Organizations and organizing : rational, natural, and open system perspectives / W. Richard Scott, Gerald F. Davis.

By:

Scott, W. Richard

Contributor(s):

Material type: Text

TextPublication details: Upper Saddle River, N.J. : Pearson Prentice Hall, c2007.Edition: 1st edDescription: xi, 452 p. : ill. ; 23 cmISBN:

0131958933
9780131958937
0132329026 (pbk.)
9780132329026 (pbk.)

Subject(s):

DDC classification:

302.35 SCO

Holdings
Item type	Current library	Call number	Copy number	Status	Date due	Barcode
Standard Loan	Thurles Library Main Collection	302.35 SCO (Browse shelf(Opens below))	1	Available		R19353AKRC

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

This broad, balanced introduction to organizational studies enables the reader to compare and contrast different approaches to the study of organizations. This book is a valuable tool for the reader, as we are all intertwined with organizations in one form or another. Numerous other disciplines besides sociology are addressed in this book, including economics, political science, strategy and management theory. Topic areas discussed in this book are the importance of organizations; defining organizations; organizations as rational, natural, and open systems; environments, strategies, and structures of organizations; and organizations and society. For those employed in fields where knowledge of organizational theory is necessary, including sociology, anthropology, cognitive psychology, industrial engineering, managers in corporations and international business, and business strategists.

Rev. of: Organizations / W. Richard Scott. 5th ed. 2003.

Includes bibliographical references (p. 391-438) and indexes.

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

Preface (p. ix)
1 The Subject Is Organizations; The Verb is Organizing (p. 1)
The Importance of Organizations (p. 2)
Organizations as an Area of Study (p. 8)
Common and Divergent Interests (p. 11)
The Elements of Organizations (p. 19)
Defining the Concept of Organization (p. 27)
Summary (p. 33)
2 Organizations as Rational Systems (p. 35)
The Defining Characteristics (p. 36)
Selected Schools (p. 40)
Summary and Tentative Conclusions (p. 56)
3 Organizations as Natural Systems (p. 59)
Basic versus Distinctive Characteristics (p. 59)
Selected Schools (p. 64)
Summary and Tentative Conclusions (p. 83)
4 Organizations as Open Systems (p. 87)
System Levels (p. 88)
Special Emphases and Insights (p. 90)
Selected Schools (p. 98)
Summary and Tentative Conclusions (p. 106)
5 Combining Perspectives, Expanding Levels (p. 107)
Attempts at Integration (p. 108)
Glancing Back and Looking Forward (p. 113)
Expanded Levels of Analysis (p. 115)
Theories at the Ecological Level (p. 120)
Concluding Comment (p. 122)
6 Technology and Structure (p. 124)
Organizations as Technical Adaptive Systems (p. 125)
Technology and Structure: Natural System Formulations (p. 137)
Summary (p. 149)
7 Labor and Structure (p. 151)
The Social Boundaries of Organizations (p. 151)
Division of Labor (p. 158)
Labor Markets and Organizational Boundaries (p. 164)
High-Performance Work Organizations (p. 170)
Problems for Participants (p. 173)
Concluding Comments (p. 181)
8 Goals, Power, and Control (p. 183)
Goal Setting in Organizations (p. 183)
Anarchies, Adhocracies, and Learning (p. 196)
Control Systems (p. 202)
Critical and Postmodern Conceptions of Power (p. 215)
Summary (p. 218)
9 The Dyadic Environment of the Organization (p. 220)
Why Are There Organizations, and Where Do They Place Their Boundaries? (p. 221)
Transaction Costs and the Origins of Firms (p. 221)
How Do Organizations Manage Their Relations with Other Organizations? (p. 233)
Resource Dependence and the Negotiated Environment (p. 233)
Summary (p. 243)
10 Organization of the Environment (p. 245)
How Do New Organizations and New Populations of Organizations Arise, and Why Do They Fail?: Ecological Perspectives (p. 246)
How Are Organizations Shaped by Broader Social-Political-Cultural Processes?: Institutional Perspectives (p. 258)
Summary (p. 277)
11 Networks In and Around Organizations (p. 278)
Introduction: From Metaphor to Method to Worldview (p. 278)
Network Thinking (p. 279)
Interorganizational Networks (p. 285)
Network Forms of Organization (p. 291)
Sectoral and Societal Networks (p. 301)
Summary (p. 307)
12 Strategy, Structure, and Performance: The Sociology of Organizational Strategy (p. 310)
Why Are Organizations in Some Industries More Profitable Than Those in Others? (p. 313)
Organizational Performance (p. 326)
Summary (p. 338)
13 The Rise and Transformation of the Corporate Form (p. 340)
Changing Forms of Organizations (p. 343)
Are Organizations Still the Defining Structures of Society? (p. 361)
Summary (p. 367)
14 Changing Contours of Organizations and Organization Theory (p. 368)
From Unitary to Multiparadigm (p. 369)
From Monocultural to Multicultural Studies (p. 374)
From Present-centered to Longitudinal and Historical Analysis (p. 376)
From Micro- to Macro Units and Levels of Analysis (p. 381)
From Structure to Process (p. 384)
References (p. 391)
Name Index (p. 439)
Subject Index (p. 447)

Author notes provided by Syndetics

W. Richard Scott is a professor at Stanford University and is the author of numerous books, including the best-selling Organizations: Rational, Natural and Open Systems, which this new book replaces.

Gerald F. Davis is a professor of Management and Organizations in the University of Michigan Business School. He brings extensive knowledge of strategy, social networks and social movements to this new book.