McDonaldization and the Rationality of Drug Care

Max Weber's ideas and research on bureaucracy and on the rationalization process of society formulated the thesis of McDonalization from George Ritzer. Weber dreaded the increasing numbers of bureaucracies would increase rational principles that would eventually dominate a number of sectors in society. Ritzer sees the fast-food industry as having become a more representative example of growing bureaucracies that are creating rational principles that are dominating various sectors in society. Weber expected a society of people sheltered into a chain of rational structures, which would anticipate a movement from one rational system to another--from educational institutions to workplaces, from recreational settings to home; and that the people would eventually become nothing more than interspersing in a seamless web of rationalized structures. The McDonalization process is nothing more than a reflection of Weber's rationalization process, which covers four central parts: efficiency, calculability, predictability and control. McDonaldnization may have adversely affected the drug treatment system, as examined proved that this system may have satisfied the four core dimensions.

According to Ritzer, "a McDonaldizing society emphasizes efficiency, or the effort to discover the best possible means to whatever end is desired" (Ritzer 138). In a restaurant, workers assemble food for their customers. Customers want, and are expected, to acquire and consume their meals efficiently. The drive-in window is a prime example of efficiency for the customer and employees because it is a highly well-organized mean for distribution of food. The effectiveness of one party helps maintain that other will behave in a similar manner. This follows Weber's "Formal Rationality", which establishes a search by people for the most favorable means to a given end; shaped by rules, regulation and larger social structures. It allows individuals diminutive choice of means to ends. The model of efficiency is the foundation within a McDonaldized society.

A second characteristic of the McDonaldization is given to calculability, an importance on quantity, and a disadvantage of quality. This stress on speed serves to adversely change the quality of the work, resulting in dissatisfaction. Back to the example towards efficiency- the drive window is in fact reducing time to zero, but if the customers desire to eat in the restaurant, the development of the chairs is designed to drive them to leave after so long. The speed clearly has a negative effect on the quality of the dining experience at a fast-food restaurant.

McDonaldization also puts an emphasis on predictability. Employees are expected to present their work in a predictable manner, and in return, customers are expected to react with similar expected behavior. In the restaurant example, the customers anticipate portions of constant size and quality, they want to know in advance what the price will be and what to expect from services and products in diverse sectors of everyday life. A highly predictable service is played out in the fast-food restaurant--one that involves highly knowable foods that contrast little from one time or place to another.

As expected, "great control exists in a McDonaldizing society and a good deal of that control comes from technologies" (Ritzer 139). Control is necessary to ensure efficiency, calculability and predictability. At first, control was aimed at humans- as they were the fundamental element in the rationalization process but in fact, this control is replacing human with non-human technology. Following the restaurant example, technologies such as french-fry machines that ring when the fries are done and even automatically lift the fries out the hot oil. The customers are controlled both by the employees who are constrained by these technologies. The automatic fry machine makes it impossible for a customer to request well-done, well-browned fries. McDonaldization removes all agents involved from their particular cultural and region-specific context. Identical eating habits are being globally cultivated, along with humor, clothing, lifestyles, value orientations, and music & sports preferences. Weber was trying to avoid an increasing number of bureaucracies increasing rational principles that would eventually dominate a number of sectors in society because of the preferences desire. In result, both the employees and customers suffer from the irrationality of rationality that seems inevitably to accompany McDonaldization, which involve the opposite of the basic principles.

The analysis of McDonaldization thesis, serves as a warning that potential problems may impact the drug treatment system. Uwe Kimmesies used Germany as the example, to prove that there is some evidence that endeavors achieve to enhance efficiency which may actually lead to a lack of rationality. In the late 1980s, drug handling was dominated by an idea of addiction. This addiction was conceptualized as a career model, leading into involvement of a drug related lifestyle. It was once said, "Once addicted, always addicted"-