Research Methodology: Investigating the Labour Regime in Platform Capitalism

This chapter outlines the methodological framework employed to investigate the dynamics of labor regimes within Indonesia’s platform economy. Recognizing the complexity of labor regime studies, which require capturing interactions among diverse actors and institutions, this research adopts a mixed-methods design combining qualitative and quantitative approaches. Data collection was conducted over three phases between 2020 and 2022, allowing for a longitudinal perspective on shifting labor regimes before, during, and after the COVID-19 pandemic. The qualitative component centered on workers’ inquiry and digital ethnography, involving participant observation in 44 online driver communities, as well as semi-structured and informal interviews with 116 respondents, including drivers, couriers, government officials, and driver organization representatives. Complementing this, the quantitative component consisted of four large-scale surveys reaching more than 1,200 respondents across major platforms such as Gojek, Grab, Maxim, Lalamove, Borzo, Shopee Express, and J&T Express. Focus Group Discussions further enriched the dataset by incorporating perspectives from state actors and worker collectives. To ensure validity, the study applied triangulation across data sources and conducted follow-up verifications with respondents when needed. Data were analyzed using the labor regime framework, classifying evidence into work processes, labor reproduction, market competition, and state intervention. This comprehensive methodology provides a robust empirical foundation for examining how platform capitalism institutionalizes cheap labor regimes and why workers continue to engage in conditions marked by precarity and super-exploitation.