How has workcation evolved in Japan?

Abstract

The workcation, wherein people combine work with vacation, is a concept that originated in the United States and Europe with the spread of information and communications technology (ICT). Although it is considered a workstyle for independent people as epitomized by freelancers and the like, in Japan, the term has come to convey something different from its original meaning, taking a unique direction in which some types of training programs are referred to as workcation. How did this change come about? This study, based on surveys of three regions, examines the origin and development of satellite office workcation and learning workcation to ascertain the following. (1) In Japan, people with workcation are assumed to be employees. (2) Therefore, the workcation is heavily influenced by local governments' intentions (wanting to associate with exchange populations) and companies' intentions (it is difficult to dispatch employees to outlying areas without a work-related purpose). (3) Therefore, the workcation has evolved into something that aims to enhance creativity, learning, and introspection through close ties with communities.

Workcation (Workation) Travel Experiences, Satisfaction and Revisit Intentions: Focusing on Conceptualization, Scale Development, and Nomological Network

“…However, except for a few recent studies, academic research on workcation is still limited. For example, Yoshida (2021) analyzed that workcation enables travelers to enhance creativity, have effective learning, and build a closer relationship with local communities. Pecsek (2018) formulated a tourism-focused workcation concept and proposed six types of workcation travelers.…”

The Emerging Workcation Trend in Indonesia: A Preliminary Study on the Demographic Profiles, Motivations, and Experiences of Workcationers

“…Although the trend is rising, theoretical frameworks in this area are lacking, so there has not been much research (Pecsek, 2018). Workcation developed from the increase in telecommuting and was popularised in major European and American news outlets in the early 2010s (Takahashi, 2021;Yoshida, 2021). Meanwhile, in Japan, workcation refers to remote locations dedicated to full-time employees' training programs (Yoshida, 2021), such as Satellite Office Workcation, which adopted the term 'workcation' to attract IT firms (Yoshida, 2021).…”

“…Workcation developed from the increase in telecommuting and was popularised in major European and American news outlets in the early 2010s (Takahashi, 2021;Yoshida, 2021). Meanwhile, in Japan, workcation refers to remote locations dedicated to full-time employees' training programs (Yoshida, 2021), such as Satellite Office Workcation, which adopted the term 'workcation' to attract IT firms (Yoshida, 2021). In Japan, organisations and official policies encourage workers to participate in workcations.…”

“…However, Weiss (2009) claimed that the intersection appears because employees decide to spend their spare time at work. Workcation can be taken by teleworkers (Sousa-Uva et al, 2021), tourists (Pecsek, 2018), or digital nomads (Bahri & Widhyharto, 2021;Wang, Schlagwein, Cecez-Kecmanovic, & Cahalane, 2020), nomadic workers (Putra & Agirachman, 2016), regular employees (Yoshida, 2021), and white-collar workers (Thompson, 2021). The practices often involve digital economics, such as web-based microtasks, location sharing, e-commerce, fintech, creative content, and digital selfmarketing .…”

“…Workcation studies from Pecsek (2018), Yoshida (2021), , and Takahashi (2021) did not identify the profile in detail, so this paper aims to fill the gaps. Regarding education, workcationers in this study mostly had a bachelor's degree.…”