Lindsey D. Cameron

Assistant Professor of Management

Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania

Assistant Professor of Sociology (secondary)

School of Arts and Sciences, University of Pennsylvania


Member (Fellow)

Institute of Advanced Studies, Princeton

Faculty Associate

Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society, Harvard Law School

Faculty Fellow

Data & Society Research Institute


Gig Economy Algorithmic Management Future of Work

View my CV

  Photo credit: Tommy Leonardi

Research Focus

Future of Work Roundtable, Pennsylvania State Senate
Photo credit: Pennsylvania State Senate

How algorithmic management is changing the modern workplace and individuals’ behaviors at work, with a focus on the gig economy.

 

  • Conducted six-year ethnography of the ride-hailing industry, the largest employer in the gig economy
  • Examined the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on gig economy workers on several platforms (e.g., Instacart, Amazon Flex, TaskRabbit)
  • Currently researching how ride-hailing workers on three continents navigate disputes
  • Served as an expert witness for state government and private firms

Interesting Fact:

I worked as a ride-hailing driver as part of my research.

Why My Research Matters

My research program is focused on identifying and understanding how change driven by algorithms affect workers’ experience and how work is organized with an emphasis of the most marginalized and vulnerable workers.

Photo credit: Tommy Leonardi

How I Conduct Research

I am a field researcher.
My methodological expertise includes:

  • Ethnography
  • Longitudinal interviews
  • Archival & social media content analysis
  • Experience sampling
  • Field experiments

Where I Conduct Research

I have conducted research in a number of industries in the U.S. and abroad, including:

  • Gig Economy (e.g., DoorDash, Uber, Lyft, Instacart, Task Rabbit, Amazon Flex)
  • Small Business Owners
  • Shared service centers and call centers
  • Trucking
  • Insurance
  • Municipal Government

Where I Have Published

My work has been featured in the following journals:

  • Organization Science
  • Journal of Applied Psychology
  • Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Process
  • Annual Review of Organizational Psychology and Organizational Behavior
  • Computer-Human Interactions, Association of Computing Machinery

Best Paper Awards

In a line of experimental work, I explore organizational interventions (e.g., pay incentives, mindfulness practices, identity affirmations) that improve workers’ well-being and performance.

How My Research Is Supported

Financial supporters:

  • AI for Business
  • People Analytics at Wharton
  • Mack Institute for Innovation
  • Data & Society Research Institute
  • Dean’s Fund
  • Center for Human Resources
  • Center for Social Impact

Speaking engagements:

  • Aspen Institute
  • Ford Foundation
  • Harvard Law School
  • Governor’s Office of General Counsel, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
  • Nalanda Institute for Contemplative Leadership
  • Microsoft & other Fortune 500 companies
  • Expert testimony at legislative hearings

Media mentions:

  • Washington Post
  • Forbes
  • Bloomberg
  • CNBC
  • NPR’s Marketplace
  • Fast Company
  • World Economic Forum
  • The Skim
  • Inc.

I have published opinion pieces in Harvard Business Review, Fast Company, Kiplinger’s, and People & Strategy.

Education

PhD | University of Michigan | management

MS | George Washington University | engineering management, specialization – crisis, risk & emergency management

SB | Harvard University | electrical engineering and computer science, French minor

Interesting Fact:

I started college at age 15.

Work History

I spent over a decade in the U.S. intelligence and diplomatic communities as a digital and political analyst, completing overseas assignments in the Middle East, Africa, and Europe.

Interesting Fact:

I intensively studied Arabic at the American University of Cairo and transformative leadership at a renowned school of Chinese acupuncture.

Global Interests

I am interested in immersion learning having led or assisted in research projects and classes in Detroit, Algeria, Brazil, Egypt, Ghana, Nigeria, Mali, Malta, and Rwanda.

Countries Visited

U.S. States Visited

Aspen Ideas Festival, Fellow
Photo credit: Samara Cohen

Leisure Interests

  • Tango and fusion dance
  • Competitive acrobatics (2nd in State, 2015)
  • Writing creative non-fiction
  • Trained in large group facilitation
  • African-American genealogy and history

Interesting Fact:

I am an experienced practitioner and teacher in mindfulness and non-dual awareness practices, holding lineage in a tradition and having trained at several centers in the United States.

Media Highlights

Research: When Mindfulness Does — and Doesn’t — Help at Work

December 12, 2022 • Harvard Busines Review

Inflation is helping gig companies like Uber and hurting their workers

August 07, 2022 • The Washington Post

New California law seeks transparency for workplace quotas

December 30, 2021 • NPR Marketplace

Gig work used to be a recession-proof safety net. Not anymore.

August 10, 2020 • Fast Company

2027 Steinberg-Dietrich Hall
3620 Locust Walk
Philadelphia, PA 19104

+1 (215) 898-0990
lindsey@lindseycameron.com

 

© 2022 Lindsey D. Cameron | Developed by Scholarly Studio