Pragmatism and Organization Studies

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philippe Lorino
Keyword(s):  
The United States ◽  
Semiotic Mediation ◽  
Analytical Philosophy ◽  
Organization Studies ◽  
Managerial Practices ◽  
Organization And Management ◽  
Radical Critique ◽  
Rational Control ◽  
Organization Research

The development of pragmatist thought (Peirce, James, Dewey, and Mead) in the first half of the twentieth century in the United States deeply impacted political science, semiotics, philosophy, psychology, sociology, education, law. Later intellectual trends (analytical philosophy, structuralism, cognitivism) focusing on rational representations or archetypical models somehow sidelined Pragmatism for three decades. In the world of organizations, they often conveyed the Cartesian dream of rational control, which became the mainstream view in management and organization research. In response to the growing uncertainty and complexity of situations, social sciences have experienced a “pragmatist turn.” Many streams of organization research have criticized the view of organizations as information-processing structures, controlled through rational representations. They share some key theoretical principles: the processual view of organizing as “becoming”; the emphasis on the key role of action; the agential power of objects; the exploratory and inquiring nature of organizing. These are precisely the key theses of pragmatists, who formulated a radical critique of the dualisms which hinder organization studies (thought/action, decision/execution, reality/representation, individual/collective, micro/macro) and developed key concepts applicable to organization studies (inquiry, semiotic mediation, habit, abduction, trans-action, valuation). This book aims to make the pragmatist intellectual framework more accessible to organization and management scholars. It presents some fundamental pragmatist concepts, and their potential application to the study of organizations, drawing conclusions concerning managerial practices, in particular the critique of the Taylorian tradition and the promotion of continuous improvement. To enhance accessibility, each theme is illustrated by real cases experienced by the author.

Raymond Carver and the voices of everyday life

2017 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 174-189 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander Styhre
Keyword(s):  
Everyday Life ◽  
Short Story ◽  
Analytical Models ◽  
Theoretical Frameworks ◽  
Raymond Carver ◽  
Organization Studies ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Organization And Management ◽  
Story Writer

Purpose All scholarly writing must straddle the universal and the particular. The universal is commonly addressed in terms of theoretical frameworks and analytical models, supported by the objectivity norm that has guided scientific inquiry since its inception. The particularities, on the other hand, the details and the nuts and bolts of everyday life and organizational reality, are oftentimes associated with subjectivity and therefore raise concern regarding the scholar’s preferences and convictions. In order to better balance objectivity and subjectivity in the organization studies literature, it is important to pay attention to how the choice of literary style may apprehend and convey organizational realities. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach Discussing the role of literature, and the work of the American short-story writer and poet Raymond Carver, more specifically, as a domain wherein language resonates with the pace and breathing of everyday life, it is suggested that an increased level of “lyrical sensibility” in scholarly vocabularies is conducive to more nuanced accounts of organizational practices. To substantiate Carver’s argument, ethnographies of occupational work is referenced and compared to Carver’s work. Findings Carver’s emphasis on writing stories and dialogs that do not hide behind jargon, nor impose unnecessary literary experiments or heavy-handed literary vocabularies on texts, is exemplary to organization researchers. In particular, Carver emphasizes the role of materiality and objects in his stories, the understated tension and concealed conflicts in social situations and relations, and points at how individuals interpret situations wherein they are located; in many cases, leading to apathy and indolence as the protagonists cannot consider meaningful ways to handle perceived issues or to move along. Carver’s emphasis on mundane experience is therefore conducive to a wider recognition of subjectivity in organization studies. Originality/value The paper broadens the discussion about organization studies writing by introducing the work of Raymond Carver, a seminal author only sparsely featured in organization and management studies.

The Role of Gender and Sensation Seeking in Film Choice

2008 ◽  
Vol 20 (3) ◽  
pp. 97-105 ◽  
Author(s):  
Smita C. Banerjee ◽  
Kathryn Greene ◽  
Marina Krcmar ◽  
Zhanna Bagdasarov ◽  
Dovile Ruginyte
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Undergraduate Students ◽  
Sensation Seeking ◽  
Negative Mood ◽  
Positive Mood ◽  
The United States ◽  
High Arousal ◽  
Subject Design ◽  
Happy Mood

This study demonstrates the significance of individual difference factors, particularly gender and sensation seeking, in predicting media choice (examined through hypothetical descriptions of films that participants anticipated they would view). This study used a 2 (Positive mood/negative mood) × 2 (High arousal/low arousal) within-subject design with 544 undergraduate students recruited from a large northeastern university in the United States. Results showed that happy films and high arousal films were preferred over sad films and low-arousal films, respectively. In terms of gender differences, female viewers reported a greater preference than male viewers for happy-mood films. Also, male viewers reported a greater preference for high-arousal films compared to female viewers, and female viewers reported a greater preference for low-arousal films compared to male viewers. Finally, high sensation seekers reported a preference for high-arousal films. Implications for research design and importance of exploring media characteristics are discussed.

Business-groups in Russian industries

2004 ◽  
pp. 121-134 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Avdasheva
Keyword(s):  
Industrial Organization ◽  
Economic System ◽  
Institutional Economics ◽  
Business Groups ◽  
Control Rights ◽  
Organization And Management ◽  
Russian Economy ◽  
Main Determinants ◽  
Soviet Economic System

The chapter of “Institutional Economics” textbook is devoted to the development of business-groups as a specific feature of industrial organization in the Russian economy. The main determinants of forming and functioning of business-groups such as allocation of property rights in Soviet enterprises, networks of directors and executive authorities in the Soviet economic system as well as import of new institutes and inefficient state enforcement are in the center of analysis. Origins, structure, organization and management within the groups and the role of shareholding and informal control rights are considered.

Confronting the Problems of Professional Sports: A Public Policy Response to Franchise Relocation and Stadium Subsidization

2005 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Taylor F Brinkman
Keyword(s):  
Local Community ◽  
Professional Sports ◽  
The United States ◽  
Direct Result ◽  
Sports Organizations ◽  
Sports Leagues ◽  
Sports Finance ◽  
Sports Venues ◽  
Benefits And Costs

During the past decade, forty-six professional sports venues were constructed in the United States, while only 16 expansion teams were created by the major sports leagues. Nearly two thirds of these newly built stadiums and arenas were funded with public tax revenues, despite substantial evidence showing no positive economic impact of new sports stadium construction on local communities. In reviewing the economic literature, this article investigates the role of professional sports organizations in the construction and public subsidization of new sports venues. Franchise relocation and public stadium subsidization is a direct result of the monopoly power of professional sports leagues, whose franchise owners extract large subsidies from their host communities by threatening to relocate to viable alternative locations. After explaining how the most common methods of stadium subsidization project a disproportionate allocation of the benefits and costs of hosting a professional team to local community interests, this article outlines several considerations for local policymakers who seek to reinvigorate public discussion of equity concerns in professional sports finance.

After Victory

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. John Ikenberry
Keyword(s):  
Comparative Politics ◽  
World Order ◽  
Balance Of Power ◽  
The United States ◽  
Big Bang ◽  
World Politics ◽  
Napoleonic Wars ◽  
Power Politics ◽  
The Cold War

The end of the Cold War was a “big bang” reminiscent of earlier moments after major wars, such as the end of the Napoleonic Wars in 1815 and the end of the world wars in 1919 and 1945. But what do states that win wars do with their newfound power, and how do they use it to build order? This book examines postwar settlements in modern history, arguing that powerful countries do seek to build stable and cooperative relations, but the type of order that emerges hinges on their ability to make commitments and restrain power. The book explains that only with the spread of democracy in the twentieth century and the innovative use of international institutions—both linked to the emergence of the United States as a world power—has order been created that goes beyond balance of power politics to exhibit “constitutional” characteristics. Blending comparative politics with international relations, and history with theory, the book will be of interest to anyone concerned with the organization of world order, the role of institutions in world politics, and the lessons of past postwar settlements for today.

38. Max Brodel (1870-1941): His artistic influence on surgical learning at John Hopkins Medical School

2007 ◽  
Vol 30 (4) ◽  
pp. 47
Author(s):  
P. Pace-Asciak ◽  
T. Gelfand
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Neck Surgery ◽  
The United States ◽  
Spoken Word ◽  
Medical Illustration ◽  
3 Dimensional ◽  
Teaching Anatomy ◽  
Computer Based ◽  
Pathological Disease

Medical students depend on illustration to learn anatomical facts and details that may be too subtle for the written or spoken word. For surgical disciplines, learners rely on tools such as language, 2-dimensional illustrations, and 3-dimensional models to pass on important concepts. Although a photograph can convey factual information, illustration can highlight and educate the pertinent details for understanding surgical procedures, neurovascular structures, and the pathological disease processes. In order to understand the current role of medical illustration in education, one needs to look to the past to see how art has helped solve communication dilemmas when learning medicine. This paper focuses on Max Brodel (1870-1941), a German-trained artist who eventually immigrated to the United States to pursue his career as a medical illustrator. Shortly after his arrival in Baltimore, Brodel made significant contributions to medical illustration in Gynecology at John Hopkins University, and eventually in other fields of medicine such as Urology and Otolaryngology. Brodel is recognized as one of America’s most distinguished medical illustrators for creating innovative artistic techniques and founding the profession of medical illustration. Today, animated computer based art is synergistically used with medical illustration to educate students about anatomy. Some of the changes that have occurred with the advancement of computer technology will be highlighted and compared to a century ago, when illustrations were used for teaching anatomy due to the scarcity of cadavers. Schultheiss D, Udo J. Max Brodel (1870-1941) and Howard A.Kelly (1858-1943) – Urogynecology and the birth of modern medical illustration. European Journal of Obstetrics & gynecology and Reproductive Biology 1999; 86:113-115. Crosby C. Max Brodel: the man who put art into medicine. New York: Springer-Verlag, 1991. Papel ID. Max Brodel’s contributions to otolaryngology – Head and Neck surgery. The American Journal of Otology 1986; 7(6):460-469.

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