Aeg, sotsiaalse aja kiirenemine ja ajalised taktikad Eesti muuseumitöötajate vaates

Abstract

This article seeks to map out the use of time and instances of acceleration of social time as experienced by museum employees. It is also an attempt to delineate the danger points resulting from the acceleration of social time and the respective coping strategies employed in museums. Although certain aspects of time, such as deadlines or duration of work, are often clearly fixed by the documents guiding museum work, time is a more multifaceted phenomenon than the typically regulated time units would suggest. Thus, by paying attention to different dimensions of time and discussing the symptoms and problems of the acceleration of social time, we may gain a clearer understanding of one of the sources of possible conflicts in hectic everyday work, both theoretically and practically. Drawing on the theories of acceleration of social time, it is also possible to address some of the more difficult-to-measure aspects of time, i.e. its subjective and social aspects. Taking this theoretical framework as a starting point, this article draws upon semi-structured interviews conducted with eight Estonian museum workers. The interviews were analyzed using the tenets of constructivist grounded theory. The collection of data for the research took place in the disruptive spring of 2020, when due to the emergency situation, museums were initially completely closed to visitors and museum employees were encouraged to use more flexible work forms than before. The changes caused by the emergency situation and the corona crisis are therefore also discussed in this article. With regard to time, there are three major topic areas: the conceptualization of time more generally, a multitude of work tasks and social pressure in time management. All three topics are related to the gaining of control over one's work time, and as a result, it is possible to develop strategies to overcome the challenges faced in these three areas. Some of the aspects through which time conceptualization may be perceived include: setting aside time for tasks that require deeper focus (as urgent, more superficial tasks press their way into the working day anyway), balancing between scheduled and freely planned activities in the working day and the creation of time buffers. Miscellaneous work tasks that multiplied even more with the arrival of the emergency situation in 2020 reflect the multitude of work tasks, as do longer- and shorter-term shifts of attention from one task to another and then back again as well as the techniques for managing work tasks. Some of the manifestations of social pressure accompanying time management include the continual attention to colleagues, visitors and interest groups, the daily, weekly and yearly work rhythms as well as the drawing of boundaries necessitated by the urgency of some tasks. In all three of the topic areas regarding time, there is a search for a certain temporal balance in work activities both at the level of the museum employee and the museum, while the balance may consist of various details. It is all the more necessary to understand the use of time in its entire multiplicity as part of the default knowledge of museum work which needs to be introduced to new colleagues as well, and which must be taken into account when communicating and cooperating with representatives of fields closely related to museum work (e.g. teachers, journalists).