Subjects, Subjectivity, and Subjectification in Call Center Work

Abstract

In postindustrial society, paid labor is increasingly characterized as tertiary labor rather than primary or secondary labor and commonly mediated by computer and telecommunication technologies. However, there are few ethnographic studies on the production of the subject and subjectivity in postindustrial workplaces. This article reports a poststructurally informed ethnographic research in four telephone call centers, focusing on how technological and managerial practices are deployed and continuously oriented to in subjectification processes. The result, although “rational” and “real,” is shown to be a construction of concerted compliance and secondary adjustments through strategic processes named shadowboxing with data. Implications for the study of subjectivity and subjectification are discussed.

The others' values: On the importance of ethnographic ways of looking, seeing, knowing, and acting for performance technologists

“…That is, we can learn and grow to understand how their values allow them to be a group with unique characteristics that make them both socially and culturally valuable for themselves as people-what they want, what they value, and how they value it. We can also begin to learn how what we do from a strictly etic orientation affects them in ways that might alter their selves in ways that affect what they value-their subjectivity (Winiecki, 2004(Winiecki, , 2006(Winiecki, , 2007a(Winiecki, , 2007bWiniecki & Wigman, 2007).…”

Dimensionality of Organizational Justice in a Call Center Context

“…Because findings of previous studies have been obtained across so many contexts, the present study was undertaken to expand consideration of the number of justice dimensions to the call center industry. Winiecki (2007) made note of a number of procedures employed in the call center industry to assess employees' work. Technologies are typically employed to monitor the pacing and sequencing of work and to assess the quality of interactions with customers.…”

Forming working selves : flexibility and generational identity formation in the public library

“…They note that "[t]here are thus other, more personal sources of identity work than organizational discourses, social identities and roles"(Sveningsson and Alvesson, 2003, p. 1168). Research on call centres has also demonstrated how developing identities at work through workplace practices can also be means through which individuals can be governed(Winiecki, 2006;Winiecki, 2007;Winiecki and Wigman, 2007). The focus here has been in the private sector.Context has also been shown to matter when conducting investigations about the formation of identity.…”

“…Winiecki's (2007) study of call centre workers Winiecki (2007). contacted management to look to connect with a good participant, which in turn lead to interviews, an observation of that participant at work and a further recommendation of another potential participant from this original participant (p. 355).…”

“…contacted management to look to connect with a good participant, which in turn lead to interviews, an observation of that participant at work and a further recommendation of another potential participant from this original participant (p. 355). The more knowledgeable and familiarWiniecki (2007) became with the workplace, "[...][Winiecki] began selecting participants [himself] based on their participation in the processes in which[Winiecki] was interested" (p. 355). While there are some possible challenges with the use of such a technique, such as whether a snowballing method would permit anonymity, this technique is still useful.…”