Study level

  • PhD
  • Master of Philosophy

Faculty/School

Faculty of Business and Law

School of Advertising, Marketing and Public Relations

Topic status

We're looking for students to study this topic.

Research centre

Supervisors

Dr Charmaine Glavas
Position
Senior Lecturer
Division / Faculty
Faculty of Business & Law
Adjunct Professor Rebekah Russell-Bennett
Position
Adjunct Professor
Division / Faculty
Faculty of Business & Law

Overview

Almost 1 million Australians have lost their jobs and countless micro and small businesses have folded as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic. At the same time the pandemic has propelled innovation and new venture creation and given rise the ‘side hustle’, taking on an extra job for money. Side-hustles, supplemental income-generating work performed alongside full-time jobs, are increasingly common (Sessions, Nahrgang, Vaulont, Williams  & Bartels, 2021).

Technology has in part empowered and enabled people to market their skills and products to audiences around the world through platforms like Gumtree, Airtasker, Etsy and Fiverr, instantaneously creating opportunities for people to initiate side hustles; from dropshipping, to blogging, podcasting, tutoring, copywriting and online freelance work, the opportunities are limitless. Although the behaviour of individuals employed in one established organisation has been theorised, employees who take on additional employment through a side hustle is a mostly unexplored topic. Through the lens of human capabilities, the proposed research seeks to explore the motivations of Australians who initiate these types of employment.

This project is part of a larger program of research by the supervisors and has scope to be tailored to industries (i.e. retail, beauty, digital & fashion) or cohorts (i.e. Gen Z, Millennials, women, older or Indigenous) of interest to the student.

Reference

Sessions, H., Nahrgang, J. D., Vaulont, M. J., Williams, R., & Bartels, A. L. (2021). Do the hustle! Empowerment from side-hustles and its effects on full-time work performance. Academy of Management Journal, 64(1), 235-264.

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Contact

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