Some Observations on the Effects of Microcomputers on the Productivity of University Scientists

Abstract

To date, no systematic empirical research has been conducted to assess the effects of microcomputer usage on the productivity of university scientists. Based on a series of interviews with scientists and engineers, their spouses and graduate students, the present study offers a number of preliminary observations concerning certain advantages and potential drawbacks with respect to scientific productivity associated with the microcomputer's use, both in the office and at home. Principal among the points discussed are the microcomputer's detrimental effects on such things as collegial-and graduate-student interaction patterns, domestic relations with spouse and family, and the increasingly clerical nature of faculty work routines, and the difficulty some scientists experience reaching closure on their word-processed manuscripts.