PATTERNS OF TELECOMMUTING AND THEIR CONSEQUENCES - FRAMING THE RESEARCH AGENDA

While there are over 7 million telecommuters in the U.S. today, there has been little empirical research and virtually no theoretical work o n telecommuting. Drawing from the literatures on contingent employment , job design, and social isolation, this article presents' a theoretic al framework for understanding how different constellations of telecom muting arrangements and job characteristics lead to different patterns of employee attitudes and behaviors. After presenting a series of pro positions, the article concludes with suggestions for the empirical te sting of these propositions and a discussion of the implications for m anagement practice.