Dissolving boundaries: work, activity, and voluntariness in digitized capitalism.

The article focuses on voluntariness as a mode of restructuring work in 21st century digitalized capitalism. What can be observed is a blurring of the boundaries between work, reproduction, leisure and engagement. We pursue the thesis that this transformation in the 'nature' of work corresponds to a...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Publicado en:Rethinking History Vol. 29; no. 1; pp. 115 - 140
Autores principales: van Dyk, Silke, Graefe, Stefanie, Lorig, Philipp
Formato: Artículo
Publicado: Taylor & Francis Ltd Mar2025
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Acceso en línea:Ver este registro en EBSCOhost
Descripción
Sumario:The article focuses on voluntariness as a mode of restructuring work in 21st century digitalized capitalism. What can be observed is a blurring of the boundaries between work, reproduction, leisure and engagement. We pursue the thesis that this transformation in the 'nature' of work corresponds to a (newly emerging) 'mixed-activity economy' in which people, on the one hand, create economic value in the sphere of consumption or leisure. On the other hand, reproductive requirements and economic necessities in everyday work and life can be flexibly linked through time-flexible platform work. In any case, the forms of corporate value creation and access to human productivity are changing radically insofar as they are no longer limited to classic wage labor alone. The invocation of voluntarism plays a key legitimizing role in this transformation. Based on a theoretical reconstruction of the concept of voluntariness, we bring together new forms of value creation through appropriation of resources outside of wage labor and the systematic analysis of voluntariness as a currently significant mode of action and governance in the digital economy.