Shifting the literature from who and when to why: Identifying cyberloafing motives

Abstract

AbstractIn their review of the literature, Lim and Teo (2022) detail the individual, interpersonal, and situational antecedents of cyberloafing, which sheds light on which employees may be predisposed toward this behavior (e.g., younger, male, single, highly educated, and extraverts). Furthermore, they point out that certain situational factors enhance the likelihood of cyberloafing at work (e.g., easy access to the Internet at work, low visibility of one's computer screen, coworker approval of or engagement in the behavior). Although the who and when are informative, an important piece of the puzzle is missing, the why. We need to move beyond descriptive research and seek to identify the motives driving employees' choice to cyberloaf. This knowledge will help determine whether cyberloafing is harmful or helpful as well as how company policies should approach this behavior.