Solidarities
This paper examines the new Web-based forms of solidarity, particularly in the context of a disruption of traditional forms of social support in the workplace. It aims to show that two contradictory social processes can be detected: on the one hand, the emergence of a networked “cognitive capitalism,” such as when companies use the power of networks and a libertarian ethics to boost innovation and productivity; on the other hand, the formation of areas of support, comfort, and redemption, allowing dissatisfied workers to increase their self-esteem or to serve their community by contributing to huge cathedrals of knowledge in a spirit of altruism and mutual help. The relationship between the bottom-up innovation, exploration, and creativity and the aspiration for solidarity is a key to understand these new relational forms and their social implications.