Chapter 1: Introduction to McDonaldization
What is McDonaldization?
McDonaldization: The process by which the principles of the fast-food restaurant are coming to dominate more and more sectors of American society as well as of the rest of the world
What do we mean by the spatial, temporal, and vertical expansion of McDonaldization?
Spatial expansion: franchises are growing rapidly; international success; other nations have developed their own variants on the McDonald’s chain
McDonald’s long arm: smaller towns, big cities, small remote outlets, campuses, schools, and hospitals
Applying to several industries including low-priced fast food chains and higher-priced more upscale chains, Toys R Us, The Body Shop, text messaging/cell…show more content… 1. Material interests: higher profits, lower costs
2. Culture of the United States: values McDonaldization as an end in itself
3. McDonaldization and the changing society: is attuned to changes occurring in American society and around the world (mobility, family life, mass media, income)
Make sure you understand what postindustrialism and postfordism are and how they contrast with McDonaldization. Don’t worry about postmodernism –ever.
Postindustrialism: focus in society shifted from producing goods to providing services the spread of McDonaldization indicates that some aspects of industrial society are still with us and will remain so for some time to come
McD demands uncreative minds, simple selves and minimal communication dominated by scripts and routines; emphasizes simplification over complexification
Postfordism: declining interest in mass products and growing interest in specialized products, shorter production runs, flexible production, more capable workers, greater differentiation
McDonaldization opposes many of these characteristics, follows a Fordism view
What are the other potential threats to McDonaldization? Threats: vulnerable to international campaigns and local opposition cannot stay on top indefinitely; eventually
