Crítica psicossocial e o afeto da alegria nas organizações contemporâneas

Abstract

The social and work context in contemporary organizations is permeated by psychological domination and affective management mechanisms, which can be observed in human resources practices that emphasize a way of working with emotions that become a source of control and dominance. These relationships end up compromising the individual’s well-being and causing suffering. In the control of affections, joy tends to be instrumentalized. The individual is encouraged to develop an enthusiastic love for the organization and stimulated by organizational discourse, make it the reason for his life. This study aims to undertake, based on the approach between philosophy and organizational studies, a psychosocial critique of work relations in contemporary organizations, having as its guiding thread the affection of joy, as understood by Espinosa, which serves as our inspiration to better understand this affection. Methodologically, it consists of a theoretical essay, where interdisciplinary discussions from the organizational studies, psychosociology, and philosophy fields, particularly involving Spinoza’s contributions, are intertwined to awaken a critical look at the instrumentalization and manipulation of joy in the organizational context. Joy is seen as a source of intelligent combat, which opposes destructiveness, a source of increasing the individual’s power of action. Such reflections problematized joy both as a power of resistance, capable of helping to confront psychological domination in the world of work and as an object of instrumentalization and control. Furthermore, it was possible to understand joy as a potentializing affection for those who intend to expand their capacity for action and live their lives intensely despite the social determinisms and psychic records that constitute us. New critical research can contribute to giving way to joy not as a manipulation mechanism but as the potential for the possibilities of freedom in hypermodern management.