Institut für Bildung, Arbeit und Gesellschaft

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://hohpublica.uni-hohenheim.de/handle/123456789/28

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Creating a shared vision by uniting local stakeholders to tackle plastic bag consumption
(2023) Neef, Nicolas E.; Shihepo, Kapandu; Roos, Claudine; Richter, Isabell
Single-use plastic bags contribute significantly to the plastic pollution in South Africa posing a serious environmental challenge. Hence, there is a need for comprehensive strategies to reduce plastic bag consumption. We report the results of an online workshop aimed to create a positive, shared future vision. The workshop was attended by 12 invited participants from diverse backgrounds and disciplines and utilized a collaborative approach to propose a framework for reducing plastic bag usage during grocery shopping in South Africa. The findings suggest that a combination of economic, structural and behavioral interventions is necessary to promote lasting behavior change, including financial incentives, a broad introduction of more environmentally friendly alternatives, and promoting bag reuse. Additionally, the vision underscored the importance of using social channels such as education and social norms. The invited stakeholders did not endorse conventional approaches such as increasing an already existing levy or implementing a complete ban on plastic bags. They also questioned the introduction of fully recycled plastic bags. Instead, the proposed vision encourages an integrated approach to reducing plastic bag usage involving individual behavior change and community engagement. The development of a creative product such as a video to showcase a future vision offers a powerful tool for communication with further stakeholders and political authorities, to engage with the community and broader population and for inspiring collective action. Overall, the findings have implications for policymakers, business leaders, environmental educators, and individuals committed to reducing plastic pollution and promoting sustainable practices in South Africa.
Digital technologies at work: On the role of the human factor in a digital work environment using the example of truck drivers in Germany
(2024) Straub, Sarah Maria; Ruiner, Caroline
Digitalization as a megatrend and enabler for increasing efficiency has long been the focus of research concerning competitiveness and the optimization of economic processes. However, the use of digital technologies in the workplace facilitates and necessitates novel forms of interaction between humans and technology. This is associated with transformations in the nature of work regarding working conditions, work processes, and employment relationships, posing new challenges for workers and organizations. The use of digital technologies imposes new demands on the human workplace, accompanied by both positive and negative changes in working conditions, and occupational health and safety, which are often overlooked. On the one hand, the emergence of new employment models entails risks such as insecurity, exploitation, and excessive workload. On the other hand, digitalization has the potential to alleviate workers from demanding tasks, thereby improving working conditions. Within this controversial debate, the precursors and consequences of the use of digital technologies remain ambiguous, as does the role of the human worker in this context. Consequently, the question of what factors determine the role of workers in digital workplaces is an ongoing topic in the discourse surrounding digital transformation in the work context. Concurrently, the transition from Industry 4.0 to Industry 5.0 demonstrates an increasing focus on humans and their needs as the foundation for designing digital workplaces. Central to this is the consideration of human-machine collaboration, where the human factor contributes significantly to the successful and efficient use of digital technologies. In the logistics sector, the discussion around the human factor has primarily encompassed empirical studies involving warehouse workers, such as order pickers or workers in packaging. However, truck drivers, their working conditions, and their role in the context of utilizing digital technologies have received little attention. Truck drivers play a pivotal role in the supply chain, serving as key actors in delivery processes and contributing to efficient transportation links. Their working conditions are characterized by high demands, responsibility, and a multitude of stressors, including time pressure, high physical and mental strain, lack of social interaction, unpredictable factors along the route, and conflicting expectations from various stakeholders in the supply chain. The use of digital technologies in the profession of truck driving exhibits ambivalent effects, with limited research exploring the impact on their working conditions and their role in the digital transformation. Furthermore, there are new modes of control that play a decisive role in connection with reorganized employment relationships and work processes. The implementation of digital technologies on the basis of the human factors’ needs contributes to maintain efficient and safe operations. Empirical studies focusing on truck drivers’ perceptions, experiences, challenges, and needs in relation to digitalization are thus necessary to ensure a human-centric approach when designing digital workplaces in the logistics industry. Against this background, the dissertation aims to explore the working conditions of truck drivers and their implications within digital work environments. The decent work approach thereby provides reference points for realizing humane workplaces. Moreover, this research delves into the multifaceted role of truck drivers, encompassing labor relations, work processes, and structural hierarchies within and beyond organizational boundaries. The Labor Process Theory provides the conceptual underpinning for this exploration. The overarching research question “How do digital technologies shape the human factor’s work environment, considering their perspectives on work, their role in work processes, labor relations, and organizational structures??” is answered by four papers. The findings of this dissertation offer an in-depth investigation of truck drivers’ individual perspectives concerning the impact of digital technologies. An expanded framework that correlates working conditions molded by digitalization with the attainment of decent work is presented, whereby the human factors’ perspectives form a crucial element within the digital workplace. All four research papers included in this dissertation serve this purpose by providing new insights into the perception and use of digital technologies, the resulting workplace characteristics, the emergence of workload in digitalized workplaces, and clues for the design of human-centered workplaces. The findings underscore the importance of truck drivers in the work process and reveal their dependence on uncontrollable factors such as traffic and weather conditions, which impact agreed-upon schedules, and consequently, their overall work planning. This gives rise to new modes of control and the possibility of exerting pressure on drivers. These factors influence the position of truck drivers in the supply chain and affect their working conditions in relation to the use of digital technologies. Thus, the findings provide a foundation for the design of humane digital workplaces, taking into account the perspectives and experiences of truck drivers. In answering the overarching research question, this dissertation essentially contributes to firstly, a better understanding the relevant criteria that should be considered from the workers’ perspectives when designing humane workplaces, and secondly, emphasizing the relevance of the individuals in socio-technical systems and their perception of digital technologies, as the perception determines whether the consequences of using digital technologies pose a risk or a benefit. Third, this dissertation contributes to exploring the role of human workers in digital workplaces from a labor process theory perspective.
Optimistic narrative future visions: a communication tool for promoting sustainable (plastic) behavior
(2023) Neef, Nicolas E.; Fußwinkel, Selina; Roos, Claudine; Frank, Lilli; Shihepo, Kapandu; Richter, Isabell
Plastic pollution is a pressing global issue, necessitating a focus on consumer behavior to curb this problem at its source. To effectively promote sustainable practices, communication strategies that employ future visions have gained attention. This study examines the effects of a narrative video intervention depicting an optimistic future vision concerning single-use plastic bag consumption in South Africa, compared to a representation of the prevailing status quo. Using a preregistered within-subject design, we assess the psychological and emotional responses to two scenarios of which one is illustrating adaptive behaviors toward reduced plastic bag usage, and the other showcasing current consumption patterns. Parametric analyses revealed a shift in emotional states, characterized by a greater experience of positive emotions and a reduced experience of negative emotions following the exposure to the optimistic future scenario video, as compared to the status quo video. Moreover, engagement with the optimistic future scenario was associated with higher levels of perceived behavioral control and behavioral intentions. No significant changes were found regarding sense of responsibility. These findings point to the potential of optimistic future visions to influence individuals at psychological and emotional levels. This renders optimistic future vision communication as an effective tool for sustainable behavior change, particularly in relation to the sustainable use of plastic shopping bags.

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