Connection in Unexpected Places: How, Why, and With What Consequences Workers Connect with Clients

Research on connections in the workplace has investigated many different types of relationships. However, less attention has been paid to one type of relationship that is a vital component of many workplaces: the relationship between the worker and the people they provide goods or services to (e.g., clients, patients, or audience members). Importantly, insights from broader social science scholarship suggest that the process of forging connections with clients is likely different from forging relationships with coworkers or mentors. In an effort to gain greater insight into worker-client connections, we invited a set of scholars studying this phenomenon within organizations. We have deliberately assembled a collection of qualitative studies that draw on findings from interviews, participant observation, and ethnographic techniques to develop rich, deeply descriptive, and contextual insights from a variety of workplace contexts, investigating how, why, and with what consequences people work with the clients of their organizations. How and Why Social Workers Establish Relational Boundaries with their Clients Author: Solomiya Draga; U. of Toronto Author: Marlys K. Christianson; U. of Toronto Resolving Misfit through Embodiment Work in Specialized Job Coaching Author: Ann-Sophie Baeken; KU Leuven Author: Emily Dunham Heaphy; U. of Massachusetts, Amherst Author: Anneleen Forrier; KU Leuven Author: Nele De Cuyper; KU Leuven How Prosocial Professionals Approach Client Status and Expert Power Author: Lakshmi Ramarajan; Harvard U. Author: Julie Yen; Harvard Business School Simplicity on the Other Side of Historical Complexity Author: Jeff Thompson; Brigham Young U. Author: Lyndon Earl Garrett; Boston College Author: Mac Jeffrey Alexander Strachan; - Author: Stuart Bunderson; Wash U.