Abstract:

Social psychologists have been studying employees’ reactions to electronic monitoring and surveillance (EMS) for more than twenty years. Relying on Zajonc’s social facilitation theory, they make the assumption that EMS produces the same effects as a human manager standing to the worker’s side. It enhances his performance while reinforcing his commitment toward his work or organisation, limiting deviant behaviours. But empirical research does not fully sustain this theory. While some authors do actually find a positive impact of EMS of tasks on employees’ performance, other studies conclude to the opposite or find no link between the two constructs. And the literature on the effects of EMS on employees’ attitude in or toward their organization displays the same controversial findings. These results limit managers’ ability to make the right decisions regarding their IT strategy. They also suggest the need for a halt in the journey to the quest for a “big brother” phenomenon. Relying on a discussion drawn from the existing social psychology research, our objective is to establish if EMS in the working place can really work.