In Search of Time and Temporality: The Process of Temporal Reflexivity

Abstract

Following the footsteps of temporal structuring, this research is a pragmatic inquiry into the manifestations of time taking shape in the daily work practices of a business retail team. To apprehend time and its relationships to individuals and organizations, we conducted a 6-month interpretive ethnographic study in an e-commerce company. An abductive approach has been adopted to interpret events and processes that are occurring in context. Drawing from our understanding, we explored the participants’ temporal reflexivity to define what we have called junctures. Temporal reflexivity is a deep-rooted notion of temporal structuring since it defines actors’ temporal predispositions to perceive, interpret and relate to the significance of time. These junctures are formalized for the purpose to comprehensively map how individuals and context interplay in the two-way shaping process of temporal structures. With this paper, we aim to help to define how individuals apprehend, construct, navigate, and capitalize on time while they experience the organizational life in various settings. As a result, our typology illustrates that temporal structuring arises from and are rooted in the unique abilities of individuals to captures simultaneously the objective, subjective and intersubjective perspectives of time through their ongoing temporal reflexivity.