Neo-liberal effects on time perception: When “time is money” turns into “hybrid time”

This chapter presents the effects of neo-liberalist fundamentals on time perceptions. These concepts emphasize the importance of competition on the open market, economic growth, and development, in addition to efficient apportionment of resources and minimal government intervention in economic and social matters. Thus, they subordinate all aspects of life to market logic and also influence the temporal perceptions of both individuals and organizations. For example, it is possible to identify neo-liberal patterns in attempts to (a) effectively manage time; (b) shape and control the future; (c) restrict spontaneous time; and (d) develop squeezed time and speeded-up time. It is also possible to identify how neo-liberalism leads to the development of hybrid time, which links various cultural components and results in a blurring of these components, including (a) synchronic and polychromic time; (b) flexible time; (c) real time and timeless time; and (d) time for a break.