Macdonaldization is a very interesting way of running businesses. Efficiency, predictability, uniformity and control are the four parts of the McDonaldization process. Efficiency is making everything run smoothly and quickly. This can happen better with machines, compared to humans. Predictability is making sure every type of that certain product is the same no matter where someone gets it. McDonald's burgers taste the same in India and in central Illinois. Uniformity is make sure that nothing is left to chance. And control is having more machines do the work than humans. This entire process is extremely dehumanizing, but companies still do it because it makes a bigger profit. swimmer001
I think one interesting consequence of McDonaldization is the dehumanizing effect it has that you pointed out swimmer001. Its kind of sad that companies are so driven by profit that they really don't mind treating their employees basically as cogs in a machine, even if they do treat them well and give them good benefits. Being treated as just a number is definitely different from knowing that your employer knows your name and some little background of who you are. I think every human being is pretty unique, and as such, every person deserves being treated a little differently in recognition of that fact. thestig001
I agree with you swimmer001 but smooth and quick sometimes is not the best way of efficiency. Yes thats how they make more money but if they were to take their time and do things the right way then they would have more service and more people would eat at these places if the food was better. This would be a result in more money than they already make. Summer001
I think Mcdonalization can be okay in some situations like fast food. Workers want to make everything taste the same and also make the food as efficiently as possible. Quantity versus quality I think plays a huge role in the fast food industry because, I know that once in awhile my order at a fast food joint will get messed up because they are working fast. However, I do not believe that this Mcdonalization should be applied in making cars. If I am going to buy a car I want the best quality or something might go wrong for example, my brakes may go out. If machinery is going to provide the best quality then that is fine with me however, it can lower employment for humans. Toby001
Ford was the only American Company who didn't get bailed out recently. Therefore, I'm assuming their quality had stayed the same throughout history. Unlike the other automobile companies that were bailed out, started changing their quality in order to save money and they have proven to be negative results. TooTall001
Ford was a key player in the bail out process, even going to Congress with GM and Chrysler to lobby for their bailouts. Ford has an 80% overlap in supplier networks and 25% of Ford's top dealers also own GM and Chrysler franchises. If the other two companies went under that would hurt the suppliers and therefore Ford itself. Also, in 2009 Ford did in fact receive $5.9 Billion dollars in order to refit their manufacturing for more fuel-efficient care production. They also requested a $9 Billion dollar credit line with the U.S. government in case of any more economic emergencies. Just because Ford didn't get any money from the AIFP doesn't mean they didn't get federal assistance. Their lobby also included a plea to incentivize trading in old cars for in order to push sales of new cars. Six months later the "Consumer Assistance to Recycle and Save Act" was signed into existence, also known as the cash-for-clunkers program. Under that program the DoT reported that over 90,000 Ford vehicles were purchased as of December 2009 (Second only to Toyota). They then began a marketing program to point out that they didn't receive the same bailouts that the other companies did under the AIFP. Genius business by Ford. Never assume. Assumption is the mother of all mistakes. FreedomUnderGod001
This is what is great about being an educated consumer. If you know where your car was manufactured you can find out how everything was made and how it is assembled. Unfortunately in today’s society most of the vehicles that are really taken time to construct and have high quality parts are super expensive. I guess for now most of us will have to stick with the McDonalization method when buying a car. I do think we should not sacrifice quality for quantity. SVT001.
Toby001 I can agree with you good quality is always important and some of the things that these machines do humans cannot do by hand which I feel like can be excellent for like you said a good quality car nothing better than that. It can be hard though for the ones that come into these companies that are without these machines or rules and eventually the employees are all becoming jobless. LAWS001
McDonaldization of all of society is a scary kind of thought. Efficiency, predictability, calculability and non-humanization are great principles for making lots of money, but they definitely have a dehumanizing effect on society, something akin to Marx's idea of alienation. I think a great example of McDonaldization and the isolating effects it can have on society is provided by today's mass media. Take cell phones for example, with the advent of cell phones, people now much prefer to text or email rather than talk on the phone, which is still greatly preferred to actually talking to somebody face to face. Texting helps to increase efficiency and helps communication to be more predictable because the medium of communication is limited to characters on a screen. This means that all the little innuendo's of human communication, body language, tone of voice, the pace of a conversation are all lost in texting, which results in a conversation that is more rigid and less personal. One can react to text in a way one would never act around a real person. The kind of sad thing is that this less-personal form of communication is greatly preferred to carrying out real live conversations. I think this could have dangerous consequences for our ability to communicate with each other in the long run. thestig001
Unfortunately I think our society runs on money. Motivation for most people is how much money they are going to get out of something OR if they are trying to save money works both ways. I do believe it's possible to find that happy medium in life. Our standards as well as our choices can make a big change in life wherever we end up. WonderWoman001
It is extremely fortunate that our society runs on money. The only unfortunate part was when President Nixon took us off of the Gold Standard. Without capitalism and the drive for money, power, and influence we would still be in the dark ages. Technological innovation would never be released to the non-wealthy, slavery would never have been unchained, heck we would be living in the Dark Ages under serfdoms. The drive for personal success is what makes humans human. It's how China has gone from one of the most impoverished nation in the world to an economic powerhouse, lifting literally hundreds of millions of people out of poverty. We have examples of when money is taken away as an incentive for people to succeed. It's called Soviet Russia. It was the perfect most recent example of how the idea of non-capitalism promotes failure. I think what you are trying to get at is a Utopian future where people don't have to worry about personal success. Both in effect and in theory it has been shown that this kind of society is simply bad. FreedomUnderGod001
That another company to compare this look at society to. Each of these principles are almost expected each time we use, buy, or sell a product. The slightest hiccup could cause a customer to feel something isn't worth investing if it doesn't meet these needs at times. For example, a mom that super busy with her children and career may want a meal to pick up for her children MacDonalds. This makes things so much better off they are also reliable. It is a bit dehumanizing, but it's beneficial for society overall. Taylojj2
Being in the HVAC industry I have been going into a lot of houses and have seen how previous HVAC techs have been McDonaldizing their work. It's quantity over quality, they want to get in and get it down as fast as possible. School teaches us quality of workmanship but in the real world your employer wants quantity. I've witnessed this in other tech's work because I've been called to fix the problems that came from their work. I still believe in quantity over quality but that may change because employers look at how much money they can make. TooTall001
You touched upon how schools are teaching quality over quantity. I agree that I have seen the same in the American school system. It is of no surprise that we have been plummeting in test scores, the U.S. Millennial generation being the first of it's kind with an average IQ that is actually lower than the previous generation's. It also contributes to the studies that show that U.S. Millennial think that they know more than they actually do. FreedomUnderGod001
I think parts of McDonaldization is important or intelligent as far as some things go in life. Especially as a business owner you need efficiency. I don't agree however with that interfering with the quality of work. There has to be a happy medium and that oeverall would be a success in my book. I like predictability, the idea of it is amazing, but life is nothing like that and it's very unlikely that you can always control to a certain degree. Uniformity is very much like conformity and our society loves that. I think that this can lead to high expectations or certain expectations and since life cannot be totally perfect eventually will have some let down. Control is interesting, I'm sure it works and many times we don't even realize it for sure. I think we should look at the big picture and decide for ourselves what our goals are for ourselves and try not to let the world influence us by comparisons. WonderWoman001
The McDonaldization of society is an idea that makes sense when applying it to the way things work or how we communicate. If you ask someone if they prefer their interactions to be efficient, predictable, uniformed and controlled, they’d say no. On one hand most people communicate with those closest to them and there’s no “McDonalds” about it, but when it comes to conversing with strangers or those whose opinion really doesn’t weigh in, then I can see how we’d want those conversations to be “McDonaldized”. “Hi, how are you?” “Fine.” “Great.” This is efficient, predictable, uniform and controlled interaction with strangers. When someone deviates, it’s uncomfortable. Arizona001
That is a good example of McDonaldization with conversations. I would have never thought about the McDonaldization process in that way. However, I I disagree because I do not like those types of conversations. They are too shallow and the question "How are you?" is used too much. People do not really care how you are doing. I think it is making people too insensitive. swimmer001
It is pretty clear cut what successful business looks like. McDonald's has done a very fine job at it. McDonaldization is an essential part of a global economy like the one we live in today. Do you have friends who work at McDonald's? Family members? Do you yourself work at McDonald's? Do they complain about how little they make? How they have to work such long hours? How the company doesn't actually care about them? How they should be paid more for their work? Consider this: What if you shut down every job that McDonald's has made across the globe. They employ about 1.9 Million people. 760k in the United States alone. They make 75.21 million a day. Let's say that in a day someone works 10 hours with $8 minimum wage.They would make 80 dollars a day. On that day, over 760k workers McDonald's has paid 60.8 million in wages. Let's raise that minimum wage to $15. Worker now makes 150 dollars a day. They can afford twice the amount of stuff! But wait a second, that means McDonald's has to pay out 114 million dollars to their workers every. They only make 75.21 million a day. Now the company is losing money. Now the workers stop getting paid. Now they lose their jobs. And that is only counting the 760k in the United States, you aren't thinking of the rest of the 1.9 million people who are working in other nations, probably more impoverished than the America. They just lost all their jobs too. Instead of helping people rise out of poverty (even with good intentions), we have pushed people down into it. Here is another kicker: most McDonald's are not owned by the corporate entity itself, but in fact by smaller franchises who make even less of a profit margin than the corporation. In august 2013 McDonald's profit margins were only 4.9%. If it falls to 0% then corporations are unable to expand. If it falls below it, people start losing jobs. Without this idea of McDonaldization, economies would grow significantly slower than the modern era has allowed it to do so.
I happen to know people who work in Mcdonald's and have heard them complain about how much they work yet don't get paid as they may want. What you have said gives a better picture of why they don't increase the payments of the employees. I think it is sooo true how you have said it makes very much sense to me. HollaGurl001
I think Ritzer was smart in using the fast food “McDonaldization” as an example. It is an easy concept to understand. We use technology and dehumanize the workplace. As a nation and as a part of the world we want to be efficient. I am not going to lie; I like the fact that I can get a meal in less than five minutes. We live in times where we do not have to wait for much of anything. Our society is interconnected with technology to a point that I could not see us functioning without it. I think it is important to remember that we should not rely so much on technology. Some things in life are worth waiting for and being done with human hands verses robotic hands. SVT001.
It is rather funny how rough we can be one large corporation like McDonald's or companies that use factories to produce their products. Though we are angered by the means we still enjoy the ends. We suffer from a saddening hypocrisy. Karma001
I wonder if we can strike a balance in the control side of the concept? There are many jobs that would better be served by robotic hands, and others who demand human touch.Packers001
Like in the other video it is disheartening to see systems of disempowerment throughout our capitalistic society, but without such systems we would not be able to enjoy many of the freedoms and technologies we have today. Without production efficiency we could never be able to produce products for our large population. An example of this is Ford’s assembly line, before his system of production cars were only affordable to the wealthy. Without product predictability we would never know if a product worked the way it is supposed to. From my experiences in woodworking, sawing multiple pieces of wood to fit together perfectly is no small task and is also extremely frustrating. Without product calculability a manufacturer would not be able to produce enough of a product to make a profit, therefore negating the products production in the first place. Finally without non-human technology products such as cellphones, computers and the like would not be producible, containing such intricate parts that human error would surely interfere with the final product. Karma001
I also agree with you about the need for technology. necessary, Our capitalistic society already demands so much more than we our selves cannot give. Hundreds of jobs are outsourced to foreign countries due to the concept of calculability- quantity over quality. Rosebudd001
I agree with you on all of those accounts. If everything was handmade or even just made without the mass production side of things then there would be a very small amount of products compared to the population which would increase demand and skyrocket the prices to buy these products. And a society like todays which is reliant on vehicles would not be around if the automobile wasn't reliable using parts that all of a model would be able to use. Delta001
Indeed McDonaldization affects society. All people are looking for is efficiency and something that benefits them the fastest. They would rather have technology do the work instead of having to do it themselves. It takes away the hands on part of working. Because all we have to do now is make sure the machines are functioning properly. Nothing major. I mean even now we have machines that build machines. Back before we didn't have technology, we had to build everything by hand and it would turn out different all the time. But, when now we have the technology that we have today to make things in bulk the same way, every single time it is more efficient and easier to sell. Without mass production we would have to replace broken items instead of repairing them. Everything we would purchase would be one of a kind and nearly impossible to repair. HollaGurl001
I agree, If there was not mass production of items then the majority of purchased items would be handmade and hard to replicate. With that said we would be spending more money replacing instead of repairing. I never looked at it that this way and It has made me open my eyes a little more in to Mcdonalization. Toby001
I would kind a disagree with us repairing items instead of fixing them, we tend to be more of a society that if something breaks we throw it away and buy a new one. think of all the tvs, mp3 players and PHONES especially no one is fixing these items they just replace them. People use to build items to last and took pride in doing so. grateful001
Does McDonalds have royalty rights to the name McDonaldization? Efficiency, predictability, uniformity and control are four powerful principles for modern day enterprise. I think efficiency is the goal, and the other three are necessary to achieve that goal. Efficiency has to be part of our cerebral fabric because we've been optimizing every facet of life since inception. Packers001
I agree with you completely Efficiency is the major principles and others come along to achieve the goal. Limiting the cost and effort benefits a company a lot and all the business now look for the profits itself because of the high competition in market. khush001
I think we see Mcdonaldization more now in todays economy. Efficiency which is eaching a specific end rapidly while using the least amount of cost and effort. Calculability, which is the tendency to emphasize quantity over quality. Predicatability which is letting the society know what to expect from where. And, Non-Human Technology; which is technology savy. These four principles some how rely on each other and because the market is very demanding now, and the competition is really high these factors don't seem to be as controversial topics as it should be. khush001
Mcdonaldlization was a interesting video.When he said that mcdonaldlization is going to dominate he was correct because it is the biggest fast food resturaunt in America. Nearly a million people eat at Mcdonalds a day. Efficency is the key word and to make this happen they needed quick and easy food to sell to millions. The technolgy has made it easier for people to eat, to become fit, and to shop among places.Because of technology the people rely more on it and less of what they actually have to do. I think this is harmful for us because it is making us less useful and more reliable on technology. Things today are not thee same as they used to be. But the future will just continue to increase technology for the people and the people will become more dependent. I think that each person should be as independent as they can. With newer technolgy everything is being made at the push of a button and the people will adapt to this. Once we have adapted to this kind of technology there is really no going back. Summer001
I agree when you said that that the key to Mcdonalds is the efficiency. Its the key because people are moving and living faster than we ever have before, so we don't want to waste time eating a meal that takes 30 minutes to make. We instead want to sit for 2-3 minutes in our car and have our food instantly handed to us. Now this wouldn't be a huge issue but the negative health effects make it one. glassonion001
This author was correct in using McDonald's as the model of modern society. He hit the nail on the head when he said that efficiency, calculability, predictability and non-human technology is what society wants more and more of. Even I choose restaurants sometimes because I know that I am going to get in and out quick, and I know that no matter which location I order from it will taste the same. I think that this process is a good and bad thing. It's good because it separates the good businesses from the bad because more people will choose the businesses where they know what type of service and product they are receiving. It is a bad thing though because it takes "mom and pop" shops out of society. These types of shops will fade according to this process because they are a little more unpredictable than the big corporations because uniformity isn't stressed as much. glassonion001
I also think that Ritzer has a great point of using Mc Donalds as the basis for this theory. In truth he's right that everything is industrialized. How could it be any otherway? We have the knowledge of technology, and efficiency is key to accomplish anything in this world of fast data,and modernization. Machines do things that people cant do as quickly or as safetly. Ritzer's Mc Donaldization theory is summarized by four catagories. Efficiency , Predictability, Calculability is understanding quantity over quality; and non-human technology. Rosebudd001
I use to call this the Walmart effect, at one time Walmart was a great company that sold quality products that were mostly made in the USA. I can honestly say I have not been one of there customers for 20 plus years. The McDonaldization of america could end up being our worst nightmare, its not hard to imagine a world where McDonald's has no employees and machines do it all from taking your order to handing you your food out the drive thru window. They already know this will help boost sales and lower their food cost at the same time from less mistakes and more people coming back. grateful001
I can definitely see the applications of this theory in society today and myself as well. One of the main focuses of McDonaldization was efficiency. This means making the food quick and saving time. I have noticed that whenever I go to eat a meal, whether is be in a fast food place or a just a regular restaurant that the first thing I either compliment or complain about was how fast the food got there. I'm not used to waiting in today's society. This is what makes McDonaldization relatable to me. Delta001
Rules efficiency and practical results. Mcdonaldizations rules for workers contain efficiency making sure you have the best route to get it done, predictability things are the same thing every time, calculability quantity being better then quality on this part, and non-human technology rather than human technology taking skills from people and making them into machines that do everything. Many businesses go by these rules and these rules only. Using machines is cheaper for the companies but the people that can do what these machines do unfortunately lose jobs, the businesses think of it as what do we need to pay employees to do the work for when we have machines. Making humans have low self-esteem as if they’re not good enough to do these jobs. Some of these rules businesses go by I feel can be smart and good on their part but for the people without jobs it is hard. LAWS001
Could the rationality principle been a bit to focused on or taken to the extreme. I do see why efficiency would be one of the first to be focused on. Customers will place an order and want it as soon as possible. It's also beneficial to have this down in order to take on more customers more smoothly. In my opinion, it the most important of the four principles. In today culture, we are almost always on the go. Things are expected to be fast and reliable each time. Taylojj2
Macdonaldization is a very interesting way of running businesses. Efficiency, predictability, uniformity and control are the four parts of the McDonaldization process. Efficiency is making everything run smoothly and quickly. This can happen better with machines, compared to humans. Predictability is making sure every type of that certain product is the same no matter where someone gets it. McDonald's burgers taste the same in India and in central Illinois. Uniformity is make sure that nothing is left to chance. And control is having more machines do the work than humans. This entire process is extremely dehumanizing, but companies still do it because it makes a bigger profit.
ReplyDeleteswimmer001
I think one interesting consequence of McDonaldization is the dehumanizing effect it has that you pointed out swimmer001. Its kind of sad that companies are so driven by profit that they really don't mind treating their employees basically as cogs in a machine, even if they do treat them well and give them good benefits. Being treated as just a number is definitely different from knowing that your employer knows your name and some little background of who you are. I think every human being is pretty unique, and as such, every person deserves being treated a little differently in recognition of that fact.
Deletethestig001
I agree with you swimmer001 but smooth and quick sometimes is not the best way of efficiency. Yes thats how they make more money but if they were to take their time and do things the right way then they would have more service and more people would eat at these places if the food was better. This would be a result in more money than they already make.
DeleteSummer001
I think Mcdonalization can be okay in some situations like fast food. Workers want to make everything taste the same and also make the food as efficiently as possible. Quantity versus quality I think plays a huge role in the fast food industry because, I know that once in awhile my order at a fast food joint will get messed up because they are working fast. However, I do not believe that this Mcdonalization should be applied in making cars. If I am going to buy a car I want the best quality or something might go wrong for example, my brakes may go out. If machinery is going to provide the best quality then that is fine with me however, it can lower employment for humans. Toby001
ReplyDeleteFord was the only American Company who didn't get bailed out recently. Therefore, I'm assuming their quality had stayed the same throughout history. Unlike the other automobile companies that were bailed out, started changing their quality in order to save money and they have proven to be negative results. TooTall001
DeleteFord was a key player in the bail out process, even going to Congress with GM and Chrysler to lobby for their bailouts. Ford has an 80% overlap in supplier networks and 25% of Ford's top dealers also own GM and Chrysler franchises. If the other two companies went under that would hurt the suppliers and therefore Ford itself. Also, in 2009 Ford did in fact receive $5.9 Billion dollars in order to refit their manufacturing for more fuel-efficient care production. They also requested a $9 Billion dollar credit line with the U.S. government in case of any more economic emergencies. Just because Ford didn't get any money from the AIFP doesn't mean they didn't get federal assistance. Their lobby also included a plea to incentivize trading in old cars for in order to push sales of new cars. Six months later the "Consumer Assistance to Recycle and Save Act" was signed into existence, also known as the cash-for-clunkers program. Under that program the DoT reported that over 90,000 Ford vehicles were purchased as of December 2009 (Second only to Toyota). They then began a marketing program to point out that they didn't receive the same bailouts that the other companies did under the AIFP. Genius business by Ford. Never assume. Assumption is the mother of all mistakes. FreedomUnderGod001
DeleteThis is what is great about being an educated consumer. If you know where your car was manufactured you can find out how everything was made and how it is assembled. Unfortunately in today’s society most of the vehicles that are really taken time to construct and have high quality parts are super expensive. I guess for now most of us will have to stick with the McDonalization method when buying a car. I do think we should not sacrifice quality for quantity. SVT001.
DeleteToby001 I can agree with you good quality is always important and some of the things that these machines do humans cannot do by hand which I feel like can be excellent for like you said a good quality car nothing better than that. It can be hard though for the ones that come into these companies that are without these machines or rules and eventually the employees are all becoming jobless. LAWS001
DeleteMcDonaldization of all of society is a scary kind of thought. Efficiency, predictability, calculability and non-humanization are great principles for making lots of money, but they definitely have a dehumanizing effect on society, something akin to Marx's idea of alienation. I think a great example of McDonaldization and the isolating effects it can have on society is provided by today's mass media. Take cell phones for example, with the advent of cell phones, people now much prefer to text or email rather than talk on the phone, which is still greatly preferred to actually talking to somebody face to face. Texting helps to increase efficiency and helps communication to be more predictable because the medium of communication is limited to characters on a screen. This means that all the little innuendo's of human communication, body language, tone of voice, the pace of a conversation are all lost in texting, which results in a conversation that is more rigid and less personal. One can react to text in a way one would never act around a real person. The kind of sad thing is that this less-personal form of communication is greatly preferred to carrying out real live conversations. I think this could have dangerous consequences for our ability to communicate with each other in the long run.
ReplyDeletethestig001
Unfortunately I think our society runs on money. Motivation for most people is how much money they are going to get out of something OR if they are trying to save money works both ways. I do believe it's possible to find that happy medium in life. Our standards as well as our choices can make a big change in life wherever we end up. WonderWoman001
DeleteIt is extremely fortunate that our society runs on money. The only unfortunate part was when President Nixon took us off of the Gold Standard. Without capitalism and the drive for money, power, and influence we would still be in the dark ages. Technological innovation would never be released to the non-wealthy, slavery would never have been unchained, heck we would be living in the Dark Ages under serfdoms. The drive for personal success is what makes humans human. It's how China has gone from one of the most impoverished nation in the world to an economic powerhouse, lifting literally hundreds of millions of people out of poverty. We have examples of when money is taken away as an incentive for people to succeed. It's called Soviet Russia. It was the perfect most recent example of how the idea of non-capitalism promotes failure. I think what you are trying to get at is a Utopian future where people don't have to worry about personal success. Both in effect and in theory it has been shown that this kind of society is simply bad. FreedomUnderGod001
DeleteThat another company to compare this look at society to. Each of these principles are almost expected each time we use, buy, or sell a product. The slightest hiccup could cause a customer to feel something isn't worth investing if it doesn't meet these needs at times. For example, a mom that super busy with her children and career may want a meal to pick up for her children MacDonalds. This makes things so much better off they are also reliable. It is a bit dehumanizing, but it's beneficial for society overall. Taylojj2
DeleteBeing in the HVAC industry I have been going into a lot of houses and have seen how previous HVAC techs have been McDonaldizing their work. It's quantity over quality, they want to get in and get it down as fast as possible. School teaches us quality of workmanship but in the real world your employer wants quantity. I've witnessed this in other tech's work because I've been called to fix the problems that came from their work. I still believe in quantity over quality but that may change because employers look at how much money they can make. TooTall001
ReplyDeleteYou touched upon how schools are teaching quality over quantity. I agree that I have seen the same in the American school system. It is of no surprise that we have been plummeting in test scores, the U.S. Millennial generation being the first of it's kind with an average IQ that is actually lower than the previous generation's. It also contributes to the studies that show that U.S. Millennial think that they know more than they actually do. FreedomUnderGod001
DeleteI think parts of McDonaldization is important or intelligent as far as some things go in life. Especially as a business owner you need efficiency. I don't agree however with that interfering with the quality of work. There has to be a happy medium and that oeverall would be a success in my book. I like predictability, the idea of it is amazing, but life is nothing like that and it's very unlikely that you can always control to a certain degree. Uniformity is very much like conformity and our society loves that. I think that this can lead to high expectations or certain expectations and since life cannot be totally perfect eventually will have some let down. Control is interesting, I'm sure it works and many times we don't even realize it for sure. I think we should look at the big picture and decide for ourselves what our goals are for ourselves and try not to let the world influence us by comparisons. WonderWoman001
ReplyDeleteThe McDonaldization of society is an idea that makes sense when applying it to the way things work or how we communicate. If you ask someone if they prefer their interactions to be efficient, predictable, uniformed and controlled, they’d say no. On one hand most people communicate with those closest to them and there’s no “McDonalds” about it, but when it comes to conversing with strangers or those whose opinion really doesn’t weigh in, then I can see how we’d want those conversations to be “McDonaldized”. “Hi, how are you?” “Fine.” “Great.” This is efficient, predictable, uniform and controlled interaction with strangers. When someone deviates, it’s uncomfortable. Arizona001
ReplyDeleteThat is a good example of McDonaldization with conversations. I would have never thought about the McDonaldization process in that way. However, I I disagree because I do not like those types of conversations. They are too shallow and the question "How are you?" is used too much. People do not really care how you are doing. I think it is making people too insensitive.
Deleteswimmer001
It is pretty clear cut what successful business looks like. McDonald's has done a very fine job at it. McDonaldization is an essential part of a global economy like the one we live in today. Do you have friends who work at McDonald's? Family members? Do you yourself work at McDonald's? Do they complain about how little they make? How they have to work such long hours? How the company doesn't actually care about them? How they should be paid more for their work? Consider this: What if you shut down every job that McDonald's has made across the globe. They employ about 1.9 Million people. 760k in the United States alone. They make 75.21 million a day. Let's say that in a day someone works 10 hours with $8 minimum wage.They would make 80 dollars a day. On that day, over 760k workers McDonald's has paid 60.8 million in wages. Let's raise that minimum wage to $15. Worker now makes 150 dollars a day. They can afford twice the amount of stuff! But wait a second, that means McDonald's has to pay out 114 million dollars to their workers every. They only make 75.21 million a day. Now the company is losing money. Now the workers stop getting paid. Now they lose their jobs. And that is only counting the 760k in the United States, you aren't thinking of the rest of the 1.9 million people who are working in other nations, probably more impoverished than the America. They just lost all their jobs too. Instead of helping people rise out of poverty (even with good intentions), we have pushed people down into it. Here is another kicker: most McDonald's are not owned by the corporate entity itself, but in fact by smaller franchises who make even less of a profit margin than the corporation. In august 2013 McDonald's profit margins were only 4.9%. If it falls to 0% then corporations are unable to expand. If it falls below it, people start losing jobs. Without this idea of McDonaldization, economies would grow significantly slower than the modern era has allowed it to do so.
ReplyDelete^^^FreedomUnderGod001
DeleteI happen to know people who work in Mcdonald's and have heard them complain about how much they work yet don't get paid as they may want. What you have said gives a better picture of why they don't increase the payments of the employees. I think it is sooo true how you have said it makes very much sense to me.
DeleteHollaGurl001
I think Ritzer was smart in using the fast food “McDonaldization” as an example. It is an easy concept to understand. We use technology and dehumanize the workplace. As a nation and as a part of the world we want to be efficient. I am not going to lie; I like the fact that I can get a meal in less than five minutes. We live in times where we do not have to wait for much of anything. Our society is interconnected with technology to a point that I could not see us functioning without it. I think it is important to remember that we should not rely so much on technology. Some things in life are worth waiting for and being done with human hands verses robotic hands. SVT001.
ReplyDeleteIt is rather funny how rough we can be one large corporation like McDonald's or companies that use factories to produce their products. Though we are angered by the means we still enjoy the ends. We suffer from a saddening hypocrisy. Karma001
DeleteI wonder if we can strike a balance in the control side of the concept? There are many jobs that would better be served by robotic hands, and others who demand human touch.Packers001
DeleteLike in the other video it is disheartening to see systems of disempowerment throughout our capitalistic society, but without such systems we would not be able to enjoy many of the freedoms and technologies we have today. Without production efficiency we could never be able to produce products for our large population. An example of this is Ford’s assembly line, before his system of production cars were only affordable to the wealthy. Without product predictability we would never know if a product worked the way it is supposed to. From my experiences in woodworking, sawing multiple pieces of wood to fit together perfectly is no small task and is also extremely frustrating. Without product calculability a manufacturer would not be able to produce enough of a product to make a profit, therefore negating the products production in the first place. Finally without non-human technology products such as cellphones, computers and the like would not be producible, containing such intricate parts that human error would surely interfere with the final product. Karma001
ReplyDeleteI also agree with you about the need for technology. necessary, Our capitalistic society already demands so much more than we our selves cannot give. Hundreds of jobs are outsourced to foreign countries due to the concept of calculability- quantity over quality. Rosebudd001
DeleteI agree with you on all of those accounts. If everything was handmade or even just made without the mass production side of things then there would be a very small amount of products compared to the population which would increase demand and skyrocket the prices to buy these products. And a society like todays which is reliant on vehicles would not be around if the automobile wasn't reliable using parts that all of a model would be able to use.
DeleteDelta001
Indeed McDonaldization affects society. All people are looking for is efficiency and something that benefits them the fastest. They would rather have technology do the work instead of having to do it themselves. It takes away the hands on part of working. Because all we have to do now is make sure the machines are functioning properly. Nothing major. I mean even now we have machines that build machines. Back before we didn't have technology, we had to build everything by hand and it would turn out different all the time. But, when now we have the technology that we have today to make things in bulk the same way, every single time it is more efficient and easier to sell. Without mass production we would have to replace broken items instead of repairing them. Everything we would purchase would be one of a kind and nearly impossible to repair.
ReplyDeleteHollaGurl001
I agree, If there was not mass production of items then the majority of purchased items would be handmade and hard to replicate. With that said we would be spending more money replacing instead of repairing. I never looked at it that this way and It has made me open my eyes a little more in to Mcdonalization. Toby001
DeleteI would kind a disagree with us repairing items instead of fixing them, we tend to be more of a society that if something breaks we throw it away and buy a new one. think of all the tvs, mp3 players and PHONES especially no one is fixing these items they just replace them. People use to build items to last and took pride in doing so.
Deletegrateful001
Does McDonalds have royalty rights to the name McDonaldization? Efficiency, predictability, uniformity and control are four powerful principles for modern day enterprise. I think efficiency is the goal, and the other three are necessary to achieve that goal. Efficiency has to be part of our cerebral fabric because we've been optimizing every facet of life since inception. Packers001
ReplyDeleteI agree with you completely Efficiency is the major principles and others come along to achieve the goal. Limiting the cost and effort benefits a company a lot and all the business now look for the profits itself because of the high competition in market.
Deletekhush001
I think we see Mcdonaldization more now in todays economy. Efficiency which is eaching a specific end rapidly while using the least amount of cost and effort. Calculability, which is the tendency to emphasize quantity over quality. Predicatability which is letting the society know what to expect from where. And, Non-Human Technology; which is technology savy. These four principles some how rely on each other and because the market is very demanding now, and the competition is really high these factors don't seem to be as controversial topics as it should be.
ReplyDeletekhush001
Mcdonaldlization was a interesting video.When he said that mcdonaldlization is going to dominate he was correct because it is the biggest fast food resturaunt in America. Nearly a million people eat at Mcdonalds a day. Efficency is the key word and to make this happen they needed quick and easy food to sell to millions. The technolgy has made it easier for people to eat, to become fit, and to shop among places.Because of technology the people rely more on it and less of what they actually have to do. I think this is harmful for us because it is making us less useful and more reliable on technology. Things today are not thee same as they used to be. But the future will just continue to increase technology for the people and the people will become more dependent. I think that each person should be as independent as they can. With newer technolgy everything is being made at the push of a button and the people will adapt to this. Once we have adapted to this kind of technology there is really no going back.
ReplyDeleteSummer001
I agree when you said that that the key to Mcdonalds is the efficiency. Its the key because people are moving and living faster than we ever have before, so we don't want to waste time eating a meal that takes 30 minutes to make. We instead want to sit for 2-3 minutes in our car and have our food instantly handed to us. Now this wouldn't be a huge issue but the negative health effects make it one. glassonion001
DeleteThis author was correct in using McDonald's as the model of modern society. He hit the nail on the head when he said that efficiency, calculability, predictability and non-human technology is what society wants more and more of. Even I choose restaurants sometimes because I know that I am going to get in and out quick, and I know that no matter which location I order from it will taste the same. I think that this process is a good and bad thing. It's good because it separates the good businesses from the bad because more people will choose the businesses where they know what type of service and product they are receiving. It is a bad thing though because it takes "mom and pop" shops out of society. These types of shops will fade according to this process because they are a little more unpredictable than the big corporations because uniformity isn't stressed as much. glassonion001
ReplyDeleteI also think that Ritzer has a great point of using Mc Donalds as the basis for this theory. In truth he's right that everything is industrialized. How could it be any otherway? We have the knowledge of technology, and efficiency is key to accomplish anything in this world of fast data,and modernization. Machines do things that people cant do as quickly or as safetly. Ritzer's Mc Donaldization theory is summarized by four catagories. Efficiency , Predictability, Calculability is understanding quantity over quality; and non-human technology. Rosebudd001
ReplyDeleteI use to call this the Walmart effect, at one time Walmart was a great company that sold quality products that were mostly made in the USA. I can honestly say I have not been one of there customers for 20 plus years. The McDonaldization of america could end up being our worst nightmare, its not hard to imagine a world where McDonald's has no employees and machines do it all from taking your order to handing you your food out the drive thru window. They already know this will help boost sales and lower their food cost at the same time from less mistakes and more people coming back.
ReplyDeletegrateful001
I can definitely see the applications of this theory in society today and myself as well. One of the main focuses of McDonaldization was efficiency. This means making the food quick and saving time. I have noticed that whenever I go to eat a meal, whether is be in a fast food place or a just a regular restaurant that the first thing I either compliment or complain about was how fast the food got there. I'm not used to waiting in today's society. This is what makes McDonaldization relatable to me.
ReplyDeleteDelta001
Rules efficiency and practical results. Mcdonaldizations rules for workers contain efficiency making sure you have the best route to get it done, predictability things are the same thing every time, calculability quantity being better then quality on this part, and non-human technology rather than human technology taking skills from people and making them into machines that do everything. Many businesses go by these rules and these rules only. Using machines is cheaper for the companies but the people that can do what these machines do unfortunately lose jobs, the businesses think of it as what do we need to pay employees to do the work for when we have machines. Making humans have low self-esteem as if they’re not good enough to do these jobs. Some of these rules businesses go by I feel can be smart and good on their part but for the people without jobs it is hard. LAWS001
ReplyDeleteCould the rationality principle been a bit to focused on or taken to the extreme. I do see why efficiency would be one of the first to be focused on. Customers will place an order and want it as soon as possible. It's also beneficial to have this down in order to take on more customers more smoothly. In my opinion, it the most important of the four principles. In today culture, we are almost always on the go. Things are expected to be fast and reliable each time. Taylojj2
ReplyDelete