Let’s dream big! Affecting future female workers through governmental atmospheres

Abstract

This paper addresses the subtle, affective power of organisational discourses and practices concerning employability that target children as future workers. It develops a concept of governmental atmospheres inspired by governmentality studies and theories of affective, atmospheric power dynamics. Governmental atmospheres are defined as an affective charging of a normative setting that incites individuals to attune themselves to this setting. Based on that, the paper examines a case study of a collaboration between a small NGO and a global technology corporation inviting 10–12-year-old girls to a camp intended to raise career aspirations within technology. In three analyses, the paper unpacks how the camp mobilised and circulated affects – through spatial arrangements, sensuous stimulations and engaging practices – thereby creating atmospheres of excitement, (technological) optimism and limitless possibilities. The findings demonstrate how this atmosphere connects play, fun, dreams, societal progress, individual success, gender equality, product innovation and business models in an apparently frictionless space. This contributes to existing governmentality studies by conceptualising the pervasive powers of governmental atmospheres that induce subjects to feel and act on organisational interests in employability and the future worker in a seemingly innocent, inspirational way.