Elgar Advanced Introductions are stimulating and thoughtful introductions to major fields in the social sciences, business and law, expertly written by the world’s leading scholars. Designed to be accessible yet rigorous, they offer concise and lucid surveys of the substantive and policy issues associated with discrete subject areas.

This Advanced Introduction examines the economic, social, and political conditions that have shaped the 21st century workplace in wealthy democracies, highlighting the changes in work since the 1970s which have produced the ‘new economy’. Amy S. Wharton illuminates important aspects of today’s workplace, including the service economy, customer-facing jobs, the transformative effects of digital platforms, and the ‘opening’ of the employment relationship.



Key Features:








Analysis of algorithms and the gig economy in the broader context of workplace change


Insight into the interconnections between gender, work, and family, as well as the sources of stability and change in these relations over time


Understanding changes in the spatial, physical, and temporal aspects of work and their impacts on workers and families


Foregrounds inequality, using the intersectional lenses of race, class, gender, and citizenship to explore this issue



Revealing the continuities and discontinuities between the workplace of the past and the present, this Advanced Introduction will be a valuable guide for sociology researchers and advanced students. Business scholars, students and leaders will also benefit from its discussion of platform-based service work and the rise of nonstandard, contingent, and temporary jobs.