If you have ever had a meal in a restaurant (fast-food/formal dining), used an ATM in a bank, spent your vacation at an amusement park or simply browsed through a mall, you have been exposed to McDonaldization. McDonaldization is "the process by which the principles of the fast food restaurant are coming to dominate more and more sectors of America society as well as the rest of the world" (Ritzer, 1996, 1). Nearly every aspect of today's society has been affected by McDonaldization including the restaurant business, education, work, healthcare, travel, leisure, dieting, politics and the family (Ritzer, 1996, 1). .
One of the first functions of McDonaldization is efficiency. Efficiency means choosing the optimum means to a given end. In our society, people like to have things go as quickly and as smoothly as possible, but they do not want to find out the fastest way themselves. Instead, people like to have a system that has already been used and that they know works. Efficiency has its advantages for both consumers, who get what they want quickly and with little effort, and for workers, who can perform their tasks in a simple manner. The fast food industry is very streamlined, because hamburgers are the simplest food there is to make. Other foods also do not need a lot of ingredients, and they are simple to make and to eat. Most of the food is also prepared so one can eat it with their hands, thereby reducing the need for utensils such as hamburgers. In the process of McDonaldization, consumers are forced to do a good deal of work as well. They have to stand on line, carry their own food, and throw out the garbage. This is not as efficient for the consumer, but it saves time for the workers. Education, health care, and the work place are all becoming McDonaldalized in order to become more efficient. Efficiency in McDonaldization has streamlined many processes, simplified goods and services, and forces the consumer to do work as well.
