The Burnout Society

Byung-Chul Han interprets the widespread malaise in modern society as an inability to manage negative experiences in an age characterized by excessive positivity and the universal availability of people and goods.

He argues that the shift from a disciplinary society to an achievement society, where individuals are driven by self-monitoring and the desire to achieve, leads to auto-exploitation and burnout.

Han draws on literature, philosophy, and the social and natural sciences to explore the consequences of sacrificing intermittent intellectual reflection for constant neural connection and the impact of hyperattention and multitasking on mental health and culture.