Research

Digital innovations are fundamentally changing how people in organizations work, collaborate, and are led. New approaches to designing digital applications (e.g., motivational design, gamification, nudging) and new underlying technologies (e.g., artificial intelligence, extended reality) not only unlock potential for productivity, engagement, and well-being, but also pose risks for employees, teams, and leadership. The role that digital innovations play in the workplace depends largely on how the people who interact with them perceive them—on their motivations, emotions, needs, habits, and values.

Research focus

Our interdisciplinary research profile, “Human-Centered Digitalization for Sustainable Management,” places people at the center and examines how digital systems shape motivation, behavior, collaboration, and work. Our research adopts two core perspectives: the conscious design of digital systems based on a design science paradigm, and the conscious use of digital systems based on a behavioral science paradigm.

With these two perspectives, our research focuses on three thematic areas at the intersection of humans, digitalization, and sustainability.

Green and persuasive IS for pro-environmental behavior

In this research area, we investigate how digital systems can promote environmentally friendly behavior. Our focus is on the motivational design of digital applications - for example, through gamification and persuasive systems - to support acceptance and sustainable use in the workplace and beyond. In addition, we explore how the immersive potential of virtual and extended reality applications makes these effects tangible.

Well-being and connection in the digital world

In this research area, we investigate the effects of digital transformation on employees, their collaboration, and their work. Our research focuses in particular on the design of digital technologies to promote well-being and mental health in self-organized work, as well as the effects of generative AI on team dynamics and cohesion. We also examine issues related to digitally supported leadership in distributed and hybrid work contexts, including the associated shifts in power and inequalities.

Human-AI interaction for innovation and creativity

InterAICT Platform for AI Research

For our research on the design and impact of artificial intelligence, we use our proprietary InterAICT platform, which allows us to create, evaluate, and share AI agents based on a wide variety of language models in compliance with data protection regulations for research purposes.