A brief history of organizational theory

20 important questions on A brief history of organizational theory

Explain the main idea ofAdam Smith regarding economic efficiency

Division of labor creates economic efficiency. In his theory of labor the most important tasks are differentiation and specialization

Explain the main idea of Karl Marx regarding economic efficiency

He developed his theory of capitalism. He proposed that the human need to survive encouraged economic order which in turn creates economic efficiency. He proposed the problem of power between capitalists and laborers.
His ideas about labor and capitalism inspired critical theory

What is the connection between Emile Durkheim and Adam Smith?

Durkheim's theory built on Adam Smith by adding hierarchy and task interdependence to the division of labor. The focus on concepts related to social structures would form the modern perspective of organization theory. Durkheim introduced the concept of informal organization to address the sociability of workers
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Max Weber introduced the idea that societies organized themselves using different authorities before and after the industrial revolution. Which 3 different authorities?

Traditional authority (pre-industrial)
Charismatic authority (pre-industrial)
Rational-legal authority (after industrialization)

Explain the concept of traditional authority

Traditional authority is built upon inherited status (bloodlines and the ownership of property). A disadvantage of the survival of organizations is uncertain because of the limited number of individuals who can take over the role of the owner

Explain the concept of charismatic authority

Charismatic authority is built around an exceptional individual who gains influence from devoted followers. The succession of leaders again is problematic because the charisma cannot be replicated. A risk of charismatic authority is the rise of personality cults such as Hitler, Stalin and Mussolini

Explain the concept of rational-legal authority

Rational-legal authority replaced traditional and charismatic authority with merit-based selection driven by rationally formulated rules and laws. He believed that by binding the leaders to laws and rules it would ensure appropriate behavior. An additional advantage is that the talent pool for leaders is larger

Weber additionally introduced the theory of bureaucracy as an ideal model for governing organizations and societies. But why did he fear bureaucracy?

Bureaucracy treats humans like machines and imprisons people in 'an iron cage of bureaucracy'

Weber makes the distinction between two different rationalizes, which two?

Formal rationality: involves the technique of calculation. Formal rationality encourages following rules without questioning if they will achieve the desired end.

Substantive rationality : takes the desired end of an action into account when assessing the effectiveness of an organization. Substantive rationality stops formal rationality from creating an iron cage.

The modern perspective on organizations focusing on the ideals of progress and rationality (when people base their actions on facts ipv opinions.

3  theories support these ideals, which 3?

1) The general systems theory
2) The socio-technical systems theory
3) The contingency theory

Explain the socio-technical systems theory

This theory recognizes the interdependence of people and the technology they use. A key idea of the theory is that technology is also shaped by the social structures and process in which it is embedded

What is the primary theory of interest from the symbolic perspective?

The social construction theory: the idea that the social world is negotiated,organized and constructed by our interpretations of reality, which are communicated through symbols.

What is a symbol?

A symbol is a meaning-laden object, action or word and according to symbolists it is symbolism that creates socially constructed reality.

Social construction operates through three mechanisms, which 3?

1) Externalization: the meaning is communicated through symbols
2) Objectification: making something an object
3) Internalization: accepting the inter subjectively externalized and objectified understandings of a social group as reality

This three mechanisms are ongoing within the social construction process that produces stability.

How do symbolists see the connection between stability and change regarding symbols?

The symbolic perspective concludes that stability and change are connected because new symbols are connected to old meanings but old symbols can also take on new meanings.

Explain the enactment theory (one of the three phenomena within the symbolic perspective)

The enactment theory is the idea that organizations only exist in the organizational members' minds as cognitive maps of a socially constructed reality.

Therefore, organizations are fictions that are created by members 

The theory argues that the process of organizing should be of primary interest, as opposed to the organizations.

The theory combines the concept of externalization and objectification to create the new cognitive process of reification - when something is made real (which is what humans are doing to organizations by making cognitive maps

Explain the concept of institutions and institutionalization.
(one of the three phenomena in the symbolic perspective)

Institutions are patterns of behavior or customs that are valued by society.
Institutionalization is what you present as understanding and how this understanding is created.

An institution can become indispensable to society and hence be institutionalized, by asserting its value through symbols.

If an institution has social legitimacy, their behavior can diverge from rational expectations and the institution can still exist based on the justification of social legitimacy.

Therefore, the irrational behavior of organizations is hidden from public view and an institutional myth is created instead.

Explain the concept of culture
(one of the three phenomena in the symbolic perspective)

Culture: the defining of a group in society through their beliefs, values, assumptions, ways of living and working.

A method that the symbolic perspective use if to research culture is thick description; a variation of traditional ethnography. Thick description focuses on meanings that are beneath the surface of everyday events that reveal culture and its operations. The description is created through detailed description and careful documentation and presents the researchers observations and interpretations regarding the culture.

Research as storytelling and narrative.
All scientific writing is an act of storytelling and there are three styles of storytelling, which 3?

1) realist tales: objective reports of social facts
2)confessional tales: a text in which the author is very much present
3)Impressionist tales: highly personal accounts

Explain the following two concepts: narrative perspective and narrative voice.

Narrative perspective: defines if the narrator is studying the phenomenon as an outsider or insider

Narrative voice: concerns the extent to which the narrator writes themselves into their narrative.

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