IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/brjirl/v56y2018i2p342-369.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Safeguards against Opportunism in Freelance Contracting on the Internet

Author

Listed:
  • Andrey Shevchuk
  • Denis Strebkov

Abstract

Based on a large sample of 5,756 Russian†speaking freelancers from an international online labour market, this study provides rare quantitative evidence of the external labour market where freelancers act under constant threat of client†side opportunism. We explore how the formalization of agreements, social embeddedness and mode of communication are associated with the incidence of opportunism and further possibilities of resolving problems caused by agreement violations. Social ties and face†to†face contact appear to be better safeguards against opportunism in freelance contracting, which is largely informal. The study has important implications for the debates about non†standard work, online labour markets and job quality in the new economy.

Suggested Citation

  • Andrey Shevchuk & Denis Strebkov, 2018. "Safeguards against Opportunism in Freelance Contracting on the Internet," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 56(2), pages 342-369, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:brjirl:v:56:y:2018:i:2:p:342-369
    DOI: 10.1111/bjir.12283
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/bjir.12283
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/bjir.12283?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Michael Storper & Anthony J. Venables, 2004. "Buzz: face-to-face contact and the urban economy," Journal of Economic Geography, Oxford University Press, vol. 4(4), pages 351-370, August.
    2. Shirley Dex & Janet Willis & Richard Paterson & Elaine Sheppard, 2000. "Freelance Workers and Contract Uncertainty: The Effects of Contractual Changes in the Television Industry," Work, Employment & Society, British Sociological Association, vol. 14(2), pages 283-305, June.
    3. Martine Selm & Nicholas Jankowski, 2006. "Conducting Online Surveys," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 40(3), pages 435-456, June.
    4. Shannon Davis & Andrey Shevchuk & Denis Strebkov, 2014. "Pathways to Satisfaction with Work-Life Balance: The Case of Russian-Language Internet Freelancers," Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Springer, vol. 35(4), pages 542-556, December.
    5. William M. Rodgers III & Sara Horowitz & Gabrielle Wuolo, 2014. "The Impact of Client Nonpayment on the Income of Contingent Workers: Evidence from the Freelancers Union Independent Worker Survey," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 67(3_suppl), pages 702-733, May.
    6. Shevchuk, Andrey & Strebkov, Denis, 2012. "Freelancers in Russia: Remote work patterns and e-markets," economic sociology. perspectives and conversations, Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies, vol. 13(2), pages 37-45.
    7. Radkevitch, U.L. & van Heck, H.W.G.M. & Koppius, O.R., 2006. "Buyer Commitment and Opportunism in the Online Market for IT Services," ERIM Report Series Research in Management ERS-2006-046-LIS, Erasmus Research Institute of Management (ERIM), ERIM is the joint research institute of the Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University and the Erasmus School of Economics (ESE) at Erasmus University Rotterdam.
    8. Eli M. Snir & Lorin M. Hitt, 2003. "Costly Bidding in Online Markets for IT Services," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 49(11), pages 1504-1520, November.
    9. Rory Donnelly, 2011. "The Organization of Working Time in the Knowledge Economy: An Insight into the Working Time Patterns of Consultants in the UK and the USA," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 49(Supplemen), pages 93-114, June.
    10. Arne Baumann, 2002. "Informal Labour Market Governance: the Case of the British and German Media Production Industries," Work, Employment & Society, British Sociological Association, vol. 16(1), pages 27-46, March.
    11. Mark Granovetter, 2005. "The Impact of Social Structure on Economic Outcomes," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 19(1), pages 33-50, Winter.
    12. Janet Fraser & Michael Gold, 2001. "`Portfolio Workers': Autonomy and Control amongst Freelance Translators," Work, Employment & Society, British Sociological Association, vol. 15(4), pages 679-697, December.
    13. Gideon Kunda & Stephen R. Barley & James Evans, 2002. "Why Do Contractors Contract? The Experience of Highly Skilled Technical Professionals in a Contingent Labor Market," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 55(2), pages 234-261, January.
    14. Rockmann, Kevin W. & Northcraft, Gregory B., 2008. "To be or not to be trusted: The influence of media richness on defection and deception," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 107(2), pages 106-122, November.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Tóth, Zsófia & Nemkova, Ekaterina & Hizsák, Gábor & Naudé, Peter, 2022. "Social capital creation on professional sharing economy platforms: The problems of rating dependency and the non-transferability of social capital," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 144(C), pages 450-460.
    2. Wood, Alex & Lehdonvirta, Vili, 2021. "Antagonism beyond employment: how the ‘subordinated agency’ of labour platforms generates conflict in the remote gig economy," SocArXiv y943w, Center for Open Science.
    3. Yao Yao, 2020. "Uberizing the Legal Profession? Lawyer Autonomy and Status in the Digital Legal Market," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 58(3), pages 483-506, September.
    4. Andrey SHEVCHUK & Denis STREBKOV, 2023. "Digital platforms and the changing freelance workforce in the Russian Federation: A ten‐year perspective," International Labour Review, International Labour Organization, vol. 162(1), pages 1-22, March.
    5. Lehdonvirta, Vili & Kässi, Otto & Hjorth, Isis & Barnard, Helena & Graham, Mark, 2018. "The Global Platform Economy: A New Offshoring Institution Enabling Emerging-Economy Microproviders," SocArXiv jt4z7, Center for Open Science.
    6. Norbäck, Maria & Styhre, Alexander, 2019. "Making it work in free agent work: The coping practices of Swedish freelance journalists," Scandinavian Journal of Management, Elsevier, vol. 35(4).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Andrey Shevchuk & Denis Strebkov, 2013. "Freelance contracting in the digital age: informality, virtuality and social ties," HSE Working papers WP BRP 12/SOC/2013, National Research University Higher School of Economics.
    2. Sarah Williams & Elizabeth Currid-Halkett, 2014. "Industry in Motion: Using Smart Phones to Explore the Spatial Network of the Garment Industry in New York City," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 9(2), pages 1-11, February.
    3. Shannon Davis & Andrey Shevchuk & Denis Strebkov, 2014. "Pathways to Satisfaction with Work-Life Balance: The Case of Russian-Language Internet Freelancers," Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Springer, vol. 35(4), pages 542-556, December.
    4. Roberta Comunian & Alessandra Faggian & Qian Cher Li, 2010. "Unrewarded careers in the creative class: The strange case of bohemian graduates," Papers in Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 89(2), pages 389-410, June.
    5. Ivona Huđek & Polona Tominc & Karin Širec, 2021. "The Human Capital of the Freelancers and Their Satisfaction with the Quality of Life," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(20), pages 1-23, October.
    6. Matthew Bidwell & Isabel Fernandez-Mateo, 2010. "Relationship Duration and Returns to Brokerage in the Staffing Sector," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 21(6), pages 1141-1158, December.
    7. Joana Almodovar & Aurora A.C. Teixeira, 2009. "Conceptualizing clusters through the lens of networks: a critical synthesis," FEP Working Papers 328, Universidade do Porto, Faculdade de Economia do Porto.
    8. Sébastien Brion & Vincent Chauvet & Barthelemy Chollet & Caroline Danièle Mothe, 2012. "Project leaders as team boundary spanners: Relational antecedents and performance outcomes," Post-Print hal-00919228, HAL.
    9. Eloy Solis & Kayvan Karimi & Irene Garcia & Inmaculada Mohino, 2022. "Knowledge Economy Clustering at the Intrametropolitan Level: Evidence from Madrid," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 13(2), pages 1268-1299, June.
    10. Martin P. Fritze & Andreas B. Eisingerich & Martin Benkenstein, 2019. "Digital transformation and possession attachment: examining the endowment effect for consumers’ relationships with hedonic and utilitarian digital service technologies," Electronic Commerce Research, Springer, vol. 19(2), pages 311-337, June.
    11. Marta Gancarczyk, 2010. "Model schyłku i odrodzenia klastrów," Gospodarka Narodowa. The Polish Journal of Economics, Warsaw School of Economics, issue 3, pages 1-21.
    12. Brown, Philip & Roper, Simon, 2017. "Innovation and networks in New Zealand farming," Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society, vol. 61(3), July.
    13. Kong, Dongmin & Pan, Yue & Tian, Gary Gang & Zhang, Pengdong, 2020. "CEOs' hometown connections and access to trade credit: Evidence from China," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    14. Iris Wanzenböck & Philipp Piribauer, 2018. "R&D networks and regional knowledge production in Europe: Evidence from a space‐time model," Papers in Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 97(S1), pages 1-24, March.
    15. Raventós, Pedro & Zolezzi, Sandro, 2015. "Electronic tendering of pharmaceuticals and medical devices in Chile," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 68(12), pages 2569-2578.
    16. Yang, Jialiang & Li, Yaokuang & Calic, Goran & Shevchenko, Anton, 2020. "How multimedia shape crowdfunding outcomes: The overshadowing effect of images and videos on text in campaign information," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 117(C), pages 6-18.
    17. Jensen, Peter D. Ørberg & Larsen, Marcus M. & Pedersen, Torben, 2013. "The organizational design of offshoring: Taking stock and moving forward," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 19(4), pages 315-323.
    18. Shuai Shi & Kathy Pain, 2020. "Investigating China’s Mid-Yangtze River economic growth region using a spatial network growth model," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 57(14), pages 2973-2993, November.
    19. Domènec Melé, 2009. "The Practice of Networking: An Ethical Approach," Journal of Business Ethics, Springer, vol. 90(4), pages 487-503, December.
    20. Arbia, Giuseppe & Espa, Giuseppe & Giuliani, Diego & Mazzitelli, Andrea, 2010. "Detecting the existence of space-time clustering of firms," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 40(5), pages 311-323, September.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:brjirl:v:56:y:2018:i:2:p:342-369. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/lsepsuk.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.