Sociology 2169 Chapter Notes -Social Inequality, Ritualism In The Church Of England, Absenteeism
Document Summary
Alienation explains how work under capitalism is structured to make workers powerless with respect to content, conditions, production, and processes of their work. Control is put into hands of owners. Work loses its ability to be self-actualizing, or to fulfill higher human needs. Four sources of alienation: workers are alienated from what they produce. Work is a means to an end does provide any fulfillment: workers do not have control over the process of production. Decisions are all made by owners and their agents. Further prevents them from fulfilling themselves: workers alienated from themselves or from engaging in creative activity. Marx humans define themselves through labour: workers alienated from others. Alienation produced from structure and organization of work under capitalism. Negative impacts: limiting workers potential, harm workers physically and mentally. Blauner"s study alienation and freedom workers" alienation increased as technology shifted from craftwork to machine tending and assembly-line work.
