The Process of Structuring Time
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/eb054969 |
| Published date | 01 March 1981 |
| Date | 01 March 1981 |
| Pages | 8-13 |
| Subject Matter | HR & organizational behaviour |
8 | Employee Relations 3,3
The Process of Structuring Time
The Problem of Inactivity
Previous studies of unemployment have suggested that when work disappears, knowing what to do
with yourself becomes progressively more difficult, inactivity settling in after the initial reaction,
bringing with it boredom, demoralisation and further inactivity. The studies suggested that it had
become a major problem within the six-month period that most of these men had been unemployed.
One explanation given was that, particularly for blue collar workers, the problem derived from hav-
ing too little experience of leisure
[2],
another that to have to rely exclusively one's own initiative for
all structure and purposeful activity, as the unemployed do, might be just too demanding
psychologically [1]. The first would suggest that people could learn to use time themselves, the
second that some kind of outside organisation is necessary. Hence, the question arose as to whether a.
sample of white collar managers and professional workers in 1980 coped with the problem differently
or better.
These interviews suggested that inactivity and feelings of helplessness were less of a problem than
previously reported and that there was greater activity and self-organisation. Only five of the 20 men
showed indications of times of not doing anything or of not knowing what to do and in only one case
was this felt by the individual to be a regular and ongoing problem. In two cases the men were quite
content with the relative inactivity, hence it was not "a problem" in the sense described. In one case it
was seen as an occasional problem — "perhaps one day in five" — and in the fifth instance it arose
for the engineer who had made himself redundant to start a new life style and was waiting for the
house move which would enable that to begin. In a few cases there were isolated examples of an in-
ability to do something because of general depression., One failed a flying course because of "his
mental attitude and feeling sorry for
himself".
Another dropped out of his Open University course
because "his heart wasn't in it", thus stopping something which objectively he would have had more
time for. A third spoke of "two days staring into space too depressed to do anything". These reac-
tions were ones which agreed more with previous reports, but which for this group were in the
minority. Two possible explanations are suggested. The difference could reflect a delay in the usual
response for this particular group beyond the usual time limit, which would be feasible particularly as
inactivity has been described as a progressive reaction. Alternatively, the difference could reflect an
increased ability to be self-directing as a result of the nature of this group's previous jobs, increased
financial facility to be so, an increased awareness of the importance of being active or a combination
of these factors. Possibly, the effect of such an increased ability to be self-directing might be to delay
the normal reaction.
The Importance of Activity
Perhaps the most outstanding result of these interviews was that
19
of the 20 men lay emphasis on the
importance of keeping active. Seventeen of the 20 men voluntarily mentioned the importance of be-
ing busy for the sake of it, either to ease the worry or to delay the process of mentally slowing down,
and two of the remaining three commented that they were very busy, implying that this was impor-
tant to them. Some of the men suggested it as the most important aid to coping with unemployment:
"Keep yourself busy. Get stuck in and apply for jobs, but keep yourself generally busy when
you are not applying for jobs or going for interviews . . . Go out and mess about with the car,
do a bit of concreting, clip the hedge, mow the lawn, do the things you normally do, but keep
yourself busy all the time."
"I kept myself so occupied because if I thought about it I got too scared."
However, while most of the men felt fully occupied, the ease with which they became self-directing
varied considerably. Thirteen of the 20 commented that it was not easy to be so:
"I'm an active person. I have to do something. I have to work. That's easier if it's provided for
you. If
my
wife actually suggested a job I'd immediately tackle it. If this wasn't there, I'd find it
difficult to structure my own day. I need the constraints either of a business environment or a
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