Everyday life has inspired much sociological theory and is now a recognized branch of the discipline. Here we trace evidence of the salience of everyday life in general sociological theory, look critically at theories specific to analyses of everyday life; then survey recent research. In closing, we look to the future of the field.

Although it is often condemned as an imprecise concept, alienation continues to flourish as critique in contemporary philosophy, theology, and psychology, as well as in sociology. Historically originating in Roman law, where it referred to the transfer of land ownership, alienation has since been applied extensively to analyses of labor relations, politics, and culture. In the 19th century, Marx showed that workers' alienation, their dehumanization and estrangement, was a consequence of the structure of exploitation in capitalist industry. The concern was echoed in Weber's metaphor of the 'iron cage' as an outcome of rationalized structures, as well as in Durkheim's conceptualization of anomie as a variant of alienation causing socially induced psychological states. Today, while research in the structural tradition does not assume that people necessarily are aware of their condition, researchers who assume that alienation is a conscious experience have invented scales to measure its intensity. Continuing both the structural and the psychosocial traditions, researchers now study alienation in relation to uses of digital technologies and new forms of exploitation in work, as well as in politics and popular culture. Alienation is also studied in families, especially in investigations of parenthood.

PurposeTo show that, although it is not intuitively evident, it is clear that, for the researchers, studying alienation is one way of doing social science that contributes to making society better.Design/methodology/approachReference is made to early sociologists who developed theories that describe and explain the revolutionary effects of modernity, as evidenced in industrialization and in the enlightenment. The references include Durkheim who developed the concept of anomie to suggest disorders of the consciousness; Weber who described the effects of bureaucratization as an iron cage; and Marx who discussed alienation as a comprehensive structural concept.FindingsIn light of what they saw as the key concept for the frustrations, each of the fathers of sociology had a view of how the malaise of modernity could be overcome. Today, some sociologists can point to concrete paths to improvement. Critical sociologists show that, although alienation is still prevalent, the very structures that cause its persistence also indicate how it can be undermined so as to lead to a reconstruction of society. Systems analysts are also able to delve into the systemic potential for releasing energies of liberation through the dynamic interplay of macro‐arrangements, micro‐procedures, and emotions.Originality/valueGiven that it is important to researchers who study alienation to find ways for reconstructing social relations, it is gratifying to know that, in his work as the President of the Research Committee for the study of alienation, Felix Geyer applied the systems approach to a construction of de‐alienating modes of collaboration, even as he continued to develop his own research productively.

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