Preprint / Version 1

Meaning of work, professional status and macroeconomic changes

##article.authors##

  • María Cecilia Ipar Centro Brasileiro de Análise e Planejamento image/svg+xml https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9562-0709
    • Conceptualization
    • Formal Analysis
    • Investigation
    • Methodology
    • Visualization
    • Writing – Original Draft Preparation
    • Writing – Review & Editing
  • Vitor Eduardo Schincariol Federal University of ABC image/svg+xml https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6227-5198
    • Conceptualization
    • Formal Analysis
    • Investigation
    • Methodology
    • Visualization
    • Writing – Original Draft Preparation
    • Writing – Review & Editing

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1590/SciELOPreprints.17116

Keywords:

meaning of work, Max Weber, sociology of professions, theory of effective demand, post-Keynesian theory

Abstract

The article proposes an interdisciplinary theoretical-methodological framework to investigate the transformation of the meaning of work in contemporaneity. Based on a Weberian matrix, it discusses the profession's capacity to provide meaning to work through three dimensions: the position of professions in the labor market, changes in the repertoires of professional life, and the importance of professional identity in the social and political integration of workers. This discussion is followed by an analysis of the evolution of macroeconomic indicators in advanced economies, examining sectoral changes and their impacts on the volume and type of employment. Through a literature review and recent data, the study contributes to a research agenda that combines the perspective of the sociology of professions with the Keynesian analysis of economic aggregates.

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Author Biographies

María Cecilia Ipar, Centro Brasileiro de Análise e Planejamento

Mestre e Doutora em Ciência Política na Universidade de São Paulo. Bacharel e Licenciada em Sociologia pela Universidade de Buenos Aires. Atualmente é pesquisadora de pós-doutorado no CEBRAP, no Núcleo Direito e Democracia, trabalhando temas vinculados à relação entre a profissão e o sentido do trabalho, e os riscos psicossociais no trabalho na contemporaneidade. Publicou, entre outros, O declínio do ideal cultural de homem profissional na sociedade pós-industrial: consequências subjetivas e no laço social, na Revista Brasileira de Ciência Política, N44, 2025.

Vitor Eduardo Schincariol, Federal University of ABC

Professor do Programa de Pós-Graduação em História Econômicada Universidade de São Paulo e do Programa de Pós-Graduação em Economia Política Mundial da Universidade Federal do ABC. Doutor em História Econômica pela Universidade de São Paulo.

Submitted

07/24/2026

Posted

07/24/2026

How to Cite

Meaning of work, professional status and macroeconomic changes. (2026). In SciELO Preprints. https://doi.org/10.1590/SciELOPreprints.17116

Section

Human Sciences

Plaudit

Data statement

  • The research data is contained in the manuscript