Anti-work : psychological investigations into its truths, problems, and solutions / George M. Alliger.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Alliger, George Michael, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Labor--Psychological aspects.

Labor.

Work--Psychological aspects.

Work.

Leisure--Psychological aspects.

Leisure.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (285 pages)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

New York, New York ; London : Routledge, [2022]

Summary:

"The first book to delineate anti-work in a systematic fashion by identifying and compiling positions from a wide spread of literature, The Psychology of Anti-Work defines the tenets of anti-work, reviews them from a psychological and historical point of view, and offers solutions to aid the average person in his or her struggle with work. Anti-work thinkers have vigorously argued that work entails a submission of the human will that is constraining and even ultimately damaging. The author has refined eighteen tenets of anti-work from the literature, which range from the suggestion that all jobs are bad, to the remarkable ability of modern capitalist enterprises to build "job engagement" among workers, to the proposal of alternative work-deemphasized worlds. The Psychology of Anti-Work begins with a discussion of these tenets, in particular the submission of the will required by work, followed by an overview of topics such as worker resistance, merit, and precarious work. The second part of the book unfolds various possible human responses to the work problem, such as detachment, thinking while working, and right livelihood. In the third part, several lessons about anti-work are drawn from parables, koans, and tales. Discussions of cults and work, working from home, unions, and cooperatives, as well as lessons from Buddhism, Hinduism, and Christianity offer additional perspectives on the topic of work and provide guidance on developing a helpful attitude toward it. By highlighting the tensions that exist between anti-work and pro-work positions, the book provides new ways to view and plan life, and will be thought-provoking and valuable insight for students, instructors, and practitioners in industrial and organizational psychology and related fields, as well as all people who have worked, will work, have never worked, or will never work"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Cover

Half Title

Title Page

Copyright Page

Dedication

Table of Contents

Introduction: What Is Anti-Work?

Part One In Which Anti-Work Is Given Serious Consideration

Chapter One The Tenets of Anti-Work

Tenet 1

Tenet 2

Tenet 3

Tenet 4

Tenet 5

Tenet 6

Tenet 7

Tenet 8

Tenet 9

Tenet 10

Tenet 11

Tenet 12

Tenet 13

Tenet 14

Tenet 15

Tenet 16

Tenet 17

Tenet 18

Chapter Two Will, Bosses, and Consciousness

Chapter Three Cults and Working From Home

Cults and Work: Organizations as Cults

Isolation

Emotional Abuse

Control

Charismatic Leadership

Working From Home

Chapter Four The Asymmetry of At-Will Employment and Loss of Autonomy

"Your Employment Is at Will"

Non-Compete Clauses

Corporations as "Private Government"

Chapter Five The Unique Submission Required for Precarious Work

Chapter Six Merit Misfires

Chapter Seven Pushing Back

Dropping Out

Refusing to Work If Only Undesirable Jobs Are Available

Refusal of Specific Work Requests

Underworking

Social Loafing

Malingering

Chapter Eight Doubtful Horizons

Part Two In Which We Reflect On Some Possible Realities and Responses

Chapter Nine Science and the Ox: Understanding Work and Workers

Chapter Ten Representing the Worker: What We Might Do

Treat Job Applicants Better

Treat Workers as Experts

Help Bosses Be Less Bossy

Chapter Eleven Detachment: Lessons From the Bhagavad Gita

Chapter Twelve Alignment of Efforts: Teilhard De Chardin

Chapter Thirteen Thinking While You Work: Simone Weil

Chapter Fourteen "Right Livelihood"

Chapter Fifteen Note On Unions and Cooperatives

Part Three Coda: Lessons From Parables, Koans, and Tales

Chapter Lessons A-F

Lesson A: Merit and the King of Death

Lesson B: Retirement.

Lesson C: What Should You Pay Your Contractor?

Lesson D: The Old Anti-Work - Work as Curse

Lesson E: Inequality at the Starting Line

Lesson F: Humility in Work

Chapter Conclusion

Notes

Acknowledgments

Suggested Further Reading

Index.

Notes:

Description based on print version record.

Includes index.

ISBN:

9781003164319

1003164315

9781000467840

1000467848

9781000467819

1000467813

OCLC:

1281962653