracy. I have conflicting views on this issue. I definitely think that, from a business perspective, cyberslacking produces more negative results than positive. Employees definitely need breaks, whether it is a phone call or a visit to a coworker's cubicle. Cyberslacking, however, seems to feed some sort of addictive personality in a way that a phone call doesn't. Employees can only get so much information from conversations with coworkers, but the internet is a source of limitless information on just about any subject, from celebrity gossip to stock market prices. Interestingly, some companies' efforts to limit cyberslacking has led to other issues.
ReplyDeleteThere is some research that deals with the negative consequence of monitoring employees' internet usage. According to a paper written by Kirsten Martin and R. Edward Freeman, employee stress can result from knowing your employer is monitoring keystrokes and websites visited during company time. This stress from invasive surveillance can then lead to health issues, such as anxiety, depression and boredom. The potential result: sick leave. This definitely negatively affects businesses' bottom line. There is no easy solution to this issue, especially in a world of smart phones and tablets that can bypass company surveillance.
http://faculty.cua.edu/martink/JBEEmployeeMonitoring.pdf
I spent this summer doing an internship that was not overly packed with activity. Me and my co-interns spent a significant amount of time surfing the internet, looking up news, sports info, etc. While it helped us cope with the hours of boredom, it contributed to a general attitude of laziness that hurt our ambition and productivity. I'm not sure I can speak to how it affects a busier schedule in the workplace, but I've certainly seen a negative impact in a less packed environment.
ReplyDeleteAs an associate in the early years of building a work ethic, taking "mini-breaks" would not have been beneficial. I believe that knowing your limits and not taking advantage comes with self-discipline and requires someone with strong work ethic to know their boundaries. Regardless, there will always be people that will sneak a way to misuse internet in the workplace just to get that mental BREAK! Here's some fun ways to use the internet and NOT get caught: http://forums.crackberry.com/rehab-off-topic-lounge-f36/how-browse-internet-work-without-being-detected-guide-593762/
ReplyDeleteI think that cyber slacking can be a good thing. I work in the Dean's Office and they allow all receptionists to do what they like on the computer as long as it's not distracting to others. If the slacking is in moderation, I don't see why it would be seen as negative.
ReplyDeleteI believe that cyberslacking is generally not a good thing. However I agree that taking little breaks is beneficial in order to improve productivity when a person is tired or needs a "break". These breaks need a lot of self moderation and knowing one's limit. Many people simply do not know their limits or try to take advantage of a a situation. Therefore, in general, I believe that it would not be a good idea to implement this in the workplace since many would take advantage of this benefit.
ReplyDeleteI think cyberslacking is a good thing especially for problem-solvers and people with non-routine tasks. Doing other stuff helps you get over (writer's) blocks and allows you to be more creative in how you can handle problems. It's challenging when you have nothing else but your work to help you come up with innovative ideas. Although I believe cyberslacking is a beneficial thing, there's a limit to how much an employee should slack off. I think this is where having deadlines is beneficial.
ReplyDeletePersonally cyber slacking is a bad thing. It depends on the individual and their work habits. When I need to focus I have to shut everything out including my cell phone which I find myself checking every 3 minutes. Every so often its fine to get a little off course but for the most part its detrimental if done too often. The option of breaks to regroup thoughts and stray from the assignment at hand may lead to creativity but varies by individual.
ReplyDeleteI think it depends on the extent of the cyber slacking. I am aware that it makes it more difficult to monitor, but in my opinion there should be some sort of guidelines, for instance, the do's and don'ts. You could always make time restrictions for non-work related activities because in response to the studies that cyber slacking can be beneficial. This is a extremely controversial issue. What is inappropriate and what is not inappropriate?
ReplyDelete-Audrey Hyde
I think cyber slacking being beneficial differs from job to job. Those with heavy workloads that need to be completed daily are going to need to focus more on their work then personal internet use. Those who are receptionist or don't have much work to do on a daily basis probably benefit from cyber slacking because they would be so bored.
ReplyDeleteI think cyber slacking can be both positive and negative. There are times when I am at work and I need to send a personal email. I can not get that off my mind until the email is sent. Once the email is sent, I am able to be much more productive at work because I am not thinking about my to do list email. I believe that would be a positive example of cyber slacking. Cyber slacking can also be negative if someone abuses their personal email or facebook, etc.
ReplyDeleteSometimes throughout the day, employees just need a break from all the work. I find that sometimes a five minute break can make someone much more efficient in the long run.
I can agree that a break here and there at work is very beneficial and helps break up a day yet there needs to be a definite start and finish of breaks. A 15 minute coffee and instagram break may be beneficial but when employees take advantage of that and stretch it out, it becomes habitual and soon personal time is overtaking work time.
ReplyDeleteThere's nothing wrong with taking a brain-break during work, however if you employer has already stated in training or a company policy that "cyber-slacking" is not allowed then just don't do it. If there is something you must do and it can't wait until you get home then bring your own tablet to work or use your phone don’t check your facebook to go back and forth with your boyfriend about that movie you went to see last night. I think this is more of an issue of people not wanting to follow the rules and not wanting to miss a beat on social media, online auctions, celebrity blogs, etc. If your job does allow it, know where to draw the line (5 minute break, a break after I finish ____) to keep yourself from abusing the privilege
ReplyDeleteWhat I believe is the negative aspect of this social loafing is the immediate availability of the internet for misuse. What I mean by this is throughout the day, at any period of time, an employee can simply type in "www.facebook.com" and begin exploring the social networking site. With this immediate availability, it makes it difficult to stay on task consistently. What I think would be a good idea for managers, or employees themselves, to implement is an extra personal break (10-15 minutes) aside from lunch for the employees to relax their mind. It sounds juvenile, which it may be, but I also believe it could keep employees of the sites they shouldn't be on and wait until their designated time.
ReplyDelete