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Protestant Work Ethic

The Impact of Protestant Work Ethic in America

Mariah S. Corbin

Tallwood High School

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Protestant Work Ethic

Abstract

Despite technology growth, Americans are working longer hours than before and the

consequences reside in both the health of the individual and their relationships. Although the

motivation is earning a larger income, Americans will direct most of their focus towards work

and re-organize their priorities for time management purposes. The driving factor may be within

history and the development of the American culture. The Protestants that immigrated to North

America carried the same values that Americans have today when regarding work. The goal to

reach prosperity caused an individuals worth to reside in their work, and regardless of

background or education many Americans value themselves in their quality of work and

materials until their life becomes centered around it. A life of work brings changes both

physically and mentally that may develop into a serious illness or condition if the schedule

continues an arduous path for the worker with little, if any, break. This research aims to

understand the effect of the Protestant work-ethic currently and the impacts of working such

hours in comparison to other industrialized nations.

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Protestant Work Ethic

Introduction

America is building itself up non-stop but this schedule could be the reason it is tearing

itself down from within. The Puritan, or Protestant, work ethic is derived from the religious

belief that an individual must earn the worthiness of eternal salvation through strong values of

being hard working and efficient. As soon as the Puritans settled and contrived the Plymouth

Colony in 1620, the work ethic of America was born and has developed into a country of habits

ingrained from this mindset. These strong religious beliefs paved the way for American

capitalism to grow and succeed, but at what cost? Although America was founded on religious

Protestant work-ethic values that equated to success, when compared to varying global ideals of

success, the cost for this standard of living may be higher than most realize. This work ethic

hides itself in the body and minds of the American people who do not know that their

subconscious fuels the gears that move non-stop. The workings of their minds have put their

lives and health outside of work on the line consequently affecting those directly associated with

them. In a country that prides themselves as working their hardest without any break, America

accounts for a strong portion of the global GDP easily perceived as success. Although, compare

that with other industrialized countries with strong economies, the U.S. fall short when it comes

to having their workers in mind as they work year-round without much regulation to save them

from inevitable prostration. Differences exist across varying ages as younger generations of

Americans have caught onto this trend of work as the center of life and seek more balance in life

while the older generations have workaholic tendencies that lead the destructive social norm. The

protestant work ethic is ingrained into the mindset of Americans for their lifestyle, but it will

become engraved on their tombstones as well as a detriment to human health mentally and

physically.
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Protestant Work Ethic

Literature Review

The Existence of Protestant Work Ethic

Oxford University Press (1998) defined Protestant work ethic as the set of values of early

Protestantism that is controversially linked to Max Webers classic essays. This work ethic and

rive has been prevalent in America since its beginning and can even be recognized in its politics

per Chodorov, F. (2011, March 21). Heavily influenced by these values, Christina, G. (2015,

November-December) observes that the American culture is obsessed with work to the point

where taking care of ourselves with a break is frowned upon. Christina also writes that in order

to reach enlightenment or heaven they must exonerate their bodies from sin with hard work for

such worthiness.

Effects of Overworking on Families

Rossin, M. (2011) approached the issue of maternal leave and its importance for the mothers

health and child development stating that it is highly beneficial that there is time before returning

to work, but the U.S. government has yet to step in and construct a reasonable mandate for its

citizens. Over time, the child is more likely to develop behavioral issues without the close care of

the mother for the first few crucial months of its life (D. Pelcovits, 2013). The issues in

development also occur or worsen later in childhood. Rajalakshmi, J., & Thanasekaran, P. (2015,

July 23) explain that parents who work more tend to leave their children at home to become

latchkey kids who are highly susceptible to negative peer pressure and mentally develop quickly

because of the weight of the responsibility.

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The Cost at the Individual Level

Schneiderman, N., Ironson, G., & Siegel, S. D. (2005) draws conclusions about the effect

of stress in life and the possible issue that may occur. Persistent stress on older individuals

increases the risk health risks and slowly damages the body. Seppala, E. (2016, May-June)

argues that the stress is unnecessary and inhibits the enjoyment of life because of the constraints

of the mind placed by constantly working. Seppala continues that high function is good but not

all the time as it leads to exhaustion which is too common because Americans do not positively

perceive vacations. Ursrey, L. (2014, May 27) explores the benefits of taking a break and letting

the mind breathe, not in terms of laziness but of leisure and relaxation. The claim follows the

neuroscience of being physically inactive and how the mind actually becomes more free and

active because there is loess work to focus on.

Germany In Comparison

Salford Business School (2014) provides information of the work culture in Germany

which includes the norms of having national holidays where most citizens dont work and the

fact of workers typically having less work hours than Americans. Despite this, Germany still has

high production and is one of the most successful European countries which is represented in its

GDP (Knoema, 2016, October 18). German managers are trying to aim at making the worker

more content and increase their energy according Nink, M. (2015, July 14). In contrast, Miller,

G. (2017, February 13) points out that many Americans work as hard as they do just to keep their

job and prove their worth to the company.

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Protestant Work Ethic

Limitations

The limitations of this research were first impacted by the quality of the sources. There

were not many existing sources that covered this topic from a scientific approach to make the

support irrefutable. The effect on the research limited the use of claims that existed but had

weaker support without quality. Had most sources with claims backed their support with

irrefutable facts then the research would create a stronger conclusion.

The research was also limited in the extent of time to which research data could be

collected. In a study with years available, the research would have expanded upon original

claims with data collected from local businesses, but even this would not cover the entire variety

of the workforce needed to complete the idea. This corresponds with the ability to collect data

from Germany, the country used for comparison, as there was limited meaningful data to

correlate with this research. The effectiveness would increase if the same class of data existed for

Germany as it does for the U.S.

Finally, the investigation touches on factors that may cause the degradation of health but

cannot incorporate existing conditions in individuals besides their work hours. There are too

many genetic varieties for the research to approach the psychological effects of long working

hours on every worker. Therefore, the research is limited to speak on behalf of the average,

educated middle-class individuals with minimal to no genetic disabilities.

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The Impact of Protestant Work Ethic in America

Although the world is continuously evolving in terms of technology and science to make

life more pleasant, it seems that Americans are working as hard as ever for little gain and more

status. Other industrialized countries take pride in their ability to change with modern society,

but America takes pride in its traditions that become a part of each American despite their

background. Where exactly does this drive originate and how does affect the Americans creating

such a large GDP?

Protestant Work Ethic

The average American workers push themselves to work harder and longer than most in

the hopes of increasing productivity or income, but little do they realize that this motivation

stems from the values of the founding Protestants. As dissenters of the Anglican Church, the

Protestant pilgrims arrived in 1620 for religious freedom that brought along values of hard

work, efficient use of time, and asceticism (Oxford University Press, 1998) to begin the culture

of America. Although the Puritans declined, their values thrived in American society and

expanded through its history. Politically, the candidates for public office had traditionally shown

a struggle in early life that showed their strength and perseverance as they were a keen example

of success through hard work. Even Theodore Roosevelt had demonstrated strength by his ability

to overcome his challenges in health as he battled in the Spanish-American War (Chodorov, F.,

1962). These qualities citizens appealed to most strongly coincide with the foundations of the

Protestant ethic. Americans wanted the leaders that promoted those ideals that would promote the

nation as their representative: hardworking. The fundamentals of the Protestants go as far as to

fuel the idea of The American Dream that would encourage the nation to believe in an

opportunity to have a better, successful life regardless of the past as long as they are motivated to
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work hard enough to get there (Oxford Dictionaries, 2016).Guided by these values overtime,

Americans are reared with the mindset of having a strong work ethic to earn worthiness and reap

its monetary rewards even though they may not belong to a religion. Americans have adapted to

a life of work that frowns upon any breaks or vacations by linking it to inefficiency and laziness

despite its benefits because of their roots in the Protestant beliefs. They are defined by their

occupations and how well they work to the point where hobbies are not enjoyable unless they

show progress. (Christina, G., 2015). It is an engrossed mindset that thrives without many taking

notice because it a large part of the culture deeply influenced by the Protestant predecessors.

Even though there no uniform understanding or care for the lives of early Protestants, Americans

share their ideals with a uniform mentality of how working should be.

Family Impact

In obvious consequence, working longer hours demands less time at home for family life

but how exactly does this impact the family? In the earliest and most crucial stages of child

development parents may not be able to afford staying with their new child. Unlike other

industrialized nations, the U.S. does not currently offer paid maternity leave which forces the

hand of a parent to go back to work unless they can afford to stay home. Having job security for

a time near childbirth is just as important as it is less likely that the child will be prematurely

born or with complication. Heavily dependent on socioeconomic status, mothers from the lower

spectrum have higher infant mortality rates and higher chances of poor birth outcomes due to the

fact of the mothers necessity to work and survive (M. Rossin, 2011). When the mother returns to

working full-time while the child is so young, it has higher chances of developing behavioral

problems in contrast with toddler-aged children who were exempt from this effect (D. Pelcovits,

2013).
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Specifically observing the impact on older children, per 2011 census data about 4 million

children are left at home to become a latchkey kid (J. Rajalakshmi & P. Thanasekaran, 2015).

These children are known for their responsibility of a house key and caring for themselves until

their parent or guardian returns home from work (R. Duff &S. Stroman, 2012). Even in

households with two incomes, parents are unable to provide their children with care due to costs

or the unavailability of other possible caretakers. Although the compromise may seem beneficial

to the schedule, the cost occurs in the development of the child that becomes a recognizable

issue. Children develop a sense of fear and loneliness at a young age, whereas those on the verge

of their teenage years find themselves much more susceptible to peer pressure in forms of

alcohol and drug abuse or promiscuity (J. Rajalakshmi & P. Thanasekaran, 2015).

Individual Impact

The cost of working such long hours bring most harm to the worker that places self-care

and health as the last priority. Although the industry of work is a factor in the length of time an

individual can work long hours before feeling the effects, the larger workloads contribute to

stress that becomes detrimental to health if it persists for a prolonged period. Stress becomes the

gateway way to failing mental health as the individual becomes more irritable and develops

anxiety, depression, and/or insomnia (Schneiderman, N., Ironson, G., & Siegel, S. D., 2005).

The effects of this mindset affect the body as harshly as it does the mind. Although

working moderately may benefit the body depending on the responsibilities, individuals that

work extensive hours bring about unhealthy lifestyle changes that lead to serious complications.

The increased risk of cardiovascular disease for workers stems from the interruption in the

circadian rhythm, lack of healthy eating habits, and diminished physical activity. Failure to
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prioritize their health and create space for medical examinations causes the individual to become

exhausted with a higher chance of becoming obese (M. Shields, 1999).

The motivation thrives on the thought that more work leads to higher productivity and

income but this is not always the case. Seppala emphasizes on this point of the working

American allowing their mind to function constantly on a wheel that sacrifices creativity in the

process (2016). There is an underlying fear that idleness translates to ineffectiveness; although

this may be true in a high functioning workplace, a mind that does not have rest beyond nightly

dormancy goes without any space to utilize other areas of the brain. However, this does not

suggest that slothful behavior should be condoned, but rather doing less results in the brain

reaching its peak (L. Ursrey, 2014). Whereas focus benefits a single task, the unraveled mind can

explore without the bounds that constrain it to the area some individual selects as a priority. The

benefits of idleness are traceable to the past as well. Without the feeling that vacation is

beneficial for mind and body, the individual American continues without break and ignores their

innovative and creative abilities.

Economic Impact

Along with the fear of how leisure time may appear to others, Americans also seem to

have the belief that the country is productive because of the long working hours and higher pay

that results. Although the GDP increases with the number of workers producing, this does not

necessarily mean that long working hours are accountable and required to keep a high

production. In the 2016, GDP data collected by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and

Development (OECD) displays the world ranking with the U.S. producing the most, but not far

behind is Germany, the fourth highest GDP (Knoema, 2016). The significance in Germanys

status lies in their similarity to the U.S. with the Protestant work ethic but without the average
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worker feeling the burden. Although the values of Protestantism were contrived by a German, the

average German worker has a 35-hour work week while the American worker typically works 40

hours a week. While the U.S. prefers the method of laissez-faire and leaves businesses to

determine the amount of paid-leave for their employees, the German government has mandated

10 holidays in which most Germans are expected to rest and spend time with their families

(Salford Business School, 2014). Despite the holidays and reduced work hours, Germany

manages to be one of the most successful European countries and produce close to the same

amount as Japan even with the population gap of about 50 million (CIA 2016). Their use of the

Protestant work ethic has resulted in working hard in the allotted time but knowing where to

draw the line and reward themselves with well-deserved leisure time. The U.S. is unable to

follow this successful model because of the heavy trust in businesses to handle their employees,

but most businesses, being very for-profit and Protestant work ethic based, handle their

employees with little care and make sure that they know they are replaceable (Miller G., 2017).

The economy of the U.S. is not at the high risk as the health of the workers contributing

to the high GDP. As German government and business listen more to their workforce and make

changes accordingly, there has been an increase in the worker contentment with their occupation.

This translates to more passionate workers who devote their energy not just their time (Nink M.,

2014).
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Conclusion

Granting that American businesses are a main factor in the movement of the economy

and employment rates, they act on the precedent of European immigrants that established a

mindset for the workplace. This mindset has worked for so long that it instills the idea of

everything being fine as is, but this perspective does not change the detrimental effects of

clinging to these traditional values. The idea of working long hours immediately impacts close

relationships of family and forces change within. While employed-parents spend more time at

work for higher earnings, many children are left alone and mentally develop faster being forced

to care for themselves. The stress from working carries on to their interactions with family and

friends and influences more belligerent behavior. Over time, an individual has higher risks of

both physical and mental illness from the lack of rest and leisure. The brain becomes repetitive in

its processing without rest to access areas beyond the usual priority. Although vacations seem

taboo in the society of working Americans, it necessity lies in the benefit for the freedom of the

brain and longevity of the body. The fear of the U.S. economy being heavily affected by

increased leisure time for its working citizens becomes obsolete when compared to Germany.

The U.S. does produce the most in the world but at the cost of the health of employee, their

personal relationships, and their family life. Currently, a balance between work and life seems

unachievable for the average American worker that goes without any government regulated

maternal leave and paid holiday. As long as the Protestant work ethic thrives in American

businesses for production, the U.S. remains in its past despite advancements in technology to

ease the burdens of life or the effect this mindset has on its working citizens.
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