Biographical meanings of work: the case of a Polish freelancer

Abstract

The sociological analyses of contemporary society mostly emphasize its liquid and flexible character, which provides new opportunities, but also threats, on both the macro and individual level. The incoherence of the present times could, however, also be perceived as the interference of various social orders that have been described by scholars as “premodernity,” “modernity” and “postmodernity.” In Poland, these tensions are particularly acute because of the collision of the regimes of modernity, postmodernity and elements of traditional culture that are still more visible than in the West. The aim of this paper is to present the relationships between two of the above-mentioned orders: modernity and postmodernity in the sphere of work, with reference to the biographical structure of an individual’s experience. An empirical example of these tensions is demonstrated in the autobiographical story of Piotr, a freelance business psychologist. The article’s first part focuses on the theoretical framework and methodology that were applied while investigating the biographical manifestations of the clashes between these orders. The second part includes a detailed analysis of the narrator’s life story, linking the psychological and sociological perspectives. Furthermore, two meanings of work and their implications for the given case are presented. Finally, the analyzed interview is discussed in a broader perspective, in comparison to other cases.