Workism is Making Americans Miserable

Source: Derek Thompson
Affiliation: The Atlantic

In this article, Derek Thompson outlines the new "workism" phenomenon. Despite predictions from 20th century intellectuals that Americans in the 21st century would work less and past cultural norms where the rich work less than the poor, rich Americans in the 21st century actually work more than ever before. Thompson argues this is due to an increased sense of deriving meaning and purpose from work, and even a "worship" of work in place of religious practice. According to Thompson, this attitude towards work leads to burnout and exhaustion.

Keywords: Burnout , Computer Science , Happiness , Hierarchies of Work , Meaning of Work , Purpose , Tech Ethics , Tech Industry , Work/Life Balance