Shiona Chillas

The state of affairs : critical performativity and the online dating industry

In this article we pursue a dialogue between Callon’s (1998) ‘performativity thesis’ and Critical Management Studies (CMS). We make use of the performativity thesis to elaborate on the construction of a market and the generation of calculative and rational economic agency in a specific empirical setting: the markets for relationships offered by dating services. We find evidence for ‘effective’ performativity, where technical processes and outcomes are shaped by academic theory. We link the performativity analysis with three critical perspectives: a novel enclosure in the commodification and sale of relationships; the politics of standardization, classification, expertise and responsibility; and the enactment of instrumentally rational, self-interested social relations through the individualist assumptions of matching systems. We argue that a performativity analysis must begin with a critical politics: what kind of world would we like to see performed?

Learning to Labour: An Evaluation of Internships and Employability in the ICT Sector

The employability of graduates is often reduced to lists of de-contextualised skills that graduates may or may not have and which may or may not translate to prized graduate positions. Recently, internships have become the way in which graduates acquire and demonstrate work-readiness to potential employers. This article examines a particular type of internship in the ICT sector, namely placements incorporated in degree education. The findings suggest that while internships can enhance employability and indeed be a mechanism for accessing permanent jobs, more often, instead of ‘learning to labour’, interns are expected to be productive workers. A mini labour market operates at the undergraduate level that advantages those already possessed of the required soft skills. The emphasis on soft skills signals a shift in the nature of ICT work with attendant implications for education of workers in this sector, revealed by anchoring employability to particular labour process(es).

Degrees of fit? Matching in the graduate labour market

Purpose – The purpose of this article is to examine matching in the graduate labour market (GLM) in order to understand how expansion of higher education is perceived and translated in practice.Design/methodology/approach – The article uses meritocracy and credentialism as frames of reference to explain the role of educational certification in systems of social structuring. Correspondingly, qualifications may function as signals, screens or proxies. Qualitative evidence, drawing on 40 interviews with graduates, employers and educators gives insights on access requirements, recruitment and selection and transfer of knowledge and skills, in three graduate occupations: chartered accountants; active schools co‐ordinators; and risk managers.Findings – Findings suggest that expanding graduate numbers has produced altered patterns of closure. Employers use the availability of relevant degrees to limit applications, define jurisdictional boundaries and exclude the less, or inappropriately qualified. Yet correspon...

The use of internships to foster employability, enterprise and entrepreneurship in the IT sector

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to report a study of the role of internships for IT students and for the IT sector. The contribution of internships for career-readiness, and for the development of existing IT organisations and the creation of new ones is explored. Design/methodology/approach – Surveys of interns and managers from host firms were conduced, followed by in-depth interviews with six interns and five organisations. Findings – Internships are useful for increasing enterprise and employability skills and commercial awareness for IT students. IT organisations also benefit in that internships are used to recruit fresh talent. Findings regarding entrepreneurship were disappointing, with little reportage of ambitions to create new firms, nor awareness of the high likelihood of self-employed contractual work in the sector. Research limitations/implications – Implications for research include that self-employment and business ownership are not always “successful” entrepreneurial outcomes born o...

Confusion and collectivism in the ICT sector : is FLOSS the answer?

Information and communication technology (ICT) workers rarely join trade unions. This is usually explained by the individualized nature of work. This article examines broader forms of collectivism for these workers, drawing on survey and interview data. The focus is on social class, attitudes towards unions and professional bodies and participation in the broader ICT community – specifically Free, Libre and Open Source Software (FLOSS). The findings reveal absence of formal collective frames of reference or organization, yet the creativity, autonomy and initiative central to the identity of ICT workers may offer opportunities for collectivization particularly with regard to participation in FLOSS communities.

In design we trust: dealing with the innovation imperative

This research was funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (Grant number: AH/J005126/1).

Young People and Work, edited by Robin Price, Paul McDonald, Janis Bailey and Barbara Pini

and religion in examining identity. Throughout each chapter, Pitt uses sociological theories and concepts to explain his observations and the experiences of his subjects. The crux of his analysis, however, appears to be Goffman’s dramaturgy, as he uses this analysis to explain the importance of the social roles these ministers play, both within the congregation and in the minds of the respondents. Pitt’s discussion and description of the calling was particularly fascinating. He spends considerable time explaining the ‘‘vertical call’’ to serve that aspiring ministers receive from God. Respondents are described as having primarily experienced two different types of calls: conventional calls, where respondents were often groomed into the ministry since their youth, such as the children of clergy, or they simply drifted into the ministry; and blitzkrieg calls, such as hearing voices or experiencing dreams or visions. Upon receiving these calls, Pitt explains how respondents then interpret these calls and how they act upon them. Divine Callings is not only well researched and certainly enjoyable to read, but it can also serve as a wonderful resource for a variety of scholars including those interested in religious, gender, racial/ethnic, and importantly, labor studies. Although it would appear from the outset that this book is about religiosity among African Americans, it also provides a fascinating sociological account of how a person sees themself as a professional in a particular institution regardless of their actual standing within this institution. Thus, as Pitt explains, sociologists should take into account the varying ways in which cultural markers such as the calling to ministerial duties, can be experienced and used to inform one’s identity beyond the more traditional societal markers of education, position, and paid-employment, used by sociologists to examine profession and identity. Young People and Work, edited by Robin Price, Paula McDonald, Janis Bailey, and Barbara Pini. Burlington, VT: Ashgate, 2011. 291pp.

Young People and Work

124.95 cloth. ISBN: 9781409422365.

Every Man for Himself

and religion in examining identity. Throughout each chapter, Pitt uses sociological theories and concepts to explain his observations and the experiences of his subjects. The crux of his analysis, however, appears to be Goffman’s dramaturgy, as he uses this analysis to explain the importance of the social roles these ministers play, both within the congregation and in the minds of the respondents. Pitt’s discussion and description of the calling was particularly fascinating. He spends considerable time explaining the ‘‘vertical call’’ to serve that aspiring ministers receive from God. Respondents are described as having primarily experienced two different types of calls: conventional calls, where respondents were often groomed into the ministry since their youth, such as the children of clergy, or they simply drifted into the ministry; and blitzkrieg calls, such as hearing voices or experiencing dreams or visions. Upon receiving these calls, Pitt explains how respondents then interpret these calls and how they act upon them. Divine Callings is not only well researched and certainly enjoyable to read, but it can also serve as a wonderful resource for a variety of scholars including those interested in religious, gender, racial/ethnic, and importantly, labor studies. Although it would appear from the outset that this book is about religiosity among African Americans, it also provides a fascinating sociological account of how a person sees themself as a professional in a particular institution regardless of their actual standing within this institution. Thus, as Pitt explains, sociologists should take into account the varying ways in which cultural markers such as the calling to ministerial duties, can be experienced and used to inform one’s identity beyond the more traditional societal markers of education, position, and paid-employment, used by sociologists to examine profession and identity. Young People and Work, edited by Robin Price, Paula McDonald, Janis Bailey, and Barbara Pini. Burlington, VT: Ashgate, 2011. 291pp.

Professions at the Margins

124.95 cloth. ISBN: 9781409422365.