Beyond the Time Crunch: New Directions in the Sociology of Time and Work

Abstract

The sociology of work is particularly poised to study the meaning of time within institutions and organizations at its most sociological manifestation – the point where groups of people come together to accomplish joint goals. Previous work has offered useful concepts to help us understand temporality and tempography, home and work balance, temporal practices and mindsets towards time. Most of this work, however, which directly or peripherally treats time in the workplace, has focussed on the work–life balance. The actual temporal experiences of workers, however, are relatively absent in this literature. In this review article, I outline previous contributions from sociologists of work and offer ways in which work from the broader literature on the sociology of time can enhance this field. I address how future research should focus on how “time work” is accomplished in workplaces and on issues of class and gender.

It's a Matter of Time: The Role of Temporal Perceptions in Emotional Experiences of Work Interruptions

“…By applying an explicitly temporal lens to work interruptions, we respond to persistent calls for greater consideration of time in organizational research (e.g., Ancona et al, 2001; Gilson & Davis, 2018; Sonnentag, 2012; Van den Scott, 2014). Our focus on subjective temporal perceptions adds a novel perspective to the literature.…”

Too Late? What Do You Mean? Cultural Norms Regarding Lateness for Meetings and Appointments

“…In particular, future studies should focus on a more refined assessment of the control versus fatalistic attitude people may have, not only on time but also of the context, particularly in relation to the institutions within a society. Future research may focus on one of the explanations that has received less research attention with regard to lateness, the institutional context that affects the sociocultural norms (Tang & Koveos, 2008; Van den Scott, 2014). If individuals cannot depend on the context being conducive to arriving on time, for example, because traffic is chaotic (see some of the replies in the sample of Pakistani respondents), individuals are not in control over the outcomes of the behavior.…”

The Experience of Zulu (Military) Time: An Examination of the Temporal Practices and Perceptions of UK Infantry

“…As Van den Scott (2014) has noted, since Donald Roy’s work, there have been very few ethnographies portraying workers’ experience of time in depth and this account adds to those. Infantry have two axiomatic occupational imperatives, namely, to (a) stay alive and (b) kill the enemy, and given these, they have a relationship with time which is intensely focused in the moment on the military tasks at hand.…”

“…However, there seem to be few studies which grapple with such temporal complexity within organizations, for most studies usually focus on single themes, predominantly work–life balance as a recent review of the literature indicates. In addition, within that literature, how workers experience organizational time is also relatively absent (Van den Scott, 2014). Therefore, research which combines workers’ perceptual knowledge of organizational temporality, its impact on their direct embodiment, inter-embodiment, and how time is inexorably linked with the unfolding of work practices is scant and does not always attend to all of those features (e.g.…”