‘Normal’ Science and Some of Its Dangers for Research into Organizational Theory and Behaviour

Contents Executive Summary 8 Aims and objectives of the review 8 Background 8 Definitions 8 Conceptual framework 8 Methods 9 Results from the literature review 9 Results from the NHS consultation 10 Study limitations 11 Implications for policy 11 Implications for research 12 The Report 13 Chapter 1 Introduction 13 1.1 Recent structural and system-based reforms 13 1.2 Purpose and aims 14 Chapter 2 Conceptual framework of the review 16 2.1 Existing organisational theory 16 2.1.1 Relationship between the environment, organisational structure and processes 17 2.2 Definition of 'organisation' 18 2.3 Levels of analysis 20 2.4 Relationships between environment and organisation 21 2.4.1 Actions of other individuals and organisations 22 2.4.2 Non-human events 22 2.4.3 Resource dependencies 23 2.4.4 Causal character of the environment 24 2.4.5 Relationship between organisational structures and processes 25 2.5 Relationships between organisational processes and outcomes 31 Organisational Factors and Performance: A Review of the Literature Chapter 6 How organisational environment is related to organisational outcomes 79 6.1 Evidence on the impact of competition in health care 79 6.1.1 US evidence 80 6.1.2 UK evidence 81 6.2 Impact of institutions, ext ernal culture and social capita 83 6.3 Empirical summary 84 Chapter 7 Relationship between organisational structure ('form') and organisational processes ('organisational behaviour') 85 7.1 Ownership and property rights 85 Organisational Factors and Performance: A Review of the Literature Appendix 1 Specimen search strategy 150 Organisational Factors and Performance: A Review of the Literature Executive Summary Aims and objectives of the review This report describes a scoping study, commissioned by the SDO, into the relationship between organisational factors and performance. The study aims were as follows: • To construct a conceptual framework to enable us to categorise and evaluate the existing evidence in the field; • To conduct a preliminary review of the literature in order to identify what is known and what is not known about the relationship between organisational factors and performance; • To identify which issues key stakeholders in the service regard as of greatest practical relevance to aid their decision-making; and • To make recommendations about the implications of the findings for the commissioning of future research and to influence the development of policy.

Organisational Factors and Performance: A Review of the Literature

Cross-cultural studies of managerial attitudes, beliefs and values have produced evidence to support both the view that industrialization is a force for convergence, and for the notion that national cultural realities continue to support divergence. Data from an investigation of Malawian managers are considered in relation to those from comparable previous studies in other countries, and more specifically in terms of the African context. Some tentative hypotheses are advanced, to account for distinctive aspects of managerial thinking in Malawi.

Managerial thinking: an african perspective

The role of individual differences in job satisfaction among Indonesians and Malaysians

This study investigates possible cultural differences in job attitudes among the three main sub-cultural groups dominating the entire population of the Nigerian work-force: Hausa (n=80), Ibo (n=119) and Yoruba (n= 151). Several hypotheses were derived from previous knowledge of the three cultures and differences were explored in the relationships between perceptions and attitudes concerning specific aspects of the job. Consistent cross-cultural differences that can be related to characteristics of the cultures studied were revealed with regard to only three motivational factors, namely, interpersonal relations, nature of work and supervision. The overall results seem to indicate that employees' cultural background has little impact on their perceptions of job motivation. However, a number of different personal variables were found to affect responses. Practical and research implications of the findings are discussed as well as directions for future research.

Effects of domestic multiculturalism on job attitudes in Nigeria: a research note

Research note: cultural and situational determinants of job satisfaction among management in liberia

'.! Summary.-The hypothesis that highly authoritarian Ss would tend to desire a more traditional control structure than those who scored lower was tested by giving a sample of 44 members of a social service organization Tannenbaum's Control Graph and the California F Scale. Results were mixed. with highly authoritarian Ss desiring more influence from immediate supervisory positions and Ss lower in authoritarianism desiring more influence from the general planning and policy making group, i.e., the Board of Directors. Under conditions where ambiguity as to the appropriate function of that role exists, the amount of control attributed to that person or group may be a function of personality attributes, i.e., degree of authoritarianism.

Authoritarian attitudes and control in a social service organization

A pilot study of changes in need deprivation following the introduction of a Management by Objectives program is reported. Changes in deprivation were measured by the Porter-Lawler Needs Questionnaire distributed to 44 subjects in a community service organization. Findings indicate significant decreases in deprivation for 4 of 5 need levels: social, self-esteem, autonomy and self-actualization following the introduction of the program.

Impact of Management by Objectives on Maslows Need Hierarchy: An Empirical Study

This study reports the relationship between total and distribution of control to loyalty and organizational effectiveness within Senior Citizen Centers (social and recreational centers for the elderly). Based on previous findings (1, 4 ) it was hypothesized that organizational effectiveness and participant's loyalty would be positively related to amount of total control and inversely related to degree of authoritarian control. Questionnaires were obtained from an 80% sample of volunteer staff in 11 Senior Citizen Centers. The volunteer staff of centers varied in size from 6 to 60. The number of respondents totalled 158. Measures of control were derived from responses to a five-point scale indicating the degree of influence that each level of the organization exercised over the organization's activities. Previous work with this control questionnaire showed split-half reliabilities corrected by the Spearman-Brown formula of .67 and .87 ( 2 ) . Loyalty and effectiveness were also measured by responses on a fivepoint scale. Loyalty was measured by responses to the following: "Suppose that as a result of strong opposition from your Community, your center was in real danger of folding up. How much effort would you be willing to spend in order to prevent this?" ( 3 ) . Responses to "On the basis of your experience and information, how would you rate the center program in meeting the needs of its members?" provided a "global" measure of organizational effectiveness ( 2 ) . Only the hypothesis relating to total control and effectiveness was supported (.69, p = .018). The correlation for total control and loyalty was .42 ( p = .20). The correlation of distribution of control and effectiveness was .15 and for distribution of control and loyalty was .27. These findings on total control and effectiveness are consistent with previous research while those on total control and loyalty are nonsignificant but in the anticipated direction. The findings for distribution of control tend to deviate from other studies, but the correlation is small. An extension of organizational theory and research to institutions concerned with elderly persons will take on greater significance as the mean age of the population increases. Of particular importance will be an understanding of how these instirutions differ from other organizations, i.e., the implication of distribution of control for effectiveness and loyalry.

Judi Strauss

Papers

Research note: cultural and situational determinants of job satisfaction among management in liberia

Authoritarian attitudes and control in a social service organization

Impact of Management by Objectives on Maslows Need Hierarchy: An Empirical Study

Senior citizen centers: a study of control, loyalty and effectiveness