Self-tracking devices and sustainable employability
Professorship Labourparticipation
Self-tracking devices and sustainable employability
Hanze UAS: Fit for sustainable employability (Fit4SE)
Hilbrand Oldenhuis (Professorship Labour Participation) Louis Polstra (Professorship Labour Participation)
Hugo Velthuijsen (Professorship New Business and ICT)
Martijn de Groot (Quantified Self Institute)
Self-tracking devices and sustainable employability
Sustainable employability: the extent to which a worker wants to and is able to continue to perform his/her
current and future jobs in a healthy and valued way (Van
Vuuren, 2011; van der Klink et al., 2010)
Self-tracking devices and sustainable employability
Health Sustainable employability
(e.g. Tuomi et al., 2001; Ilmarinen et al., 1997; Van den Berg et al., 2008)
Self-tracking devices and sustainable employability
Aim of this project:
Studying the effect of self-tracking devices as a means to increase employees’ sustainable employability
Self-tracking devices: technology that enables its users to gain an understanding of and obtain feedback about certain physiological parameters and/or lifestyle
behaviours over an extended period
Self-tracking devices and sustainable employability
Self-tracking devices as a means to influence behavior
Self-determination theory (o.a. Ryan & Deci, 2000; Vansteenkiste & Ryan, 2013):
Intrinsically motivated behavior is facilitated when basic needs are fulfilled:
1. Need for autonomy 2. Need for competence
Self-tracking devices and sustainable employability
Self-tracking devices as a means to influence behavior Goal-setting theory (o.a. Locke et al., 1981; Latham et al., 2011):
Goal-directed behavior is better performed when:
• Goals are specific and challenging
• Goals are accepted (see ‘autonomy’)
Self-tracking devices and sustainable employability
Supervision by a coach to formulate goals (SDT, goal- setting) and to meet need for relatedness (SDT)
Self-tracking devices and sustainable employability
Participating company: ‘Museumtechnische werken’
Self-tracking devices and sustainable employability
Employees could choose one of 5 domains to be measured (‘big five for healthy life’):
1. Daily physical activity 2. Food and nutrition 3. Sleep
4. Stress
5. Social interaction
Self-tracking devices and sustainable employability
Measures before, during and afterwards:
• Quality of Life (SF12)
• Interviews
• Diaries/logbooks
• Self-assessments under supervision of the coach
• Devices’ data
Self-tracking devices and sustainable employability
• Technical support
• Coaching: intake + 3 meetings
• 3-month period
Self-tracking devices and sustainable employability
Results:
12 participants, 23 – 64 years, 6 males, 6 females 9 physical activity trackers (3 Fitbits, 6 Withings) 1 sleep-tracker (Zeo)
2 stress-trackers (Inner Balance, Emwave2)
Self-tracking devices and sustainable employability
Fitbit: Zeo:
Withings: Emwave2: Inner Balance:
Self-tracking devices and sustainable employability
Logbooks:
Satisfaction: grades from 6 to 9 (max: 10) Mainly positive experiences
Self-tracking devices and sustainable employability
SF-12, differences before and afterwards
Functional status:
V
Wellbeing:
V
Physical health:
V
Mental health:
V
Self-tracking devices and sustainable employability
Self-asssessments:
Physical vitality:
V
Mental/emotional vitality:
±
Social vitality:
±
Giving meaning:
X
Self-tracking devices and sustainable employability
Devices’ data:
Based on the physical activity trackers:
Baseline compared to rest of the 3-month period:
3 devices too little data
3 devices significant increase of number of steps
3 devices no significant decrease of number of steps
Self-tracking devices and sustainable employability
5000 10000 15000 20000 25000 30000
Self-tracking devices and sustainable employability
Interviews:
Satisfaction influenced by:
1. Degree to which device answered to expectations (‘unconscious’, ‘online’ measurement)
2. Clear-cut feedback in relation to goals 3. Userfriendliness
Self-tracking devices and sustainable employability
Interviews:
Effect on health behaviors:
- More when feedback was perceived as reinforcing
- When feedback gave clear direction and was strongly related to personal goal
- Sometimes cross-over effect on other domains (‘when you do one thing, it becomes easier to do
Self-tracking devices and sustainable employability
Interviews:
Competence concerning health behavior increased:
- When feedback was perceived as positive, e.g. when goal was accomplished repeatedly
- When feedback could be interpreted clearly and as such led to heigthened insight
Self-tracking devices and sustainable employability
Interviews:
Personal view on sustainable employability:
- In general (but not always!) no perceived increase of sustainable employability
- Perceived positive effects are (in general) limited to specific health domain
Self-tracking devices and sustainable employability
Coaching valuable:
1. Setting goals
2. Connecting goals to other important goals (autonomy)
3. Social support
4. Additional incentive
Very important precondition: PRIVACY
Self-tracking devices and sustainable employability
Conclusion:
‘self-tracking devices, combined with coaching can help to increase employees’ sustainable employability’
Goal-setting theory and self-determination theory valuable theoretical framework
Succesfactors:
Devices:
– Devices are in line with user’s expectations – Feedback strongly related to user’s goal
– Userfriendliness (functioning, battery, comfort)
Coaching (preconditions: privacy and expertise regarding self-tracking devices):
– Setting goals (specific, challenging, suiting the device) – Connecting goals to ‘higher order’ goals
– Social support
Information:
– Realistic view of (im)possibilities available devices – Autonomous choice participation and device
– Technical support constantly available
Additionally: Role of the management:
Self-tracking devices and sustainable employability
Discussion:
- No control group (e.g. to control for ‘season-effect’) - Disentangling effects of device and coach
- Not all measures pointed to positive effects - Is ‘sustainable employability’ really increased?
- Longterm effect? (4 participants bought their own device)
Thank you!
Professorship Labourparticipation
