Should I Stay or Should I Go? Worker Commitment to Virtual Organizations

Abstract

As society enters the twenty-first century there is a growing realization that information technology (IT) is heavily influencing organizational structures [1]. One such structure is the virtual organization, in which individuals rely on IT to mediate traditional geographical and temporal boundaries of the firm. The result is a "company without walls" that operates as a virtual "collaborative network of people," independent of location or affiliation [2]. This paper is concerned with exploring how this IT-enabled shift influences worker commitment, a critical factor identified in the organizational behavior literature. Using Wenger’s practice-based learning perspective and theory of legitimate peripheral participation (LPP), we conducted a longitudinal, qualitative analysis of commitment in one open-source software (OSS) project. Results indicate that commitment was strongly associated with engagement in LPP processes (participation, learning and identity transformation). Theoretical contributions and managerial implications are discussed.