ABSTRACT
In this chapter, the author presents some of the background to the papers, which arose at various times during the second half of the twentieth century and the beginning of the twenty-first century. She provides some indications of context where she know about it. Some studies were of particular aspects of work such as shift work, the effect of ageing on skill, or financial incentives. But there also began at this time a research-based concern for the whole work role in its organizational context. During the 1970s, work organization came to the forefront of public attention in Europe, much influenced by the publicity given to developments in the Volvo car company. In Britain, publicly funded research on work organization began during the First World War and tended to focus on particular aspects, such as fatigue. Its early development is briefly described in the Introduction to Working Across the Gap.
