Beruf 4.0

Will digitalisation make the concept of ‘a vocation’ obsolete, as specialised qualifications typical of German labour relations may lose ground against general IT qualifications? Or will it preserve its guiding function as an institution in the neo-institutionalist sense, because digitalisation will actually strengthen the importance of self-control and intrinsic motivation, which are central to the concept of ‘a vocation’? This question is addressed in this volume from the perspectives of sociology, theology, economics, pedagogics, law and psychology. The book also examines the economic conditions, collective agreements and social security laws that constitute the framework for the concept of ‘a vocation’ and that are rapidly being contested by digitalisation. With contributions by Britta Matthes, Frank Nullmeier, Werner Eichhorst, Andreas Mayert, Ralph Charbonnier, Rita Meyer, Günther Hirth, Ursula Rust, Michaela Evans, Christel Kumbruck, Hans-Joachim Lenke, Gerhard Wegner, Beate Hofmann, Gunther Schendel and Joachim Lange