Telecommuting and job outcomes: A moderated mediation model of system use, software quality, and social Exchange

Abstract

This research investigates an artifact-centric view of the telecommuting experience, examining how system use and software quality influence job outcomes of telecommuters. We develop and test our moderated mediation model in a cross-organizational study of 184 teleworkers. Results show the extensive use of telecommuting systems negatively impacts social exchange processes and job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and job performance of telecommuters, underscoring limitations of virtual interactions. However, high-quality software can moderate this negative effect, because the negative relationship between telecommuting system use and job outcomes becomes nonsignificant, as telecommuting software quality increases.