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(1989) Systems prospects, Dordrecht, Springer.
From management science to cultural science
an exploration of different styles in organisational culture
L. J. Davies
pp. 41-45
Organisational culture has become a topic of some vogue in current management research. Journals, such as Administrative Science Quarterly, have dedicated whole issues to its concern (1983), and yet writers dealing with this area still appear to be in the dark ages when it comes to giving one or more clear definitions of what exactly such a form of culture really is. Smircich (1983) has summarised the literature in this area to show that culture as a concept has been presented in many forms, which range from symbolic interactionism perspectives to functionalist perspectives. Allaire and Firsirotu (1984) carry out a similar analysis of the literature and categorise it into dimensions from action frameworks to organisational variables. The literature gives the impression of being metaphor describing metaphor. The vagueness is endemic, and yet the concept is still considered of prime importance. The question that arises is "why?", and the answer that appears to follow is, "because it has been popularised". Writers, such as Deal and Kennedy (1982), and the hugely successful exposition of Peters and Waterman (1982) show that "organisational culture" is a saleable commodity in the world of managerial practices.
Publication details
DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4613-0845-4_8
Full citation:
Davies, L. J. (1989)., From management science to cultural science: an exploration of different styles in organisational culture, in R. L. Flood, M. C. Jackson & P. Keys (eds.), Systems prospects, Dordrecht, Springer, pp. 41-45.
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