"Occupational structure and alienation"

by Kohn, M L (1976)

Abstract

This paper appraises two related hypotheses suggested by Marx's analysis of the occupational sources of alienation-one emphasizing control over the product of one's labor, the other emphasizing con- trol over the work process. Using data from a sample survey of U.S. males employed in civilian occupations, it concludes that, in this large-scale, capitalist system, control over the product of one's labor (ownership and hierarchical position) has only an indirect effect on alienation, whereas control over work process (closeness of super- vision, routinization, and substantive complexity) has an appreciable direct effect on powerlessness, self-estrangement, and normlessness.

Key Passage

 This pattern of relationships between occupational conditions and feelings of powerlessness is essentially repeated for self-estrangement and normlessness: Ownership per se is of minor importance at most, position in the supervisory hierarchy is of greater importance, division of labor (as inferred from bureaucratization) is negatively related to alienation, and the three conditions that impede the exercise of occupational self- direction are consistently related to feelings of alienation. In each instance, the conditions determinative of occupational self-direction are more strongly related to alienation than are ownership and hierarchical position. (Similar analyses, limited to the profit-making sector of the economy, yield identical conclusions.) (p.120)

Keywords

Marx, Alienation, Organisational Structure, Organisational Theory, Hierarchy, Ownership, Psychology, Capitalism

Themes

Kohn-Schooler, Alienation

Links to Reference

• http://dx.doi.org/10.1086/226272
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/990046
• https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/abs/10.1086/226272
• https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/2777463.pdf?casa_token=tK-cG0KkjUgAAAAA:4O2iFxeosh20C7P88iu6jh0RAm5jgD1aWwqXSsnFBhzRRIWkdO-mP4A4OMgonJkenBemjhhwj74ZONoGUkIe6JOueHB1uJx1MJiQSbbE6rwjhY53mE241Q

Citation

Share

How to contribute.