The questions below are designed to elicit individual, that is, your responses to what you have read and internalized from the reading. You are also encouraged to add whatever thoughts you have on the chapter you have just read. This is a journal, after all! As with the discussion boards, your responses to the questions should be in paragraph form and include “I” statements. The more you show me, your instructor, that you see Ritzer’s principles of McDonaldization around you and in your own life, the better your score will be. Remember, the journals and discussion boards are worth more than other assignments.
Resources for the Assessment: Ritzer – Chapter 5: Predictability & Control: McJobs & Other McDonaldized Occupations 2
Within the minimum requirements of one paragraph answers for each question, discuss the following:
What is predictability? How does it apply to employees? Give three examples from the reading.
Aside from the scripted interactions associated with fast food, telemarketing, and sales, where else would you find scripted interactions? (Hint: Do they exist between students and professors? Parents and children? People on dates?) Give at least two original examples.
Would you feel uncomfortable if a counter person or salesperson began acting or interacting differently from what you typically expect? Why or why not? What, if anything, does your answer tell you about the pervasiveness of McDonaldization?
What are some advantages and disadvantages of control in the healthcare industry? Are doctors controlled? How do you feel about the advantages and disadvantages when it applies to you personally? How about when applied to a grandparent?
