Implications of Social Media for a Changing Work Landscape

Abstract

More than half of the global population now uses social media. This technological ubiquity has transformed the way that individuals communicate and engage with the world around them, and consequently has had drastic effects on modern work. In the 20 years since early social media platforms such as LinkedIn and Myspace were first launched, much research on the consequences of social media has been conducted in the fields of organizational psychology and organizational behavior. In this article, we review this body of literature, highlighting the ways that social media has changed modern work, both in changing organizational behavior and human resource management and in changing the nature of work itself. We detail ethical, legal, and practical challenges that have arisen in this changing landscape and conclude with recommendations for additional research on this topic.