disembedded

Disembedded is an adjective used in sociology and social theory to describe social relations or practices that have been separated from their immediate local context and embedded routines. The concept, associated with modernization and globalization, refers to the lifting of social life from a particular place into more abstract, generalized systems of exchange and coordination.

In this framework, social relations become mediated by non-local mechanisms such as money, professional expertise, formal law, and standardized classifications. Institutions and practices are described as disembedded when they operate across distances and over time, relying on symbols and procedures rather than face-to-face interactions. Time-space distanciation is a key idea: social interactions are stretched across space and time through mediated channels.

Applications include financial markets functioning independently of local economies, bureaucratic administration coordinating diverse actors, and science and education whose knowledge travels beyond its original community. Advantages include increased efficiency and scale; drawbacks include potential loss of local accountability, erosion of traditional social ties, and greater dependence on impersonal systems.

Related concepts include disembedding, re-embedding, time-space distanciation, and globalization.