Counterproductivity
Once it reaches a certain threshold, the process of institutionalization becomes counterproductive
- Ivan Illich [1]
Description
From a profile article on Illich and education at http://www.infed.org/thinkers/et-illic.htm :
"Finger and Asún (2001: 11) describe this as 'probably Illich's most original contribution'. Counterproductivity is the means by which a fundamentally beneficial process or arrangement is turned into a negative one. 'Once it reaches a certain threshold, the process of institutionalization becomes counterproductive' (op. cit.). It is an idea that Ivan Illich applies to different contexts. For example, with respect to travel he argues that beyond a critical speed, 'no one can save time without forcing another to lose it...[and] motorized vehicles create the remoteness which they alone can shrink' (1974: 42).
Finger and Asún 2001: 11) have commented,
Illich is not against schools or hospitals as such, but once a certain threshold of institutionalization is reached, schools make people more stupid, while hospitals make them sick. And more generally, beyond a certain threshold of institutionalized expertise, more experts are counterproductive - they produce the counter effect of what they set out to achieve. (http://www.infed.org/thinkers/et-illic.htm)
More Information
An alternative to counterproductivity are Convivial Institutions