POLS 2250 Chapter Notes - Chapter 3: Organizational Culture, Contingency Theory, Profit Motive
3 Nov 2013
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Document Summary
Organizational humanism bore the imprint of social psychologists. Organizational humanists focused on what actually happened on the factory floor vs. what should happen. Didn"t study organizations systematically in the ordinary sense but used every opportunity to discuss organizational questions w/ everyone from senior execs to factory workers. Her basic philosophy stemmed from the fact that she rejected the conventional use of raw power in organizations: felt it was either futile or totally counterproductive. Instead, she focused on 2 related concepts: circular response: no one unilaterally acts on someone else; rather, people interact w/ one another in ways that influence both parties. Caused her to reject the idea of power as a one-way street: integration: need to combine diverse elements into a useful whole. Follett realized that conflict would inevitably develop in any organization b/c of the existence of circular response + the informal organization. Follett emphasized the significance of executives exercising leadership rather than wielding power.
