Global Development through the

12 Global Development through the Psychology of Workplace Technology Tara S. Behrend, Alexander E. Closs, ar1d Lori Foster Tl1ompson

Rece.nt years have witnessed an Increasing focus arnong lndustrialOrganizational (I-0) psychologists and other management scholars on ,and in developing regions of the w0rld. This trend may ste1n frotn one or more of a variety of 1n0tivations, such as a desire to use the organtzati011aJ sciences for the greater .good, a 11ecognition of the untapped potential 0femerging economies. and an interest in testing the universaUty of pi-ominent theories 0f behavior developed in predomlnantly Western, educated , industrialized, rich, and democratic coute,'1s (Henrich, Heine, &Norenzayan, 2010). Regardless of the rnotivatio11, studying and applying I-0 psychology in lower-income regions of the world entails engagement with a host of factors related to not only organizational development, but also regional, social, and economic development. Examples include topics such as corruption. poverty. n1alnutrition, gender inequality,.t he spread of HIV /A1Ds, access to educatl011,loss of environn1ental resources, and other components of international development, which aJTe ine>..1-ricably I.inked to the work and well- beiug of individuals and tbe regions in which they reside. Information and Con1n1unlcation Tech11ology (ICT) has an, 1tnport.111t role to play as I-0 psychology and related discjplin e,s b~gin to interf-ace wit h lntemationaJ development. ICT has shaped the world of work in in any ways. It has not only illtr0duced new ways of working, but also new forms of work, new workers, and new workplaces. 'Together. work and technological ihnovation are criticaJ to solvlng some ofthe most significant d1allenges in our world and are key d1·ivers of economic development (United Nations. 2011 ). Yet, a surprisingly high percentage of tec'Jm0fogical interventions 1neant to enhance socioeconomic development tail (Dod.son, Sterling, & 261

Coovert, Michael D., and Foster Thompson, Lori, eds. SIOP Organizational Frontiers Series : Psychology of Workplace Technology. London, GBR: Taylor and Francis, 2013. ProQuest ebrary. Web. 6 January 2015. Copyright © 2013. Taylor and Francis. All rights reserved.

262 • Tara S. Behrend et aL Be11nett (2012). The reason s for these failures are diverse, but o ne key issue is an incomplete u11derstancting of htunan behavior, particularly in the conrext of work. In this chapter, vve disc-uss how the efforts of J-0 psychologists, ICT innovators, and International rlevelopme11t profession als CiUl complement each other, making the wl1ole greater than the sum of its parts. In particular, this chapter considers ho,N" the psychology of\.\rorlcplace technology .can be used to impr ove the success rate of globaJ development Ln'itlatives designed to address the world's most pressing problems.

AN INTRODUCTION TO THE FIELD OF ICTO Many r esearchers and pFofessionals ·who create and use 1CTs for t he p urposes of socloecono1nlc development are part of a com1nunlty refen·ed to as Information and Comm\.l.llication Technologies for Dev elopment (ICTD or ICT4D). The ICTD field emerged 1n a m odern form after the widespread adopti0n of computers and t he internet. Between 2000 and 2010, substantial growtl1 in the field occurred, as marked by a dratnatlc increase in pubHc!ltions, journals, and conferences d evo ted t o ICTD (Gomez, Baron, & F iore-Sflfvasr, 20 12). Tl1e field of ICTO is rather amorpl1ousand overlapswitltclosely r elated disciplines (e.g., development informatics; see Heeks, 2010). ln general, I CTD in its present for.m can be irnderstood as a sy11thesis of t,N"o discipline clusters. One cluster inclu.des various social science disciplines such as development sh idies. economics, and sociology; wl1ereas tl1e ot11er cluster includes .computer science and communication / information studies. ICTD researchers aJ1d practitioners use i11fotmatlon and communication technologies to address a Wide range o.f development goals-from enhancing the quality and effectiveness of gover nn1ent to supporti4g micro- and small- business entrepreneur s. For example, ICTs can be developed and d eployed to help small-scale farmers in rural areas network with each other, obtain in.forn1ation from suppliers, and communicate with p rospectiye customers. If successfid, S\.-tth an IC TD initiative has the potential to improve the \.York of.the ind[vldti.tl farn1er and the welfare of h is or her community, which realizes developmental gains when mem bers of that co mmu11ity thrive and flouri sh. Accordi11g to a 1·ecent review by Gomez, 8aron, a11d Fiore-Silfvast (2012) . the field ofI.CTD has prioritized several issues includlng private business growth, empowerment, education, and e-governmen!. 'The field often assumes a countxy, 0rganizatioual, or

Coovert, Michael D., and Foster Thompson, Lori, eds. SIOP Organizational Frontiers Series : Psychology of Workplace Technology. London, GBR: Taylor and Francis, 2013. ProQuest ebrary. Web. 6 January 2015. Copyright © 2013. Taylor and Francis. All rights reserved.

Globa.l Developn1ent • 263 multiple-country level of analysis in its research_and projects a,nd frequently engages tn studies that describe best practices and fteld experience or that cnake policy recommendations. Information andcommu11ication tecbnologyis espec1ally r-e levant to the welfare of lower-income (so- called "developing") societies. Despite the tremendous gro-wth of ICTs, and the fact that there are 110w nearly two billion internet users i11 the world. a "digital divide" still e,xists. Th.is divide fs constituted by global disparities in access to_, usage of, and motivation to use ICTs (United Nations, 2011 · Van Di.jk, 2006), Indeed , while internet penetration is 72 percent tn the developed 'v\'orld, it is only 21 percent 1n the developing world (United Nations, 201 1). However, the growth of many ICTs is enorn1ous. Of particular note is tl1e gro,¥t.11 and potential of mobile phones in lower incon1e setting_s. Consider that in 1998, 2 percent of the world's population had a mobile phone subscription, while in 2008, that rate had risen to 55 percent (Heeks, 2010-). If access to mobile phones via sharing is included ( e.g. , sharing phones With friends and fc·uriily)J n1obile pl1one usage r ates likely e~ceed 80 percent of the population of c1eve1opi,n g countries (Heeks, 2010). For this reasoa, 1nobile phones h.ave been viev1ed as particularly promising in their potential to e11l1ance economic development and well-being in lower-inco1ne sett ings. For example, they can be used to assist and support 11ealthcure work Ln rural, developing regions of the worJd,. allowing for remote di~gnosis of Illnesses, assistance With adherence to medical advice, ren1ote moni,toring, and the mass di-s semination of public health information (International Telecommunicatio11s Unio11, 2010). Despite ICTD's growth and potential, a salient concem pertains t0 tl1e routine failu1·e of ICTD projects aimed to facilitate worlc performed for ·and/or by members oftl1e world' s most vtdnerable populations. Dodson, Sterling, and Bennett (2012) argue that 1nost IC::TD interventions fail. For thls reason, a "fAILfaire" was beld at the 2012 International Conference o n I11formation and Communication Technologies and Development, which highlighted falled inltiatives and attempted to build dialogue and awareness around the issue. Dodson, Sterling, and Bennett 1201.2) noted several Important reasons for the failure of ICTD projects, including: not establishing baseline metrics upon wl1ich to judge success: taking a "topdo,N"n" iJ!lstead of "bottom-up" approach that does no.t emphasize local context and priorities; engaging in projects that are "technology-centric" instead of "community-centric," thereby seeking to 1natch a solution to a problem instead of the otl1er way around; not having cJear and specific goals for projects; a11d finally,. ignori:n,g the effects of workers> "mental

Coovert, Michael D., and Foster Thompson, Lori, eds. SIOP Organizational Frontiers Series : Psychology of Workplace Technology. London, GBR: Taylor and Francis, 2013. ProQuest ebrary. Web. 6 January 2015. Copyright © 2013. Taylor and Francis. All rights reserved.

264 • Tara S. Behrend et aL

barriers" and 1notivatlo11 OR the sucoess of ICTD Initiatives. Our aini in this ·chapter ls to demo11strate some ways that I-0 psychology and the psychology of workplace tecltnology can assist in addressing these challe~ges. We elaborate below.

ICTD AND 1-0 PSYCHOLOGY "There is nothing so practical as a good tl1eory'' (Lewin, 1951, p. 169). A theory-driven approach to I CTD can facilitate an understa11ding of failed fnitiatives and promote st1ccessful ICTD interventions. This is one a,r ea where 1- 0 psyd1ology has a particularly important role to play. Early efforts in ICTD were not commonly based upon furn theoretical and conceptual foundati ons. They often neglected to incorporate Insights into the psydlological aspects of human beh.rvior at work (Heeks, 2010). The growing popularity ofICTD studies focused upon theory, however, suggests a shift tow-ard ICTD projects rooted ln a firmer l!lnderstanding of human behavior (Gomez, Baron, & Fiore-Sil.fvast 2012). Prominent co1n1nentators in the field haye ernphasized the n~ed for a greater role for the organizatio nal and management sciences In parUcular (see Reeks, 200'7). Accordingly, T-0 psychology likely has something m eaningful to add, particulady to discussi0ns focused on the sources of failtu·e in ICTD pro,iects. from perforn1ance evaluation to traftilng needs analyses and goal-setting, l-0 psychology tools and theories ar e quite relevant and can be employ.ed to hel'p tile field of ICTD to improve lts success rate. The potential for 1-0 psychol0gy to help I CTD scientists and practitioners understand and address the aforementioned "n1ental barriers" and motivation issues that arise when ICT is used to perfor111 work b1 developing regions of tl1e world is especially great. It is worth pointing out that while the aforen1enti0ned dialogue has developed 1-vitbin the field ofICTD, parallel discussions have unfolded in the ·p sychological scj ences, which foci.ls OJl 1-0 psychology's relevan~e to international ,developme11t ( e.g., Gloss & Thompson., 2013). Berry et al. (2011) point out that 1-0 psychologists are particularly well suited to assess the needs and capacity of developin g communities, to use past beh.avior al liistory to predict the sucoess of development projects, and to ensure the psyehornet.rie validity of i.nformario n collected about development projects. Carr and Bandawe (2011) offer bot.11 encouragement and caution. They describe how I-0 psychology can help to assist international

Coovert, Michael D., and Foster Thompson, Lori, eds. SIOP Organizational Frontiers Series : Psychology of Workplace Technology. London, GBR: Taylor and Francis, 2013. ProQuest ebrary. Web. 6 January 2015. Copyright © 2013. Taylor and Francis. All rights reserved.

Globa.l Develop111ent • 265 develop1nent through research and 1,ractice in ;1reas such as performance 111anage111ent a.nd counterproductive work behavior (e.g., school performance and teacher attendance in schools). They caution, however, that in order to be effective In this sphere, 1-0 psychology n1ust reinain attuned to other discipl:ines and aligned ,,vith local stakeholders' perspectives. finally, Pick and Sirki11 (201 O) poiht out fhat psychology inserts the ,onsideration of a wide range of hun1an factors that. together with environn1ental conte>..'t, help to sh;:ipe societal development. These 11uman facto rs are often relatively overlool;U. Conscientiousness. for exarnple, has been shown to be especially in1porta11t for high-aut.onomyjobs (Mount & Barrick, l 995). To motivate the CHWs, it n1ay be itnportant to criticallyexam.i ne the features of the Job and identify potential CHW-s who wiU be the best tit for that environment If this is not possible, the situatlo11 must be altered to fit the 11eeds of the CHW-s. It is possible that the technologil:al r e1ni11der system could be more effective if it was tailored to the CHv\T population. To do this, one can consider a tltural yalu,es that determine the effec.ii'[e11ess of particular _feedbacl( strategies. In general, feedback Jnust be valued to be useful (Tuckey et al., 2.002). If the CHWs come from a collectivist cttlture, group-based. feedback n1ay be especiall'y valued (e.g., teams of CHWs could be given feedbaclton their performance as a whole: Leung, 2001 ). Further, po,¥er distance vallles 1nay affect the usefu!n~ss of feedback and ren1inders; In a high powerdistance context, feedback ls much more likely t0 be valued when it con1es from a supervisor; self-set goais have a much less powerful effect than they

Coovert, Michael D., and Foster Thompson, Lori, eds. SIOP Organizational Frontiers Series : Psychology of Workplace Technology. London, GBR: Taylor and Francis, 2013. ProQuest ebrary. Web. 6 January 2015. Copyright © 2013. Taylor and Francis. All rights reserved.

268 • Tara S. Behrend et al.

do in low power-distance ctiltutes (Leung, 200 1 ). This cultural value colclld explain why the remh1der systein failed to increase perfonn ance In the DeRenzi et al. (2012) case when the slclpervisor was not involved. Finally, cognitlve approaches, such as goal- settin,g and social cognitive theories, can be used. Given the nature of the challenge, these approad1e.s are lik.elyto be rhe most effective. Program staff might need to increase the timeliness of client vfslts without changing easeloads, restructuring their work, 0r hiring more CHWs. Goal setting, a theory with a great deal of empirical support, may suggest a way forward. Goal setting theory prop0ses tht1t to be efti:ctive, goals should be specific and chalJenging. CHWs can be given clear benchmarks for timeliness and ,u1y other indicators 0fvalue (e.g., referrals to care providers), and the goal shol'tld be challellgfng enough thar reaching it requires eft·o1i (Locke & Latham, 2002). Currently no speciflt goal is assigned to CHWs; rather a "do y0ur best" approach ls used, which has been shown to be far less effective (Loclce & Latham, 1990; 2002). further, acceptance of goals is crucial If the CHvVs do not see the value of attaining the goal, they ,,vill not be motivated to attain it. In this ,case, it is possible that the CHWs do not vaiue the goals; this is indicated by the fact that when te1nlnders were sent t'o the CHW only and no follow up ~vas sent to the supervisor. no change in timeliness occurred. A lack of goal acceptance on behalf of the CHWs 1night be explained by social cognitive theory. Social cognitive theory e1nphasizes the fact that people are motivated by goal foresight, which allows for ind ividuals to anticipate and ch.ange tl1eir behavior. In the case at haJ1d, reminders are only sent w-hen the visit is overdue or oeariy 0verdue. This might be problen1atic as self-efficacy, a key component of social cognitive theory, ls built up over time as people attain goals, causing them to set still-higher cause tl1e CHWs to give up goals ln the future. Low self~efflcacy cnmpletelylftheyfeel the goalis·im,possibJe (Stajkovic & Luthans, 1998). Receiving negative fee.dback repeatedly ~vhen tiJlleliness goals are not met can decrease a CHW's self-.efficacy, ,,vhereas building upon past success and anticipatin,g manageable goals in the future is likely to increase self. efficacy and performance. In summary. various theories relating to motivation and goal-setting aa.n provide a better understanding of the performance 0f CHWs, helping to Inform rbe design and facilitate the success of technological Jnnovations to improve their performance and well- being. This example llelps to show how I-0 psychologists could work closely ,-vith those h1terested in JCT and international development to assess personal characteristlcs, Job design, and situatio11al coristralnts to develop culturally appropriate recommendations in a wide number of similar ICTD projects.

'"rill

Coovert, Michael D., and Foster Thompson, Lori, eds. SIOP Organizational Frontiers Series : Psychology of Workplace Technology. London, GBR: Taylor and Francis, 2013. ProQuest ebrary. Web. 6 January 2015. Copyright © 2013. Taylor and Francis. All rights reserved.

Global Developn,ent • 269

CASE 2: DEVELOPMEN,T OF MOBILE PHONE-BASED JOB APPLICATJON SYSTEM IN IN.D IA Problem/context: A rapidly growing economy in India has created the need to efficiently match qualified workers with ernployers and jobs. Prospective hires typically visit employment centers, but these centers are often not able to meet the demand , resulting in excessive wait time and limited access to information abo11t job opportw1ities. White et al. (2012) report on an inrervention to increase access to inforrnation, especially for rural candidates who currently use the newspaper to search for fobs, while providing -an efficient matching service for employers and workers. Interve.11tion: Wllite et al. (2012) developed an autoJnated phone-based system to assess KSAOs and match applicants with employer needs. The syste1111s designed to allow candidates to post proflles, search for Job postings, and apply for open positions, It also allows employers to post ads and search for candidates ,.vhose profiles Jnatch thek needs. Cnnctidate profiles include age, gender, skills., career interests, and experiences. Job profiles include t·he job title, location, required skills 3,nd e,xperiences, and the time frame required for the position (e.g.. six months). To ,implement this system. the tool was first tested fo r usability, The goal 0f this project was to assess adoption intentions, employer and candidate willingness to use the system, and feasibility. Measures ofsuccess were based on the quality of an empl0yee-employer match according to the criteria 111 the job profile. How c.an psychology assist in this effort? The 11se of techn01ogy-based selection systems has been on the rise due to their capability t o process applications efficiently and accurately. However, these systems also l1a,,e the potential to introduce technology-related anxiety and privacy concesns (Mead et al., th.is volttme). Equity of acces!;- is also a ooncern, Consider that 1h the U.S., n1ost Job search and screening sy-Ste1ns are cotnputet-based, While a nontrivial percentage of the populatio1i does not have on.line access. This could Introduce unintentional 'biases against Ah'icaH-Atnericans, for example, 56 percent of wl1om J1ave internet access at home coin pared with 66 petcent of the overall population, Biases r,elated to nge and socioeconomic status can also occur, thus einployers need to consider tJ1e population tl1ey want to reach before deploying a technology-based system, In the White et al. (2012) case described above, phones are arguably m ore appropriate than. computer- based systems because mobile access is m ore cornmon in the region studied than is compµter access.

Coovert, Michael D., and Foster Thompson, Lori, eds. SIOP Organizational Frontiers Series : Psychology of Workplace Technology. London, GBR: Taylor and Francis, 2013. ProQuest ebrary. Web. 6 January 2015. Copyright © 2013. Taylor and Francis. All rights reserved.

270 • Tara S. Behrend et al. The system described in the White et al. (20 12) case is meant to be used not only for initial screening, but also recrultment and placement. Effective recruitment ru1d p lace111ent systems need to take Into account a number of additional factors such as person-organization flt, values, and ca11dldate pfeferences. The most appropriate Vc'lriables to include in a plaoeme11t system will depend enljrely on the goal of the system. Systern eft1ciency, rnatch quality. or e1nplo-yee turnover or performance, for example. all require different considerations. For instance, if short- ter1n performance is most impor,tant, an employer may Wish to look for cand idates who ,;1.lready have the skills .required, whereas an employer looklng for longter,rn employees may focus mol"e on fit and provide on-the-Job training. The White et al. (2012) selection systetn makes use of a "lear~g network"-an .algorithm that takes rnultiple variables into account to automate matcl1ing decisions, learning 0ver time from user input about the quality of a given match. The network was t1sed to make 1natches instead of relying 0n employers to choose. The use of a learning network like this one represents a distinct technology beyond the phone-based syste,n, and It carries its o\o\rn set of cl1allenges. For instance, the en1ployers taking part ih the process n1ay not always trust the quality of the l'eco:mmendations. However, the learning network approach could be enhanced if it Included additional psychological variables. Pethaps most imp0rtantly, criterion variables such as performance and turnover should be collected to assess the quality of the matching algorithm and adjust it over tin1e. Additional p redictor variables might also be recomn1ended, including personality, integrity, and cognitive ability. as vvell as values. goals, and interests for the purposes of det ermining the potential "fit" between the applicants and the organization for whicll tl1ey would be working. I-0 psycl1ology research and best practices related to recruitment could be further integrated i11to job selection syste1n, such as the case described by White et al. (2012). Personal referrals h ave long been known t-o be a good source ef job applicants. Referrals have the benefit of pr·oviding realistic job information from the referrer to the applicant. Because of this information, referred applicants are better able to assess whether they would be a good t1t iJ1 the organization, The referring employee also helps In t11e screening process ,ls it ca11 tyi)ically be asswned that ,\n e1nployee Wolild 11ot choose to tefer a destructive or inco1npetent candidate (Pre1nack & Wanous, 1985; Wano11s, 1992). The phone-based selection system in the White et al. (2012) case could benefit from a greater utilization of referrals·. Even though referrals were not explicitly included in the selection system,

Coovert, Michael D., and Foster Thompson, Lori, eds. SIOP Organizational Frontiers Series : Psychology of Workplace Technology. London, GBR: Taylor and Francis, 2013. ProQuest ebrary. Web. 6 January 2015. Copyright © 2013. Taylor and Francis. All rights reserved.

Globa.l Develop111ent • 271 the program designers ast,u tely acknowledge the l111pot'tance of social networks, wh.lch as demonstrated by Landers and Goldberg (this volulne) can be an invaluable source of tnformation about Jobs, leading to better matches and tnore realistic job perceptions fot prospective wor kers. Altogether, there are multfple opportunltfes for I-0 psychology to enhance phone-based sele