Hodson, R., & Sullivan T. A.
(1995).
Social Organization of Work.
"Alienation occurs when work provides inadequately for human needs for identity and meaning. Work is alienating to the extent that one does it only from economic necessity, not from its intrinsic pleasures." (p. 56)
"A common response to alienating work is passive resistance through making work into a game (Burawoy, 2000), restricting one`s output (Roy, 1952), or focusing on aspects of work tangential to the main productive activity (Collinson, 2003). For instance, workers often adjust to alienating situations by focusing on interactions with their peers. Managers label such behavioral responses 'poor performance.' However, such behaviors do not necessarily result from incompetence or laziness: rather, they may be straightforward responses to having a job that is tedious, repetitive, or alienating. These responses are difficult to predict from workers' levels of job satisfaction or commitment. Workers who are very committed to their work may be the ones most likely to resist alienating conditions. Those who are less committed may simply exit or grudgingly suffer in silence." (p. 68)
Esty, K. C., Griffin R., & Hirsch M. S.
(1995).
Workplace diversity.
"We think minimizing distinctions makes sense. Research informs us that employees who feel 'out' or 'down' rather than 'in or 'up' also have less job satisfaction, less commitment, and less loyalty to their organization. As an individual manager or supervisor, you can minimize the scrambling after titles and perks by the way you behave. You might consider, for example, moving to a less desirable office space or eliminating some perks based solely on status. Managers who have tried this are often amazed at the positive results." (p. 110)