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The Different Principles of McDonaldization

The car wash industry is one sector of society that has become dominated by the four

aspects of McDonaldization. In many cases, these four aspects are easier to point out in

the car washing industry than they are in the fast-food industry that George Ritzer

explored. Nearly all areas of society seem to be in some way affected by the different

According to George Ritzer, efficiency is the quickest and easiest way to reaching

an end (40). The car wash industry is a good example of an aspect of our society that is

dominated by this principle of McDonaldization. Perhaps the most obvious example of

efficiency in the car washing industry is the use of the conveyorized car wash. Both the

car wash I formally worked at and the two car washes described in the articles use a

conveyorized system of washing cars, in which cars are placed on a moving belt that goes

through spraying water and moving bristles. This is a much more efficient method of

cleaning cars than acutally hand washing the cars at home. It takes much less time and

effort. Another example of efficiency, according to the article on the Scrubadub Auto

Wash, is the use of recycled water. This helps to preserve tons of gallons of water that

might be wasted if washing the car at home. At the Carolina Springs Autospa, there are

three different workstations where the cars are pulled out of the wash to be finished. Due

to the limited number of work stations, there is a large amount of pressure to quickly

finish the final touches to cars before others are pulled out of the wash. This is an

example of how George Ritzer says that efficiency may lead to low quality work (41).

The limited number of work stations will cause employees to cut corners in order to

quickly finish a car. This results in low quality work. George Ritzer also mentions that

getting people in and out is a form of efficiency (43). This form is present at the Ca...

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The Different Principles of McDonaldization. (1969, December 31). In Retrieved 10:08, March 01, 2015, from