Title: Identifying the differences between stationary office support and mobile work support: a conceptual framework

Authors: Wuping Zheng, Yufei Yuan

Addresses: Michael G. DeGroote School of Business, McMaster University, 1280 Main St. W., Hamilton, Ontario L8S 4M4, Canada. ' Michael G. DeGroote School of Business, McMaster University, 1280 Main St. W., Hamilton, Ontario L8S 4M4, Canada

Abstract: The rapid development of mobile technologies provides great potential to support mobile work that was not supported by traditional stationary information systems. To realise this great potential, it is important for us to fully understand the nature of mobile work in order to develop efficient and effective support for mobile workers. In this paper, we propose a conceptual framework and use this framework to analyse four fundamental aspects of mobile work: mobile workers, mobile tasks, mobile context and mobile technology. The key differences between office work support and mobile work support are highlighted. The conceptual framework can be used to identify research issues and provide guidelines for the development of effective mobile work support systems.

Keywords: mobile work support; stationary office support; mobile workers; mobile tasks; mobile context; mobile technology; mobile communications; stationary information systems.

DOI: 10.1504/IJMC.2007.011492

International Journal of Mobile Communications, 2007 Vol.5 No.1, pp.107 - 122

Published online: 01 Dec 2006 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article