Abstract
My contribution examines routines of cooperation. It investigates the ways and means in which cooperation is produced within the setting of contemporary employment. This line of questioning is based on two assumptions. Firstly, cooperation itself is the result of practical activities (see also Schüttpelz & Meyer, 2017). Cooperation is thus not simply given, but rather the result of various efforts (activities) and links (relations) that determine the specificity of the respective cooperation and its results.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Similar content being viewed by others
Notes
- 1.
The numerous studies on cooperation at the level of work organisation in the sociology of labour and industry are not included here. Paradigmatic of the German debate (and also of the self-image of the sociology of work and industry) are the studies on ‘structure-like cooperation’ (Popitz et al., 1957).
- 2.
In the English original, the title of the book is Together: The Rituals, Pleasures and Politics of Cooperation (2012).
- 3.
Here, by the way, a parallel can be drawn to the above-mentioned labour process debate, which, as soon as there is a stronger focus on corporate governance, locates itself in critical management studies (cf. Hassard et al., 2001).
- 4.
This field of research is quite heterogeneous and comprises a variety of different research approaches and paradigms. Depending on the boundaries, this field may also include work-related studies from the fields of human–computer interaction, ethnographic labour research and neo-pragmatism.
- 5.
Especially in the case of Studies of Work, these partly explicitly follow Garfinkel’s (1967) basic ethnomethodological considerations, according to which joint action in practice itself must first be established through numerous micro-practices that naturally accompany it, and cooperation thus represents a constitutive characteristic of interactions. Tomasello’s (2010) anthropological studies go one step further in this respect, in that he attributes to humans, in contrast to great apes, for example, the ability to cooperate as an exclusive characteristic.
- 6.
Double quotation marks refer to formulations from the field of investigation. Such formulations were collected through interviews, participant observation and document analysis.
- 7.
- 8.
See Schnaithmann in this volume.
- 9.
The data are presented here in a video transcript (VT), which means that the audiovisually recorded events are not transcribed, but described afterwards (see Schmidt, 2008, p. 287). As with field notes (FN), some aspects are emphasised more strongly, while others are omitted.
- 10.
Similarly, the use of headphones, usually large ones, can be interpreted as a method of minimising the willingness to cooperate. Robert Schmidt also observes this in his ethnography of work and interprets it as a ‘gesture of inapproachability’ (Schmidt, 2008, p. 288, trans. HK).
- 11.
The example given is a conversation recording for which field notes are also available. In the transcripts, empty single brackets indicate incomprehensible statements (), filled single brackets indicate the assumed wording (i.e.). Contextual references as well as para-linguistic means are indicated by double brackets (()). Square brackets indicate overlaps [Hello], single digits in brackets indicate the pause length in seconds (1.0), dashes indicate micro-pauses of about 0.25 s per stroke (–). Utterances where the speech breaks off are indicated by a simple hyphen (Cancel-). Contrary to common linguistic transcription conventions, the utterances have been transcribed in a written and orthographically correct manner to increase readability.
- 12.
The graphic designer does not ‘simply’ hold her hand over the graphic element (l. 7–8) but pulls it away from the element in a disparaging gesture.
- 13.
The computer programs that are frequently used in graphic design work are InDesign, Photoshop and Illustrator, which are all distributed by the market leader, Adobe, in a typical program package, the so-called ‘Creative Suite’.
- 14.
Thus, in verbal interaction, too, the actors distinguish different approaches, so-called ‘lines’, on the basis of their visual form. These include the “leaf-line” (which main design element is a leaf) or the ‘car-line’ (which uses the outline of a motor vehicle for visualisation).
- 15.
For example, the use of communication technologies such as Skype, instant messaging or email was not discussed. Also excluded were those situations in which the computer is used for internal and external presentations.
References
Bergmann, J. R. (2006). Studies of work. In F. Rauner (Ed.), Handbuch der Berufsbildungsforschung (pp. 640–646). Bertelsmann.
Böhle, F. (2009). Weder rationale Reflexion noch präreflexive Praktik – Erfahrungsgeleitet-subjektivierendes Handeln. In F. Böhle & M. Weihrich (Eds.), Handeln unter Unsicherheit (pp. 203–228). VS Verlag.
Böhle, F., & Bolte, A. (2002). Die Entdeckung des Informellen. Der schwierige Umgang mit Kooperation im Arbeitsalltag. Campus.
Böhringer, D., & Wolff, S. (2010). Der PC als “Partner” im institutionellen Gespräch. Zeitschrift Für Soziologie, 39(3), 233–251.
Bolte, A., Neumer, J., & Porschen, S. (2008). Die alltägliche Last der Kooperation. Abstimmung als Arbeit und das Ende der Meeting-Euphorie. Edition Sigma.
Braverman, H. (1974). Labor and monopoly capital. The degradation of work in the twentieth century. Monthly Review Press.
Burawoy, M. (1979). Manufacturing consent. Changes in the labor process under monopoly capitalism. University of Chicago Press.
Deutschmann, C. (2002). Postindustrielle Industriesoziologie. Theoretische Grundlagen, Arbeitsverhältnisse und soziale Identitäten. Juventa.
Garfinkel, H. (1967). Studies in ethnomethodology. Prentice Hall.
Garfinkel, H. (2002). Ethnomethodology’s program. Working out Durkheim’s aphorism, In A. Warfield Rawls (Ed.). Rowman & Littlefield.
Goodwin, C. (1994). Professional vision. American Anthropologist, 96(3), 606–633.
Hassard, J., Hogan, J., & Rowlinson, M. (2001). From labor Process Theory To Critical Management Studies. Administrative Theory & Praxis, 23(3), 339–362.
Haug, W. F. (2009). Kritik der Warenästhetik. Gefolgt von Warenästhetik im High-Tech-Kapitalismus. Suhrkamp.
Hildebrandt, E., & Seltz, R. (Eds.). (1987). Managementstrategien und Kontrolle. Eine Einführung in die Labour Process Debate. Edition Sigma.
Hutter, M. (2011). Infinite Surprises. On the Stabilization of Value in the Creative Industries. In J. Beckert & P. Aspers (Eds.), The worth of goods. Valuation and pricing in the economy (pp. 201–220). Oxford University Press.
Knoblauch, H., & Heath, C. (1999). Technologie, Interaktion und Organisation: Die Workplace Studies. Schweizer Zeitschrift Für Soziologie, 25(2), 163–181.
Krämer, H. (2014a). Die Praxis der Kreativität. Eine Ethnografie kreativer Arbeit. transcript.
Krämer, H. (2014b). Voll dabei. Affektivität und Effektivität in der Arbeitspraxis von Werbern. In M. Seifert (Ed.), Die mentale Seite der Ökonomie. Gefühl und Empathie im Arbeitsleben (pp. 125–139). Thelem.
Krämer, H. (2016). Erwerbsarbeit als Praxis. Perspektive und Analysegewinne einer praxistheoretischen Soziologie der Arbeit. In H. Schäfer (Ed.), Praxistheorie. Ein soziologisches Forschungsprogramm (pp. 301–320). transcript.
Krämer, H., Lengersdorf, D., Berli, O., & Lutter, M. (2016). DFG-Antrag: Netzwerk zur Untersuchung der Arbeits- und Organisationspraxis in der Kultur- und Kreativwirtschaft. http://gepris.dfg.de/gepris/projekt/324318513. Accessed 31 Mar 2018.
Latour, B. (2007). Eine neue Soziologie für eine neue Gesellschaft. Einführung in die Akteur-Netzwerk-Theorie. Suhrkamp.
Laube, S. (2016). Nervöse Märkte. Materielle und leibliche Praktiken im virtuellen Finanzhandel. De Gruyter.
Llewellyn, N., & Hindmarsh, J. (Eds.). (2010). Organisation, interaction and practice. studies in ethnomethodology and conversation analysis. Cambridge University Press.
Marrs, K. (2010). Herrschaft und Kontrolle in der Arbeit. In F. Böhle, G. Günter Voß, & G. Wachtler (Eds.), Handbuch Arbeitssoziologie (pp. 331–356). VS Verlag.
Matthews, B. (2009). Intersections of brainstorming rules and social order. CoDesign, 5(1), 65–76.
Popitz, H., Bahrdt, H.-P., August Jüres, E., & Kesting, H. (1957). Technik und Industriearbeit. Soziologische Untersuchungen in der Hüttenindustrie. Mohr.
Reckwitz, A. (2003). Grundelemente einer Theorie sozialer Praktiken: Eine sozialtheoretische Perspektive. Zeitschrift Für Soziologie, 32(4), 282–301.
Schatzki, T. R. (1996). Social practices. A Wittgensteinian approach to human activity and the social. Cambridge University Press.
Schmidt, R. (2008). Praktiken des Programmierens. Zur Morphologie von Wissensarbeit in der Software-Entwicklung. Zeitschrift für Soziologie, 37(4), 282–300.
Schüttpelz, E., & Meyer, C. (2017). Ein Glossar zur Praxistheorie. ‘Siegener Version’ (Frühjahr 2017). Navigationen, 17(1), 155–164.
Sennett, R. (2012). Zusammenarbeit. Was unsere Gesellschaft zusammenhält. Hanser.
Tomasello, M. (2010). Warum wir kooperieren. Berlin: Suhrkamp.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2023 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Fachmedien Wiesbaden GmbH, part of Springer Nature
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Krämer, H. (2023). Routines of Cooperation in Creative Work. In: Gießmann, S., Röhl, T., Trischler, R., Zillinger, M. (eds) Materiality of Cooperation. Medien der Kooperation – Media of Cooperation. Springer VS, Wiesbaden. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-658-39468-4_7
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-658-39468-4_7
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer VS, Wiesbaden
Print ISBN: 978-3-658-39467-7
Online ISBN: 978-3-658-39468-4
eBook Packages: Literature, Cultural and Media StudiesLiterature, Cultural and Media Studies (R0)