McDonaldization

McDonaldization is a term invented by author George Ritzer in his book, The McDonaldization of Society. Ritzer argues that the McDonald's business model rationalizes, that is, breaks down a given task into its most fundamental parts then creating logical, consistant rules to find the most efficient method for completeing each task. He argues that over-rationalization can lead to irrational outcomes. Ritzer argues that McDonalization's focus on efficiency, calculability, predictability, and control leads to irrationality, deskilling, and "consumer workers" (that is, consumers doing part of the work usually done by the company, such as taking the trash to the receptacle).