Problem
Hyperefficiency
Other Names:
Obsession with efficiencyExcessively efficient use of time
Preoccupation with accelerating time
Fear of time
Time sickness
Temporal claustrophobia
Nature:
Time, like space, is increasingly perceived as a scarce resource which must be manipulated in ever more sophisticated ways to shape and mould the life of society for its greater well-being. Whilst the increases in efficiency of the industrialization process have resulted in short-term material benefits, the long-term psychic and environmental damage has outstripped whatever temporary gains might have been wrought by the fanatical obsession with speed at all costs. The artificial temporal environments created by this process, and the accelerated pace of life within them, increase the separation of man from the rhythms of nature and from the tempo at which nature is able to recycle wastes and renew basic resources. Broader Problems:
Increasing pace of life Aggravates:
OverworkUndue hasteLack of timeSense of impermanencePsychological ungroundednessFrequent schedule disruptionsDecline of human relationship to natureVulnerability of high technology systemsEnvironmental degradation from high-speed roadsHuman incapacity to respond to computer-generated decisions Reduces:
Unpunctuality Reduced By:
Inadequate sense of timeStrategies:
Increasing energy intensityIncreasing time sovereigntyProtecting temporal wildernessBeing concerned with efficiencyFocusing on accelerating timeAccepting timeOrganizing time References:
Dossey, Larry: Time, Space and Medicine Subject(s):
Fundamental Sciences → FormMedicine → Pathology
Health Care → Mental health
Cybernetics → Cybernetics
Psychology → Psychology
Economics → Resource utilization
Related UN Sustainable Development Goals:
Problem Type:
F: Fuzzy exceptional problems Date of last update
05.07.1998 – 00:00 CEST