Work Pray Code

"Work Pray Code presents an extraordinarily fine-grained map of the traffic between religion and profit-seeking among Silicon Valleys elite."---Fred Turner, Los Angeles Review of Books "A must-read for anyone interested in the rise of mindfulness in corporate culture, and anyone concerned with how Silicon Valley culture might be shaping and distorting modern ideas of the workplace and community-writ-large."---Ravi Chandra, Psychology Today "Fascinating. . . . Work Pray Code is at its best when Chen contextualizes the findings of her research within broader historical and sociological concepts, such as corporate maternalism, the constant productivity push, and reduced civic engagement. . . . her findings should interest (and perhaps alarm) anyone who cares about the health and growth of the American church."---Dorcas Cheng-Tozun, Christianity Today "A rich ethnography of Silicon Valleys elite. . . . Compelling stories. . . . While Work Pray Code centers on the corporate mindfulness initiatives for elite tech workers, Chen also takes moments to explore the impacts of these programs on larger issues."---J. A. English-Lueck, Science "Work Pray Code offers a rare sociological interrogation of the socio-political forces that direct citizens toward the ends of workplaces while diverting their attention from the ends of a shared public life or democratic practice."---Andrew Lynn, The Hedgehog Review "A meticulous, absorbing ethnography of Silicon Valley workplaces. . . . Through Chens sharply focused sociological lens, [the quirks and perks of Silicon Valley work culture] inform a bigger story: about the human search for meaning and security in a world where a handful of companies and people wield so much power over what matters and who wins."---Margaret OMara, Foreign Affairs "[Chens] questions are eminently important ones."---Bonnie Nadzam, Lion's Roar "Chen reminds us that work is a fickle god, one that loves us only conditionally. She calls us back to genuine worship, to communities that care about us beyond what we can produce."---Jonathan Tran, Christian Century "Anyone who cares about the future of work needs to read this book."---Bob Trube, Bob on Books "A stellar socio-anthropological study of the secular monasteries that dominate our culture, where work is reframed as an act of devotion and devotion is co-opted by the hungry gods of Capital. Be careful what you worship."---James K.A. Smith, author of On the Road with Saint Augustine "Her book, both sociological study and cultural rumination, is worth reading. Filled with interviews with actual employees who've subbed in their work lives for a broader religious or community one. It'll resonate with anyone in the Valley daze."---Antonio Garca Martnez, author of New York Times bestseller Chaos Monkeys "Deeply researched ethnography. . . . [Chens] analysis is at its most powerful in the sections where she lets us hear from the people who manage and deploy spirituality in the workplace."---Anna Gibson, The Arts Fuse "Well-researched and engaging." * Choice * "Chens book, drawn from six years of field work, makes a strong case. . . . Chen explains well why the tech industry workforcemore homogenous than most, almost entirely migrated from other parts of the worldis especially inclined to religious coherence at the workplace."---Kathryn Lofton, Journal of the American Academy of Religion "Work Pray Code offers sociologists a new understanding of religion at work. . . . Chens book introduces a new dimension to the sociology of work and religion."---Elaine Howard Ecklund and Di Di, American Journal of Sociology

Carolyn Chen, a sociologist, is professor of ethnic studies at the University of California, Berkeley. She is the author of Getting Saved in America (Princeton) and the coeditor of Sustaining Faith Traditions. She lives in Kensington, California. Website carolynchen.org