IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/ist/iujspc/y2024i87p1-14.html

A Life Between Work and Travel: A Study on Turkish Digital Nomads

Author

Listed:
  • Merve Yosunkaya

    (İstanbul Üniversitesi)

  • Umut Omay

    (İstanbul Üniversitesi)

Abstract

As the boundaries between the physical and virtual worlds are blurring, the effects of digital transformation have become evident in all aspects of our lives. This transformation drastically alters the standard ways of working and lifestyles and paves the way for the emergence of new concepts and phenomena. In this context, digital nomads have become increasingly prominent as people who work and travel simultaneously with the motto “earn while travelling”. The aim of this study is to examine the phenomenon of digital nomadism based on the example of Turkish Digital Nomads. By determining the lifestyles and working conditions of Turkish digital nomads, the changing expectations and emerging new dynamics in working life are discussed. For the study, a qualitative research method was used and data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 11 digital nomads between July and September 2024. The data obtained from the interviews were analysed by descriptive analysis method using the qualitative data analysis software MAXQDA. According to the results obtained from the research, it was observed that digital nomadism was adopted as an important lifestyle among the participants in terms of both experiencing new cultures and redefining the work-life balance thanks to the freedom and flexibility it offers to individuals. As a result, standard forms of work are being questioned and issues such as work-life balance, job security and social rights need to be reconsidered.

Suggested Citation

  • Merve Yosunkaya & Umut Omay, 2024. "A Life Between Work and Travel: A Study on Turkish Digital Nomads," Journal of Social Policy Conferences, Istanbul University, Faculty of Economics, issue 87, pages 1-14, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:ist:iujspc:y:2024:i:87:p:1-14
    DOI: 10.26650/jspc.2024.87.1577068
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://cdn.istanbul.edu.tr/file/JTA6CLJ8T5/96A43D5B0B1941EBA1D3FA3E0D9BB72B
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://iupress.istanbul.edu.tr/en/journal/jspc/article/a-life-between-work-and-travel-a-study-on-turkish-digital-nomads
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.26650/jspc.2024.87.1577068?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. Fabiola Mancinelli, 2020. "Digital nomads: freedom, responsibility and the neoliberal order," Information Technology & Tourism, Springer, vol. 22(3), pages 417-437, September.
    2. Tiberius, Victor & Chen, Nicole & Bartels, Mirko & Oelsnitz, Dietrich von der, 2024. "Breaking out! A netnography study on motives of a digital nomad lifestyle," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    3. Amankwah-Amoah, Joseph & Khan, Zaheer & Wood, Geoffrey & Knight, Gary, 2021. "COVID-19 and digitalization: The great acceleration," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 136(C), pages 602-611.
    4. Bednorz, Jan, 2024. "Working from anywhere? Work from here! Approaches to attract digital nomads," Annals of Tourism Research, Elsevier, vol. 105(C).
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    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. Tiberius, Victor & Chen, Nicole & Bartels, Mirko & Oelsnitz, Dietrich von der, 2024. "Breaking out! A netnography study on motives of a digital nomad lifestyle," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    2. Ali Zackery & Joseph Amankwah-Amoah & Zahra Heidari Darani & Shiva Ghasemi, 2022. "COVID-19 Research in Business and Management: A Review and Future Research Agenda," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(16), pages 1-32, August.
    3. Jie Li & Sijia Zhong, 2025. "Understanding the well-being of digital nomads from the perspective of self-determination theory – the case of China," Information Technology & Tourism, Springer, vol. 27(4), pages 1229-1251, December.
    4. Lina Bjerke & Steven Bond-Smith & Philip McCann & Charlotta Mellander, 2024. "Work-from-home, relocation, and shadow effects: Evidence from Sweden," Working Papers 2024-3, University of Hawaii Economic Research Organization, University of Hawaii at Manoa.
    5. Zahoor, Nadia & Zopiatis, Anastasios & Adomako, Samuel & Lamprinakos, Grigorios, 2023. "The micro-foundations of digitally transforming SMEs: How digital literacy and technology interact with managerial attributes," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 159(C).
    6. Ulrike Gretzel & Matthias Fuchs & Rodolfo Baggio & Wolfram Hoepken & Rob Law & Julia Neidhardt & Juho Pesonen & Markus Zanker & Zheng Xiang, 2020. "e-Tourism beyond COVID-19: a call for transformative research," Information Technology & Tourism, Springer, vol. 22(2), pages 187-203, June.
    7. Tim Rademaker & Ingo Klingenberg & Stefan Süß, 2025. "Leadership and technostress: a systematic literature review," Management Review Quarterly, Springer, vol. 75(1), pages 429-494, February.
    8. Fascione, Luisa & Oosterhek, Koen & Scheubel, Beatrice & Stracca, Livio & Wildmann, Nadya, 2024. "Keep calm, but watch the outliers: deposit flows in recent crisis episodes and beyond," Occasional Paper Series 361, European Central Bank.
    9. Md. Masud Rana & Shah Ridwan Chowdhury & Mohammad Safaet Siddiqee & Elma Noorain Momo & Afnan Yusuf & Md. Mahbubur Rahman, 2026. "Thirty years of digital entrepreneurship research through a systematic review and bibliometric analysis," Future Business Journal, Springer, vol. 12(1), pages 1-30, December.
    10. Gallo, Giovanni & Nagore García, Amparo, 2025. "Retirement Decisions in the Age of COVID-19 pandemic: Are Older Employees in Digital Occupations Working Longer?," GLO Discussion Paper Series 1553, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    11. Rainoldi, Mattia & Ladkin, Adele & Buhalis, Dimitrios, 2025. "Digital nomads' work-leisure management practices," Annals of Tourism Research, Elsevier, vol. 111(C).
    12. Lehtonen Olli & Pouta Eija & Venesjärvi Riikka, 2025. "From national recreation statistics and mobile data to local estimates of recreational activity in Finland," European Journal of Tourism, Hospitality and Recreation, Sciendo, vol. 15(1), pages 50-63.
    13. Michael D. Dzandu & Sylvester Hatsu & Sergio Cesare, 2025. "Remote Working and Task Innovativeness – an Integrated Resource Based View and Antecedent-Behaviour-Consequence Perspective," Information Systems Frontiers, Springer, vol. 27(2), pages 539-562, April.
    14. Francisco Javier Lacarcel & Raquel Huete, 2023. "Digital communication strategies used by private companies, entrepreneurs, and public entities to attract long-stay tourists: a review," International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, Springer, vol. 19(2), pages 691-708, June.
    15. Miguel Angoitia Grijalba & Yolanda Bueno Hernández & Adriana Perez-Encinas & Begoña Santos Urda, 2025. "Does the use of digital tools improve a firm’s performance?," Review of Managerial Science, Springer, vol. 19(7), pages 2193-2210, July.
    16. Adil Garohe & Rachid Zammar, 2023. "Adaptation of Companies to the Reality of COVID: Criteria Impact and Measures," Post-Print hal-04272996, HAL.
    17. Franco, Chiara & Pietrovito, Filomena, 2024. "Drivers of firms' digital activities in response to the Covid-19 pandemic," Economics & Statistics Discussion Papers esdp24096, University of Molise, Department of Economics.
    18. Anneli Kährik & Katarzyna Kajdanek & Epp Vallikivi & Helina Tamm & Raul Garcia Estevez & Bianka Plüschke-Altof & Tiit Tammaru, 2026. "Where the Grass Is Greener: Deconcentration Mobility and Activity Space Changes Among Remote‐Worker Families," Social Inclusion, Cogitatio Press, vol. 14.
    19. Jeong, Dayun & Ko, Eunju & Taylor, Charles R., 2023. "Don't touch the Merchandise! Factors associated with consumer preference for contact free shopping," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 154(C).
    20. Makoza, Frank, 2025. "Delays of digital nomads strategy and immigration law amendment: Case of Cape Town, South Africa," EconStor Preprints 318387, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    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:ist:iujspc:y:2024:i:87:p:1-14. 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: Istanbul University Press Operational Team (Ertuğrul YAŞAR) (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/ifisttr.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.