Paper short abstract:

Social acceleration has shaped the timeframe, timing, tempo and temporality of academic work, resulting in the domination of fast, fragmented and short-term scheduled time. This paper explores what temporal conflicts the hegemony of scheduled time produces and how academics respond to it.

Paper long abstract:

Drawing upon the theory of social acceleration, the timeframe, timing, tempo and temporality of academic work are changing, resulting in the domination of externally imposed, fast and short-term time, called scheduled time. The timeframe of scheduled time is short and fragmented into unconnected events. Its timing is fixed and defined from outside, leaving little space for temporal autonomy. The tempo is hectic because of the increased, and often conflicting, demands and expectations. Finally, temporality emphasises change over continuity since in the turbulent work environment it is difficult to anticipate the future and one needs to be ready for unpredictable transformations. These changes challenge the timescape of academic work, redefining what academia is all about.

Empirically, the paper is based on in-depth and focus group interviews with Finnish academics working in social sciences. The study discerns four core temporal conflicts: 1) scheduled time vs. body time, 2) scheduled time vs. timeless time, 3) scheduled time vs. career time, and 4) scheduled time vs. family time. However, academics are not victims but active actors who respond to the demands of scheduled time in diverse ways. The paper sheds light on how academics navigate the temporal conflicts, build strategies for achieving temporal autonomy, and craft personally fitting ways to live and work under the dominance of scheduled time. Furthermore, scheduled time itself is complex and multilayered in nature, thereby creating paradoxes and counter-effects to the intended effects, when, for instance, the pursuit for the control of time results in the loss of control.