Work and the nature of occupations are matters of central concern to the sociologist. In this basic introduction to the sociology of professions, occupations and work, first published in 1975, David Dunkerley provides a theoretical basis for the study of a subject that previously had a strong empirical tradition. Drawing on comparative literature, the author analyses the structure of occupation, the processes of occupational life and how occupations are related to the predominant culture. The effects of occupations on the non-work lives of individuals are also examined, and extended examples are given of managerial and scientific occupations as case studies.

Occupational Science: Society, Inclusion, Participation is the must have resource for occupational therapists, occupational scientists, students and researchers. The book begins with a comprehensive review of the current literature and the knowledge generated to date. Reasons for the field's limited impact are proposed, including its focus on individuals rather than groups and communities, its psychological view of occupation, and its narrow focus on socially approved occupations. Global realities such as poverty, anti-social behaviour and ageing populations are discussed and implications for action are considered. The second section of the books comprises a series of chapters that address the philosophical, theoretical and scientific bases that underpin and inform everyday decision making in occupational therapy practice. This is followed by a section on methodological and structural considerations. The concluding chapter offers a critical reflection on methods, strategies, values and relationships for the future, to achieve a relevant science that makes a difference to current occupational realities. Written by an internationally renowned team of contributors, this book offers a truly comprehensive critique of the field. Features • Internationally renowned Editors and contributors • First comprehensive text on occupational science • Fully up to date with the latest thinking and research • Links theory to practice

From David Graeber, the bestselling author of The Dawn of Everything and Debt—“a master of opening up thought and stimulating debate” (Slate)—a powerful argument against the rise of meaningless, unfulfilling jobs…and their consequences. Does your job make a meaningful contribution to the world? In the spring of 2013, David Graeber asked this question in a playful, provocative essay titled “On the Phenomenon of Bullshit Jobs.” It went viral. After one million online views in seventeen different languages, people all over the world are still debating the answer. There are hordes of people—HR consultants, communication coordinators, telemarketing researchers, corporate lawyers—whose jobs are useless, and, tragically, they know it. These people are caught in bullshit jobs. Graeber explores one of society’s most vexing and deeply felt concerns, indicting among other villains a particular strain of finance capitalism that betrays ideals shared by thinkers ranging from Keynes to Lincoln. “Clever and charismatic” (The New Yorker), Bullshit Jobs gives individuals, corporations, and societies permission to undergo a shift in values, placing creative and caring work at the center of our culture. This book is for everyone who wants to turn their vocation back into an avocation and “a thought-provoking examination of our working lives” (Financial Times).

Contributing Authors Include Adriano Tilgher, Conrad M. Arensberg, Nancy C. Morse And Many Others.

The Credential Society is a classic on the role of higher education in American society and an essential text for understanding the reproduction of inequality. Controversial at the time, Randall Collins’s claim that the expansion of American education has not increased social mobility, but rather created a cycle of credential inflation, has proven remarkably prescient. Collins shows how credential inflation stymies mass education’s promises of upward mobility. An unacknowledged spiral of the rising production of credentials and job requirements was brought about by the expansion of high school and then undergraduate education, with consequences including grade inflation, rising educational costs, and misleading job promises dangled by for-profit schools. Collins examines medicine, law, and engineering to show the ways in which credentialing closed these high-status professions to new arrivals. In an era marked by the devaluation of high school diplomas, outcry about the value of expensive undergraduate degrees, and the proliferation of new professional degrees like the MBA, The Credential Society has more than stood the test of time. In a new preface, Collins discusses recent developments, debunks claims that credentialization is driven by technological change, and points to alternative pathways for the future of education.

Professions are central to any political sociology of major associations, organizations and venues in civil society underpinning democracy; they are not a subset of livelihoods in a mundane sociology of work and occupations. "Professions in Civil Society and the State" is at once elegant and startling in its directness and the sheer scope of its implications for future comparative research and theory. Not since Talcott Parsons during the early 1970s has any sociologist (or political scientist) pursued this line of inquiry. Sciulli s theoretical approach differs fundamentally from Parsons and rests on a breadth of historical and cross-national support that always eluded him. The sociology of professions has come full circle, leaving behind Parsons, his critics, and two generations of received wisdom.

This much-needed book provides a systematic introduction, both conceptual and applied, to the sociology of the professions. Keith Macdonald guides the reader through the chief sociological approaches to the professions, addressing their strengths and weaknesses. The discussion is richly illustrated by examples from and comparisons between the professions in Britain, the United States and Europe, relating their development to their cultural context. The social exclusivity that professions aim for is discussed in relation to social stratification, patriarchy and knowledge, and is thoroughly illustrated by reference to examples from medicine and other established professions, such as law and architecture. The themes of the book are drawn together in a final chapter by means of a case study of accountancy.