theory and organizing

Theory is often depicted as dry, boring, and useless, as with "that's just a theory." Yet theory provides a way for understanding and interpreting the world. In Chapter 3, Eisenberg et al. discuss the notion of theory and organization as well as early theoretical approaches to organization and communication.

The authors note that theories are metaphorical and historical as well as goal-oriented stories. For example, the authors use the empire metaphor to describe how organizations in the U.S. functioned from the 1700s to the early 1900s. Because theories are partial, they can never completely explain organizational communication. Theories are partisan in that events in organizations may be interpreted in multiple ways. The problematic nature of theories invites dialogue and questions about organizational communication.

Theories, then, are narratives of organization--theories provide a way of telling the story of organization and organizing. As you read Chapter 3, you'll note that theories focus primarily on management and telling the story of how to get people to do their work. So concern was (and still for the most part is) with theories that will help top management figure out the best way to facilitate employee productivity.

I'm particularly interested in narratives of organization. For example, domination narratives came out of the top-down flow of information in hierarchies found in classical management approaches. Narratives of resistance are told by the less powerful and the powerless who ordinarily have little or no voice in organizations. These narratives are a type of hidden transcript--information known to those who are oppressed but kept from those in power due to fear of reprisal.

The idea of narratives of resistance suggests that much of what is known about organizations comes from the top and little is known about the daily work done by the typical member of an organization. Consider all the information produced by organizations: press releases, quarterly reports, year-end financial statements. For me, the most interesting research in organizational communication focuses on revealing the overlooked stories of organizational life.

~ Professor Cyborg