Positives outweighing negatives

The experiences of Indian crowdsourced workers

Bibliographic Data

ID21189747
AuthorsPremilla D’cruz (0000-0002-5232-3122), Premilla D'Cruz Premilla D'Cruz, Ernesto Noronha (0000-0002-9820-3011), Ernesto Noronha Ernesto Noronha
Year2016
Volume10
Issue1
Publication date2016-04-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueWork Organisation Labour & Globalisation (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1745-641X • E-ISSN: 1745-6428
PublisherPluto Journals (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.13169/workorgalaboglob.10.1.0044
OpenAlexW2474240581
LanguageEN
Citations received44
References cited14

This article reports on an empirical study of Indian freelancers working via Elance-oDesk (now renamed Upwork). In a qualitative approach, data were gathered from 24 freelancers across India through in-depth telephone interviews and analysed thematically. The core finding that ‘the positives outweigh the negatives’ highlighted the fact that the challenges were eclipsed by what these freelancers gained, in terms of employment opportunities, income, skill utilisation and enhancement, career progression, emphasis on merit, international exposure, flexibility and platform-based protection of worker interests. Participants' favourable experiences are explained by the nature of the Indian labour market. The study extends insights into crowdsourcing for paid work which has so far been largely researched in the West and has focused disproportionally on the Amazon Mechanical Turk platform

Business · Crowdsourcing · Data science · Economics · Empirical research · Epistemology · Management · Political science · Public relations · Qualitative research · Social science · Sociology · Computer Science · Digital Economy and Work Transformation · Engineering · Innovation and Socioeconomic Development · Law · Psychology · Sharing Economy and Platforms · Marketing

Tools

Open DOISci-HubOpen Access