• Introduction
• Method
• Findings
• Literature

With the advent of new Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) additional ways of social encounters not requiring corporeal co-presence became available. Nowadays, there is wide spread mobile telephony, long-distance calls have become affordable, emails take eight seconds to bridge the distance between Europe and Australia at virtually no cost, discussion boards are globally accessible, and so forth. In short: New ICTs without doubt enable access to distant people and information cheaper and faster than ever. And these potentials are actually realised, as a large and still growing number of individuals is using these new services on a daily basis.

Taking into account the all-pervasive nature of technically mediated communication in modern societies it is reasonable to assume far-reaching social implications, when new communication and information devices are introduced and adopted on a broad scale. Simple assumptions about these 'impacts' conclude from traits of the technology in question to its consequences. However, the social study of communication technologies informs us that the situation is much more complicated: Acts of mediated communication are always already embedded in multifaceted social interactions of everyday life. Furthermore, in everyday life actions are manifested in institutions and routines, which structure (inter)action and are structured by it. Still, we cannot ignore that we are dealing with material technologies - devices and infrastructures - which impose restrictions and enable actions. Therefore, it is actually a complex relation between technically mediated and non-mediated communication, the routines of everyday life, and the material technology, which is at stake when we are trying to figure out what the social implications of new ICTs might be.

One way to conceive these implications in a fundamental way was introduced as processes of time and space distanciation (Giddens 1984) and compression (Harvey 1989). Here new ICTs are interpreted as latest instance of technologies that since the beginnings of modernity increasingly enable the detachment of social interaction from corporeal co-presence. Both Giddens and Harvey argue that these developments of new social relations transgressing the boundaries of localities are at the core of modernity, that they are therefore the key to the understanding of modern (in the case of Harvey also: post-modern) societies in general.

The space of time-space compression/distanciation is social space, which implies a temporal aspect. Like in Hägerstrand's time-space diagrams (Hägerstrand 1967), it is a space of distances and proximities between humans, but also of co-presence or absence, enclosure or disclosure (Giddens 1984). Close to such an understanding, place was defined as 'meeting place' (Massey 1999). Although place is often imagined as locale of corporeal co-presence, a study trying to explore fundamental changes in daily routines to do with 'meeting places' - be they online or offline - cannot presuppose that the restricted understanding of 'meeting' as face-to-face encounter is still applicable. However, the doubt concerning spatial structures resulting from new levels of time-space compression/distanciation is one of the main motivations for this study. It is the same doubt that creeps behind the question of how much of FaceTime actually is necessary, when there are so many effective possibilities to avoid physical co-presence. In terms of time-space compression/distanciation this is rephrased to the question of how spaces and places are (re)organised in daily lives of users of new ICTs. Which difference does it make to routinely 'meet' people globally on a daily basis? Does it make any difference at all?

In order to answer these questions in this study the everyday life of a professional group was explored, which can be characterised not only as 'heavy users' of electronic networks but also as socially networked on a global scale: Migrant researchers are among Europe's most 'wired' and at the same time most mobile individuals. As such we can expect them to be living under conditions of extreme time-space compression/distanciation. An exploration of their daily routines encompassing their technically mediated and non-mediated communication as well as work and leisure activities and social context should provide insights in social implications of new ICTs that are to do with new patterns of the organisation of social space(s).

The exploration of the role of new ICTs in time-space distanciation/compression, which is presented in this report, focuses on two pairs of specific 'meeting places': the local vs. the global and the home vs. the work place.

Method

The findings are based on 20 in depth interviews carried out in Trondheim, Norway (12 interviews) and Darmstadt, Germany (8 interviews) between October 2001 and January 2002.

Methodological decisions in this project were guided by three assumptions: Following exemplary empirical studies within Science and Technology Studies (STS) and Cultural Studies a couple of otherwise quite common conjectures about the object of research were avoided. This regards three basic distinctions that usually are taken for granted.

First, if the boundary between work and home is object of research, its existence and location cannot be the point of departure. Studies about the use of ICTs at the work place or at home are at risk to presume a division that might not be applicable at all. During the course of this study the main instrument, the thematic interview guide, even had to be adjusted because it still assumed in some cases too clear a line between home and work (see below). The whole of everyday life comprises work and non-work. Therefore, usual restrictions like the exclusive study of 'ICTs at home' or 'ICTs at the workplace' are not applicable.

Second, if re- and deterritorialising practices and their mutual relation are explored, then every kind of social relation has to be taken into account. The isolation of mediated communication and its careful examination let alone the sole interest in one of these communication technologies, say the Internet, would miss the point of the mutual impact different forms of communication have on each other.

Third, inspired by the 'agnosticism' of actor-network theory (Latour 1993 [1991]) an a priori division between technology and non-technology has been avoided. That and how technologies are shaped and embedded in social practices has been demonstrated in numerous contributions from Cultural Studies and STS. However, the existence and whereabouts of the boundary between social and cultural 'interpretation of technology' (Bijker, Pinch et al. 1987) and its materiality as technology sui generis still is still disputed. Actor-network theory draws the most radical conclusion in declaring this boundary as non-existent, treating objects, institutions, and humans as equals. One has not to subscribe to this 'principle of symmetry' between objects and non-objects in order to harvest its virtues for an exploration of technologies in everyday life. The openness gained by the adaptation of this kind of agnosticism as point of departure enables the careful systematic search for the meaning of boundaries between the social and the material in everyday life.

The explorative character of this study should be clear after these introductory words. The aim is not the test of hypotheses and certainly not representative findings. Blurred boundaries, fuzzy categories, open-ended variables are the horror of quantitative methodology. Where if not here the employment of qualitative methods can foster new insights?

Findings

The exploration of the migrating researchers' everyday life reveals a broad variety of practices and routines, which point to a far-reaching deterritorialisation changing temporal and spatial structures of daily life:

• households are distributed transnationally,
• interpretations of differences are transnational transcending the dualistic pattern of homeland and hosting society,
• the transnational language English is the pragmatic choice in work and non-work,
• social networks consist of other foreigners, present or remote,
• the establishment and fostering of transnational networks clearly is accepted as prominent task,
• a broad variety of media is used routinely to sustain transnational networks on a daily basis, and finally
• the institutional context of work allows far reaching freedom in terms of time, space and content of work.

However, none of these observations is only about disappearing boundaries. Barriers remain, which I propose to call residual boundaries. They are left after many other boundaries were removed. So, if we for instance study flexible work under the condition of missing extrinsic restrictions, we notice that intrinsic restrictions like the need for coordination of different schedules in meetings, deadlines, or material rhythms in experiments still can exert quite a lot of structuring power. Further, we can observe that in some cases the structure of agendas of other institutions, (e.g. the kindergarten's schedule) takes over.

In the case of transnational households, cultural differences, and the migrant's struggle with dialects and his or her difficulties to get to know locals, the residual boundary clearly is the problem definition and attitudes of the migrants themselves. These problems so far do not seem to severely interfere with everyday life. But, as the migrants say, 'some day' they want to live closer to their parents or the partner and 'one day' they would prefer to speak their own dialect again.
Another kind of residual boundaries depends on qualities of the place, where migrant researchers live. The English language as choice is only as long feasible as it is actually spoken at the respective place of residence. The same applies for software packages, which, as we have seen, can be a supporting factor within transnational work. But of course they have to be used at the new work place abroad in order to have this impact. Thus, it is also the degree to which a location already is part of transnational networks that can exert residual restrictions to deterritorialising practices.
With respect to media use a final category of residual boundaries can be described. That migrant researchers under certain conditions prefer local sources of information - a colleague, the local library - is due to rational considerations of time-efficiency. Even in a transnational work environment some local practices are either simply more efficient or these local practices can complement transnational practices.
Residual boundaries appear as intrinsic restrictions, they are imposed by other institutions, they are dependent on characteristics of the specific location, and are evoked by the migrants themselves in rational considerations of efficiency and problem definitions.

If we explore cases in which many of these residual boundaries are lacking, the result is not necessarily a greater degree deterritorialisation. On the contrary, routines and deliberate efforts to create secondary boundaries are the result. So, for instance local specificities that support deterritorialisation both on the macro (global-local) and micro (home-work) level, like cheap Internet access at home sponsored by the employer, are countered by manifold self-imposed spatio-temporal restrictions concerning media use. Particularly the home, though it is not the only place (see e.g. the mobile phone dispelled from the pub) in most instances rules out certain kinds of media use and lends itself to other kinds of use. So, home making as special case of place-making typically involves the deliberate configuration of media use.
Another problematic lack of residual boundaries - missing restrictions imposed by family members living in the same household - can be encountered in the case of singles, who experience flexible work as critical. Here the structuring power of work, which in the previous chapter was introduced as relatively weak, due to a high individual workload becomes strong enough to threaten to take over the whole life. Workload is a key to the understanding of benign and malign impacts of flexible work. In fully flexible work it is completely up to the worker where and when s/he is carrying out his/her tasks. Residual structures follow from objective necessities, for instance that two people at least sometimes have to be at a certain place at the same time, when they try to collaborate. Under the condition of a high workload, for example if someone is involved in several projects (i.e. collaborations with the need for meetings), these residual necessities can become major forces structuring the whole life of the worker. An important strategy to achieve control again is place making, which always involves restriction of media use. Again it is most often the home, which is fortified as stronghold, but other places - for instance the lab - can function as protected places as well. In these cases the individual's efforts of such an 'artificial' creation of boundaries are not supported by other institutions, material circumstances, and actors. In research work the boundary of which amount of work is sufficient is weakly defined. 'Attitudes towards work' (e.g. 'The results of my work become better, when I have enough quality time outside work') and the comparison with previous experiences in other jobs ('I work less/more than in my last job') are the only resources the individual can draw on. These aspects therefore become important. They are then the only boundaries against a high workload.
But there is also another story to tell about other participants of this study. As we have seen, in some cases media even becomes even the determining aspect in place making. Then ICTs are experienced as quasi-autonomously imposing boundaries, for instance when the presence of Russian web radio is mentioned as a reason why it is not possible to work at home in Germany. In this example ICTs are restructuring space in terms of the home-work boundary. At the same time bringing Russian radio into the home, which is physically located in Germany, a deterritorialising aspect belonging to the macro level is involved as well. Particularly those younger participants, singles, which were called 'always on' users, generate much more complex and in many cases more permeable secondary boundaries, often based on residual boundaries. This involves a heavier influence of a broader range of ICTs, which are experienced as 'just being there', all the time, everywhere. Whether these younger researchers represent a new type of integrator (Nippert-Eng 1996) on a global scale, is difficult to say. They might as well in a later stage of their life 'settle down' and adapt to more traditional patterns. We just do not know. What we do know is that they are a minority, and that they - like all the others - manage the lack of residual boundaries by the creation of secondary boundaries around protected places.
Summing up, the home still is an important model for the creation of places. If it is stripped of supporting structures it becomes the object of an abstract wish to create at least one place outside work. The more workers are exposed to deterritorialising forces both on the macro and micro level, the more they have a hard time to create this place left to their own devices.

As for the creation and transfer of scientific knowledge under conditions of increasing time-space distanciation we have observed the desire for (increased) participation in international scholarly networks as one important motive for researchers to migrate. Especially scholars from Eastern Europe describe this participation as an absolute necessity. Particularly in these instances, the absence of a component of knowledge transfer is particularly obvious. The Russian researcher living in Germany might very well be able to contribute to international science referring to the Russian way of doing science, but there is simply no demand for his place-bound expertise. Instead, as presented above, he uses Germany as access point into a science, which he experiences as dominated by the 'West' and the way of doing science there.
This pattern - migration accompanied by the inclusion into transnational networks rather than the transfer of knowledge between regions, countries or institutions - is the predominant phenomenon observed in this study. In many cases this applies not only for professional knowledge, but also for other domains of everyday life, for instance, when migrant researchers - preferring the English language as most convenient tool 'to get the job done' - socialise primarily with other transnational migrants, rather than locals.
ICTs are heavily involved in this process. They are part of a flexible mix of a broad variety of media of communication and information, including the old-fashioned letter as well as CNN and BBC World. Face-to-face encounters are seamlessly woven into this web of social activity, which extends far over the immediate surroundings. The line between different modes of communication is drawn following considerations mostly to do with instrumental benefits above all related to time (speed, convenience). Only for a narrow set of social relations - family, partner - technically mediated communication is experienced as being at least in the end principally inappropriate.
The usage of ICTs has been routinised throughout the years of daily application. We encounter a particular kind of closure of the discussion what ICTs are and should be good for. With few exceptions (again: family, partner) it is based on the individual's assessment of efficiency above all in terms of time. Routine on the one hand and deliberation of uses and costs taking place from case to case on the other is not necessarily contradictory. Most interviewees report to avoid spending time experimenting with those ICTs, which are not yet part of their daily routines. If we compare this group with others characterised by heavy use of ICTs (e.g. hackers), this lack of 'playing around' may mark the most pronounced difference. Even if the interviewees try to downplay their playful behaviour, the point remains. Experimenting and playing without clear outcome is considered to be inappropriate use - a waste of precious time. Still, there is a principal openness towards new ICTs, but only if it helps to communicate more efficiently. Thus, routine appears as a deliberate and temporary state that enables maximum efficiency. Open rejection of particular ICTs in this group again is related to effectiveness. Here the keyword is control over time. As presented above, the mobile phone is largely assessed as too intrusive, as interfering with one's ability to juggle tasks and activities to do with all domains of everyday life.
The point of departure for this report is the examination of time-space distanciation, which is increased through the advent of new ICTs, and its relevance for everyday life. It was already mentioned that Harvey and Giddens consider means of communication (and means of transportation) as crucial characteristics of modernity. Considering the stories told in the some twenty interviews of this study, a passage from the Communist Manifesto appears in a new light:

"Constant revolutionizing of production, uninterrupted disturbance of all social conditions, everlasting uncertainty and agitation distinguish the bourgeois epoch from earlier ones. All fixed, fast frozen relations, with their train of ancient and venerable prejudices and opinions, are swept away, all new-formed ones become antiquated before they can ossify."

Reinforced time-space distanciation pursues the dissolving work of modernity, indeed. Migrant researchers, like many other groups, are exposed to increasing spatial and temporal flexibility, which liquefies spatial and temporal structures. The struggle to re-establish control over one's life is fought at the barricades of residual and secondary boundaries. However, the locale of these fights is the everyday life, the unspectacular domain of repetition and routine. The point made here is that the story of deterritorialisation and reterritorialisation has not necessarily to be told assuming an ubiquitous space of flow that is violently disrupted by patriarchalism, fundamentalism, (counter-) revolutions, and other new forms of identity described by Manuel Castells. The focus on the unspectacular routines of everyday life reveals how transnational migrants silently learn to deal with new spatial and temporal flexibilities applying all different kinds of tools. We are witnessing a new round of time-space distanciation, which is enabled by ICTs - among other (social) technologies, like for instance modern air travel. The close examination of the daily lives of individuals inhabiting the resulting 'networks of flows and obstacles' (Negri/Hardt) neither gives cause to assume a fundamental historical shift taking place, nor does it justify the assumption that everything remains the same. Many of the topics emerging from this study's interviews are well-known themes of social science: communication technologies, the home, the family, and the conditions at work. However, within an everyday life that is adapted to the forces of increased de- and reterritorialisation their meaning changes. Some aspects loose importance, some become more evident. The home is more than ever the threatened sanctuary of the individual, the family becomes the only domain, which is normatively excluded from technically mediated communication whenever this is possible (and often it is not), and the workload determines the professional well-being of the worker on an unprecedented scale.