Capital's Circuit of Control: A Dialogical Analysis of Work Intensification

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to explore the use of a dialogical approach, associated with Russian literary critic and philosopher Bakhtin, in understanding work intensification within the video game industry and how these extreme work conditions are being resisted by game developer’s families and supporters. This paper applies a dialogical approach and narrative analysis to two blogs and 4,817 comments to reveal how peripheral characters are positioning themselves interactionally in the narratives to resist and reject extreme work conditions. The findings illustrate how these sidelined characters present an alternative truth to the dominant extreme work paradigm. This paper extends our understanding of work intensification by using a qualitative approach to more thoroughly explore the experience of intense work and also gives voice to family members and the community impacted by these extreme work conditions.