The Performance Complex: Competition and Competitions in Social Life

An increasing number of activities in everyday life are being evaluated and experienced in terms of performance metrics. This book examines this assemblage of networks of observation -- in which all are performing and keeping score -- and their attendant emotional pathologies across various industries and occupations.

David Stark, Arthur Lehman Professor of Sociology and Director, Center on Organizational Innovation, Columbia University

David Stark is Arthur Lehman Professor of Sociology at Columbia University where he directs the Center on Organizational Innovation. He is also Professor of Social Science at the University of Warwick. His book The Sense of Dissonance: Accounts of Worth in Economic Life (2009) studies how organizations and their members search for what's valuable. Stark's current research is supported by a five-year Advanced Grant from the European Research Council for a project on "Diversity and Performance: Networks of Cognition in Markets and Teams."