The Politics of Disconnective Media: Unraveling the Materiality of Discourses on Disconnectivity

Abstract

The commodification of disconnection has attracted growing scholarly attention. Previous research highlighted the instrumentalisation of disconnection for productivity, self-governance, and healthy life. Researchers have also explored the politics of the “products” used for disconnecting, such as smartphone applications and offline commodities. Yet, current studies generally neglect to connect digital disconnection’s symbolic and material dimensions. In this article, we critically examine the discourses of what we call “disconnective media,” the products (hardware and software) that offer disconnection from digital devices. To explain how discourses and products find a basis in material and social structures, we deploy a discourse-theoretical analysis grounded in a Marxist materialist approach to neoliberalism and the materiality of discourse. We critically analyse six disconnective media and focus on these key dimensions: justifications (why to disconnect), time/space (when/where to disconnect), devices/platforms (which devices are appropriate to disconnect from), and class (who is addressed to disconnect). Findings show that digital technologies in the workplace have been naturalised, whereas phones and social media remain problematic. Leisure time is constructed with a set of obligations to use time meaningfully and improve the self, while work time is presented through a scientific work management mindset that promotes efficiency. Disconnective media advocate the ideal image of healthy, efficient workers. This study stresses the importance of investigating disconnection concerning commodified labour and neoliberalism’s material consequences.