Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 4, 2026
08:01
Virtual Hand with Ambiguous Movement between the Self and Other Origin: Sense of Ownership and 'Other-Produced' Agency
Published on: October 28, 2020
Time, space and touch at work: body work and labour process (re)organisation
1Department of Sociology, University of Surrey, Guildford. r.cohen@surrey.ac.uk
Sociology of Health & Illness
|February 9, 2011
Summary
Reorganizing health and social care is challenging because
Area of Science:
- Sociology of Work
- Health Services Management
- Labour Process Studies
Background:
- Health and social care services face pressure for 'efficiency savings' through reorganization.
- Labour rationalization is a key strategy in achieving these savings.
- The nature of 'body work' presents unique challenges to these efforts.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine the difficulties in reorganizing work involving bodies.
- To analyze how 'body work' constrains rationalization and reorganization in health and social care.
- To explore the implications of efficiency-driven reorganization for workers and patients.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of the concept of 'body work' as a material of production.
- Examination of constraints on labor process rationalization within body work.
- Review of attempts to reorganize health and social care for cost savings.
Main Results:
- 'Body work' limits rationalization due to fixed worker-to-body ratios, reducing potential labor cuts.
- Co-presence and unpredictable demand for body work decrease spatial and temporal flexibility.
- The complex, unitary, and responsive nature of bodies hinders standardization and reorganization.
- Attempts at reorganization for efficiency create problems for both workers and patients.
Conclusions:
- Reorganizing health and social care for efficiency is inherently difficult due to the nature of 'body work'.
- Standardization and rationalization efforts in this sector face fundamental limitations.
- Efficiency-driven reorganization can negatively impact healthcare workers and patients.
Related Concept Videos
01:20Virtual Work
The principle of virtual work states that if a body is in static and dynamic equilibrium, then the sum of all the virtual work done by all external forces and couple moments for any given virtual displacement must be zero.
In static equilibrium, a body can experience an imaginary or virtual movement, such as displacement or rotation. The virtual work done by a force is equal to the dot product of force and virtual displacement in the direction of the force. When it comes to virtually rotating a...
In static equilibrium, a body can experience an imaginary or virtual movement, such as displacement or rotation. The virtual work done by a force is equal to the dot product of force and virtual displacement in the direction of the force. When it comes to virtually rotating a...
01:12Work of a Couple Moment
Mechanical engineering involves the study of motion, energy, and force, and is concerned with designing, manufacturing, and maintaining mechanical systems. One important concept in this field is the couple moment, produced by two equal and opposite forces acting at two points in a rigid body separated by a certain distance.
When the rigid body undergoes a differential displacement due to a couple, its motion can be divided into two parts: equal translation of the two points to their final...
When the rigid body undergoes a differential displacement due to a couple, its motion can be divided into two parts: equal translation of the two points to their final...
01:30Work and Heat
Work and heat are fundamental concepts in thermodynamics, denoting the transfer of energy. Work is the energy transferred due to the movement of an object under force, represented as the dot product of the force and displacement vectors. An example can be seen in a gas confined by a frictionless piston. The gas performs work on its surroundings when the piston moves outward, reducing the system's energy.This infinitesimal amount of work (dw) performed by the system against a constant external...
01:06Virtual Work for a System of Connected Rigid Bodies
Virtual work is a powerful method used to solve problems involving several connected rigid bodies. When the system is in equilibrium, virtual work is zero. This allows the calculation of the resulting forces when a system undergoes a virtual displacement. When attempting to analyze such a system, first, use a free-body diagram, where an independent coordinate represents the configuration of the links, and mark its deflected position resulting from the positive virtual displacement.
Next,...
Next,...
01:41Work-energy Theorem
According to Newton’s second law of motion, the sum of all the forces acting on a particle (net force) determines the rate of change in the momentum of the particle (motion). Therefore, we should consider the work done by all forces acting on a particle, or the net work, to see its effect on the particle’s motion.
The work-energy theorem equates work done by all the forces on an object to the change in its kinetic energy. The theorem can be used to calculate work done by a force when...
The work-energy theorem equates work done by all the forces on an object to the change in its kinetic energy. The theorem can be used to calculate work done by a force when...
01:13Principle of Virtual Work: Problem Solving
The principle of virtual work is an essential concept in the field of mechanics and engineering. This is used to solve problems related to the equilibrium of a structure or system. It is based on the assumption that if a system is in equilibrium, the work done by all the forces during a virtual displacement is zero. This principle is applied by considering virtual displacements of the system and the corresponding work done by internal and external forces.
To apply the principle of virtual work,...
To apply the principle of virtual work,...