The McDonaldization of Society - Essay Example

? number Word Count The McDonaldization of social life has been defined by Ritzer drawing on the works of Max Weber. It attempts to analyze the effect of structural change in the society on human identity and interaction. Weber explained a “rational” modern society whereby social thinking evolved into one that encapsulated an “ends/means analysis” associated with formalized control of the society (Kendall, 2012). This role was fulfilled by the bureaucratic organization whereby power vested in the position and not the person. Ritzer took this concept further by claiming that social identity has been shaped by the “fast-food restaurant” marked by the model of Mc Donald’s (Ritzer, 1983). In short, McDonaldization of the society is termed as a process whereby the values of fast-food chains are becoming more and more dominant in defining our social identity. Mc Donald’s has revolutionized the way in which fast-food restaurants respond to customers. Rather than customers going to these outlets, the outlets have come to the customers. It is no surprise, therefore, that over 90% of children in the U.S visit McDonald’s (Andersen & Taylor, 2006). These fast-food chains have spread rapidly across the American society and are found in every nook and corner of the country, ranging from malls, cities and suburban areas to educational institutions, hospitals, military facilities as well as airports. At the same time, however, it must be noted that Mc Donald’s alone does not account for this change. Companies such as Toys R Us, USA Today and Dalton’s have followed suit. Regions that were previously considered remote for fast food consumption in the American society have now been encapsulated by this process. Similarly, the concept of “new bites” of the popular American newspaper USA Today has prompted other local newspapers to change their presentation of news. Mc Donald’s has truly been a role model for other businesses that have followed suit and associated themselves with the Mc Donald’s brand. For instance, USA Today’s “McPaper”, McDoctor for clinics that offer drive in facilities and McChild for chains offering child care are all examples of companies that have tried to associate and benefit from Mc Donald’s success (Andersen & Taylor, 2006). 2) One major sociological explanation for McDonaldization of social life rests in the relationship between globalization and the social change of McDonaldization. The spread of Mc Donald’s culture has led to the spread of American culture across the globe. The theories of “transnationalities” suggest that the new information age and efficient transportation have increased the interaction that immigrants have with the political, economic, social and cultural interactions in their countries of settlement (Robinson, 2008). The influx of immigrants to First World Countries (including U.S.A) has led these individuals to take back the way of life and social character of the Westerners. Owing to this, transnational corporations such as Mc Donald’s, Unilever, Nestle and others are found in virtually majority of the regions of the world rather than their home countries. These MNCs bring with them their way of working which ultimately influences the entire society. Secondly, the value-added perspective provided by Smelser explains this phenomenon. As per this theory, collective behavior is the result of some tension or identifiable causes that mobilize members towards an “episode” of collective behavior (Locher, 2002). Values, norms, social structure and the means, skills and knowledge determine social movements (Locher, 2002). When applied to McDonaldization of social life, this view implies that values of giving priority to work, having less time for interacting on a personal basis and single parenting in the American society lead to people residing to shortcuts such as frozen food, quick cash withdrawal (ATMs) and self-service(gasoline stations). Furthermore, the social structure whereby our worth is judged by how well we fulfill our roles as a student, worker etc. which leaves us with little energy and time to enjoy the privilege of preparing meals ourselves or waiting for several days to withdraw money. Finally, the resource mobilization theory closely relates to the movement of McDonaldization. As per this theory individuals are viewed as rational beings who form “social movement organizations” (McCarthy & Zald, 1977). Individuals join these organizations for reasons other than the intended goal of the organization (McCarthy & Zald, 1977). Mc Donald’s, for instance, attempted to produce standardized products (with high level of standardization in operation) so that customers knew what to expect each time they had a Big Mac in any part of the world. Individuals became part of the McDonaldization movement because it provides them access to resource gain which, in this case, is convenience and prompt communication. 3) As far as the Ritzer’s description of the McDonaldization of social life is concerned, three major social consequences can be observed. The first effect relates to efficiency which, in turn, refers to searching for the optimum means to achieve a given end (Ritzer, 1983). Consider the modern American household that has few wage earners (and may have single parents supporting their children). Since these individuals are pressed for time and cannot devote time and effort to cooking themselves, using meals that are prepackaged or frozen seems to be an attractive option. Considering that eating out is considered more efficient, fast food chains offer a hassle free menu served in an “assembly-line” manner to make the provision of food more efficient (Ritzer, 1983). As if this wasn’t enough, dinners are being increasingly being replaced by “Drive-thru” option for an even fast access. This allows families as well as working men and women to simply collect the order which gets ready in fairly little time and then eat it on the way while driving. This is again reflective of the fact that, owing to fast-paced lives and increasing work-family commitments, people are becoming pressed for time. Self-service gasoline stations, ATM’s and supermarkets that deliver to one’s home in the U.S are other examples. A major drawback of this, however, is that, due to burgeoning demand and force-feeding of chicken for poultry, harmful chemicals, such as sodium nitrate, are mixed with food which can prove to be medically unfit for many people (Ritzer, 1983). On the one hand where quality of life is increasing due to greater availability of ready-to-cook meals and fast-food, the same is declining as reflected in the high levels of obesity in the U.S. Secondly, predictability refers to the fact that customers do not look forward to surprises and expect routine, order and a systemized and consistent operation. This gives way to standardized procedures which ultimately results in standardized products/services. People know what to expect for a given social experience. Even social experiences such as theme parks have witnessed this change. Disneyland, for instance, has used this concept to hire young individuals in its amusement parks whose responses are almost mechanical in nature and, therefore, predictable (Ritzer, 1983). The famous Hollywood sequels of movies such as Shrek, Superman and Spiderman as well as Cars capitalize on the success of their previous versions offering predictability. In short, this has led people to exercise greater control of everything in their lives. Third, the focus of quantity as opposed to quality means that professors are less concerned about the quality of education learnt by students and more concerned about grades which is reflected in the system of Grade Point Average (GPA) and test scores on SAT and GRE that judge a student’s worth through scores (Ritzer, 1983). The same holds true for faculty evaluations conducted in educational institutions whereby the teaching abilities of teachers are assessed through the score students assign to that teacher. The nature of subject is conveniently ignored and so is the students’ rating on individual parameters. General Motor’s divisional system whereby the performance of each division was measured by “bottom-line” numbers is another example (Ritzer, 1983). In short, even quality is being judged by quantity (in this case, numbers). Individuals are increasingly paying emphasis on quantifying the worth of objects they possess. For instance a thousand dollar Omega watch is considered of a higher quality than a watch worth a few hundred dollars. The psychological notion of higher price, higher quality has inculcated in the minds of various consumers. As Ritzer argues, the need to quantify things to assess their worth has led to the development of the computer which, in turn, has led to the dehumanization of our civilization. By reducing face-to-face encounters and making communication virtual and providing features such as storage of ‘contact lists’, this technology has virtually reduced the personal attention that people used to give to each other (Ritzer, 1983). In other words, it is like knowing everyone without knowing anyone in particular. 4) The third consequence pertaining to “focus of quantity rather than quality” would be assessed using a research design. For this purpose, survey research design has been chosen. Survey design allows greater scope for using descriptive statistics and analyzing the research question using questionnaires, interviews or electronic surveys. Individuals from 5 colleges shall be chosen to study whether GPA is a guarantor of success and to what extent it plays a role in college admissions. Similarly, 3 organizations (preferably from 3 different sectors) shall be chosen to analyze whether managers feel that the financial performance of the company fully depicts its success. References Andersen, M. L., & Taylor, H. F. (2006). Sociology: Understanding A Diverse Society With Infotrac. California: Thomson Higher Education. Kendall, D. (2012). Sociology in Our Times: The Essentials. California: Wadsworth Cengage Learning. Locher, D. A. (2002). The Value-Added Theory. In D. A. Locher, Collective Behavior (pp. 39-53 ). New Jersey: Prentice Hall. McCarthy, J. D., & Zald, M. N. (1977). Resource mobilization and social movements: A partial theory. The American Journal of Sociology, 1212-1241. Ritzer, G. (1983). The McDonaldization of Society. Journal of American Culture, 100-107. Robinson, W. I. (2008). Theories of Globalization. In W. I. Robinson, The Blackwell Companion to Globalization (pp. 125-143). Oxford: Blackwell Publishing Ltd. Appendix (References attached in sequential order) Read More