Time & Society

Technically mediated forms of interconnectivity and communication are sustaining complex arrangements through which are emerging more dynamic and interdependent physical-digital relations. This article examines the intensification of time through the lens of complexity theory and argues that increasingly networked infrastructures are moving towards an integrated global complexity in real-time. I suggest that shifts in physical-digital temporality are having a significant effect upon how the `social' is being reconfigured.

The article addresses the analysis of time images furnished by a qualitative research made in Spain on the relations of working time and family/personal time. The analysis focuses on three widespread time metaphors used in day-to-day speeches by social agents. The first one is the metaphor of time as resource for action. Its value is equally economical, moral and political. Used in different context of action, it may mean something that can be either invested, donated generously to others, appropriated for caring for oneself, or spent without purpose with others. The second metaphor represents time as an external environment to which action must adapt. This metaphor shows many variants that represent time as a dynamic/static, repetitive/innovative, ordered/chaotic environment. In this external environment, the agents must resolve the problems of temporal embeddedness, hierarchy and synchronization of their actions. The third metaphor shows time as a horizon of action intentionality where the agents try to construct the meaning of their action and identity. Within this horizon the construction of a significant narrative connecting past and present experiences with future expectations is possible.

This article examines the temporal dimension of waste in Henry Mayhew's London Labour and the London Poor as an instance of how modernity has produced a largely hidden domain of the non-identical and indeterminate. Through a consideration of the phenomena of uselessness, decay and poverty I argue that the temporal dimension of waste is constituted as a corrosive or malign `Deadly Time'. In placing such emphasis on time directed towards death, I aim to show that Mayhew's undisciplined researches can be seen as a valuable source for understanding why modern thinking struggles to come to terms with waste.

The objective of this article is to examine the ways in which young people's control over working time is related to phenomena originating in recent trends in European youth labour markets such as the rise in temporary employment and the increasing importance of active labour market policies. The heuristic concept of social chronotopy is introduced to capture the interrelatedness of social time and social space, considering how the value of young people's working time is dependent upon their own contractual status, and the market and welfare institutional context in which they find themselves. In comparative multilevel analyses of survey data, self-reported control over working time is found to be adversely affected by being temporarily employed and finding oneself in a national context of low income replacement for unemployed youth and being confronted with a troublesome youth labour market characterized by the lack of jobs, the lack of permanent jobs, and the lack of spending on active labour market policies.

In this article, we explore how biographical time is storied by a particular group of young athletes in relation to their experiences and expectations of embodied ageing. The data suggests that at present, as able and sporting bodies, their everyday experiences are framed by the cyclical, maximizing, and disciplined notions of time associated with the social organization of sport. In their middle years, however, it was perceived that time would be pressured. In contrast, when talking about old age, empty time and static time were expected. The ways in which three different narratives of self operate to shape the projected experiences of time for these individuals are highlighted, and the implications of this process for their ability to access diverse narrative resources of ageing is discussed.

Polychronicity has traditionally been defined as a form of behavior wherein a person engages in two or more activities during the same block of time, while monochronicity occurs when a person engages in one activity at a time. These concepts have become increasingly relevant in discussions of `time personality', worktime in the home, and technological impacts on time. Other underlying dimensions of polychronicity also exist, such as preferences and feelings towards whether to combine activities or not. In order to reflect this more complex perspective, a validated, updated measure of a person's polychronic—monochronic overall tendency is needed. The present study is a re-inquiry and extension of the Polychronic Attitude Index (PAI), introduced in 1991. In the current research plan we propose, develop, and validate a general five-item comprehensive `reflective' single factor extended model. The general Polychronic—Monochronic Tendency Model is constructed using confirmatory factor analysis. The five-item summated scale from this model is named the Polychronic—Monochronic Tendency Scale (PMTS). A series of five separate studies were used to variously test for social desirability response bias, internal consistency, discriminant validity, and nomological validity. The PAI is also compared statistically to PMTS with the latter being clearly stronger. A discussion of the results and research implications are presented.

American popular and academic discourses suggest that `quality time' — conceived as unstressed, uninterrupted special time with children — is important for family well-being. However, such discourses often engender stress and guilt among working parents, who have difficulty finding time for `quality time'. This article explores the concept of `quality time' in academic and popular literature (such as websites) and then draws on interviews and ethnographic video recordings of 32 dual-earner, two-parent American families to explore both perceived and lived experiences of family time. It proposes that everyday activities (like household chores or running errands) may afford families quality moments, unplanned, unstructured instances of social interaction that serve the important relationship-building functions that parents seek from `quality time'.

Works conducted in logistics management mostly emphasize the importance of a `time compression' strategy to develop a sustainable competitive advantage. At the level of the design, manufacturing or distribution of products to consumers, high-speed orientation is now considered to be a universal source of performance. Drawing from current developments in the French food retailing industry, the paper points to a possible alternative path based on `slowness' logistics. This new time orientation is set in a context of the `theatricalization of low prices' adopted by an increasing number of large retailers.

This article builds on previous research that has led to the development of a psychometric scale designed for capturing individual time orientations over a 15-year period. The time styles scale was initially developed in France. Cross-cultural replications of the scale were undertaken in several countries (Germany, Hong Kong, Tunisia, Vietnam), with particular emphasis on the influence of language on psychometric measurement. We demonstrate the nomological validity of the scale by reviewing research that has assessed its ability to predict values, individual activity planning, attitudes towards waiting time, as well as buying and consumption behaviour.

Time studies in psychology or in consumer behaviour, traditionally think of the personal future as a Lewinian `life space', containing several well-known time dimensions: future time perspective, future anxiety, and hope. Those dimensions are used to test the predictive power of various behaviours (attitudinal change, health behaviour, delay of gratification, etc.) or more specifically: the temporality of consumer behaviours as implied in consumption of cultural goods, exploratory consumer behaviour, or mail order purchasing. However, the personal future is flexible enough to enable individuals to project themselves well beyond this `life space' into a post-mortem future. In this context, I propose to look at the concept of death anxiety. Researchers studying the influence of time representations on human behaviour should not limit themselves to apprehending the traditional dimension of personal future; they could integrate an understanding of the future that projects us beyond physical death. This requires first a close examination of the relationships between death anxiety and the traditionally applied future dimensions, and then broadening the scope to various human and consumer behaviours still unexplained by traditionally acknowledged temporal dimensions. I first present the classical Lewinian notion of personal future, highlighting some of its aspects, to show how death anxiety is part of the personal future, and presents major behavioural impacts. Second, by using structural equation modelling, and a multi-group approach, I present an empirical study aiming to show the nature and the intensity of the links between death anxiety and the other traditionally applied dimensions.

The following article presents temporal frameworks articulated around two axes: synchrony/diachrony and instant/ duration. A framework is elaborated based on an analysis of how cultural activities bearing social and historical meaning fit into temporal frameworks on the individual level of consumers, or cultural actors. The argument identifies four types of time frames supporting individual action: `permanent present' frame, `modern time' frame, `fragmented time' frame and `in rhythm time' frame. Two studies, conducted on the topic of cultural activities involving theatre and museums, have been used to illustrate the conceptual model. They exemplify the relationship between the individual's temporal framework, his or her attitude with regard to culture and the type of cultural action he or she develops.