Managing Subjectivity: Neoliberalism, Human Capital and Empowerment

Abstract

International audienceIn this paper, I suggest that, even more than the state, capitalist enterprise is the most influential institution of neoliberalism, both for the effect it conveys in terms of management in public institutions (New Public Management) and its influence on the subjectivity of neoliberal individuals. However, one could stress, from the perspective of economic theory of the firm, the neoliberal transformations of the capitalist enterprises itself. Two transformations that are taking place from the 1980s seem particularly important. The first is the firm's transformation in a "nexus of contracts" as claimed by the agency theory of Jensen and Meckling that describe and enable the current financialization of the economy. The second is the transformation of organisations in a "nexus of skills" as claimed by the cognitive paradigm of the firm that apply to the company economic reasoning in terms of "human capital". I then examine the effects on neoliberal subjectivation of these two major changes, from the labour point of view. First, the neoliberal subject imagines, describes and manages itself as the subject of investment in "human capital". Second, the disappearance of traditional employment contract corresponds to the emergence and intensification of another form of contract, the "psychological contract", which tends to become a major form of relationship-employed but also a model for relationships between individuals. Finally, lifelong learning is becoming the major form of empowerment of employees, but also a "lifestyle" based on the appreciation of one's own human capital and the infinite task of perfecting oneself to match up our "skills portfolio" with the labour market. These transformations of neoliberal subjectivity have costs that can be summarised by the widespread phenomena of burn out, but also the birth of a new form of racism, based on "quality" of human capital (skills, abilities, capabilities)

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“…Y son los americanos quienes abogan por una privatización total de los servicios públicos esenciales (educación, y salud, por ejemplo) a fin de promover la competencia privada en el mercado (Valdes, 1995;Fischer, 2009;Mirowski & Plehwe, 2009;Audier, 2012). Postulan, además, que el trabajador ya no es un sujeto que produce valor, sino simplemente un "empresario de sí mismo", un "capital humano", dando lugar a un abordaje económico de todo fenómeno social (Boltanski & Chiapello, 2002;Foucault, 2007;Dardot & Laval, 2013;Paltrinieri, 2017) y dando cabida a prácticas emprendedoras, hedonistas y cínicas (Dardot & Laval, 2013;Moruno;2014;Sadin, 2018).…”

Número completo

“…Y son los americanos quienes abogan por una privatización total de los servicios públicos esenciales (educación, y salud, por ejemplo) a fin de promover la competencia privada en el mercado (Valdes, 1995;Fischer, 2009;Mirowski & Plehwe, 2009;Audier, 2012). Postulan, además, que el trabajador ya no es un sujeto que produce valor, sino simplemente un "empresario de sí mismo", un "capital humano", dando lugar a un abordaje económico de todo fenómeno social (Boltanski & Chiapello, 2002;Foucault, 2007;Dardot & Laval, 2013;Paltrinieri, 2017) y dando cabida a prácticas emprendedoras, hedonistas y cínicas (Dardot & Laval, 2013;Moruno;Sadin, 2018).…”

Precarization of Work and Migration: A Review of the International Literature

“…In this context of an uneven nature, freedom of the working individual is not complete, but is forged in disguised servitude (Alves, 2007). These transformations of neoliberal economy have costs that may be summarised by the widespread phenomena of burnout (Paltrinieri, 2017).…”