Search results

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Book part
Publication date: 5 February 2019

Arthur McLuhan and Antony Puddephatt

A common charge against qualitative researchers in general and interactionist researchers in particular is that they produce descriptive, a-theoretical accounts of group life. We…

Abstract

A common charge against qualitative researchers in general and interactionist researchers in particular is that they produce descriptive, a-theoretical accounts of group life. We consider the problem of “analytic interruptus” in contemporary symbolic interactionism – that is, a failure to move beyond analyses of individual cases – and offer a potential to a solution via the pursuit of a generic social process (GSP) research agenda. A GSP approach involves developing, assessing, and revising concepts from the close scrutiny of empirical instances across diverse contexts. By considering criticisms of GSPs from feminist and postmodernist scholars, a more informed, qualified, and better-situated approach to the framework becomes possible. We argue that GSPs remain a quintessential analytical tool to explore subcultural realities and build formal theories of the social world.

Book part
Publication date: 5 August 2022

Chao Liu and Steve McDonald

Old boy networks are exclusive elite networks of white males that afford inside information, facilitate advancement, and provide support to each other. Understanding old boy…

Abstract

Old boy networks are exclusive elite networks of white males that afford inside information, facilitate advancement, and provide support to each other. Understanding old boy networks is important because it represents a culturally specific form of cronyism that has significant negative consequences for international business. As a corrective to more optimistic scholarship on the benefits of social networks in organizations – and in line with critical assessments of other network phenomena, such as guanxi – we explore the generic social processes that give rise to old boy networks in society using Social Closure Theory and consider the consequences of old boy networks in organizations through the lens of Relational Inequality Theory. Specifically, we highlight research on network membership and gender, race, and class inequality in hiring, socialization, and assessment. We conclude by discussing the implications of old boy networks for international business.

Details

Informal Networks in International Business
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-83982-878-2

Keywords

Abstract

Details

The Human Factor In Social Capital Management: The Owner-manager Perspective
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78441-584-6

Book part
Publication date: 23 October 2008

Robert Prus

Stressing (a) the authenticity of human-lived experience, (b) activity as an intersubjectively generated and informed essence, and (c) process-oriented concepts that are rooted in…

Abstract

Stressing (a) the authenticity of human-lived experience, (b) activity as an intersubjectively generated and informed essence, and (c) process-oriented concepts that are rooted in the comparative analysis of ethnographically examined instances, this paper not only addresses the fundamental (essential) contributions of symbolic interactionism to the study of human knowing and acting but also considers the implications of these emphases for the future of sociology as a more genuine pluralist, humanist, and enduring social science.

Details

Studies in Symbolic Interaction
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-84855-127-5

Article
Publication date: 1 June 2003

Robert Prus

Although the particular policies that groups establish may serve to differentiate those groups from others in the broader community, policies are better envisioned as aspects of…

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Abstract

Although the particular policies that groups establish may serve to differentiate those groups from others in the broader community, policies are better envisioned as aspects of group life in the making than as structures or rules that define the character or operations of the groups under consideration. Addressing instances of policy as humanly engaged ventures, this statement attempts to demystify policy by (a) examining organizational directives in process terms, (b) explicitly incorporating people into the study of the policy‐making process. This paper also addresses policy in ways that (c) are more amenable to ethnographic research on actual instances of policy and (d) contribute to a sustained, comparative analysis of “policy in the making”.

Details

International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, vol. 23 no. 6/7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0144-333X

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 23 September 2013

Morris Zelditch

This chapter reviews 30 years of Advances in Group Processes. Its primary purpose is to study the part the series has played in the advances in the study of group processes that…

Abstract

Purpose

This chapter reviews 30 years of Advances in Group Processes. Its primary purpose is to study the part the series has played in the advances in the study of group processes that have taken place between 1984 and 2014.

Design/methodology/approach

This chapter places the 30 years of Advances in Group Processes in the context of the changes that took place between small groups research in the 1950s and group processes research in the 1980s and beyond.

Findings

Analyzing the policies of Advances in Group Processes and its contents, this chapter reflects on its role in the advances in group processes that have taken place since the 1980s. Between 1950 and 1980, small group research reinvented, reconceptualized, and reinvigorated itself as group process research. Between the two periods, small group research, its applied research, and its research programs became increasingly theory-driven and its concept of the group and its levels increasingly analytic. As a consequence of these changes, the concept of the field itself became increasingly analytic. The changes between the two periods in its theory, research, application, programs, and in its concept of the group and the way the field was conceptualized led to marked advances in group process research in the 90s and beyond – to more theory, more impact of it on application, and more, and more cumulative, growth of it. Advances in Group Processes was at once a reflection of the changes that took place between the two periods and a driving force in the advances in group processes research that have taken place ever since.

Originality/value

Advances in Group Processes is a fundamental resource for the development of theory and research on small groups and group processes. This chapter provides an overview of its contributions and places them in the context of the development of the field as a whole.

Article
Publication date: 27 February 2007

Peter Holdt Christensen

How companies can become better at knowing what they know, and share what they know have in recent years become dominant fields of research within knowledge management. The

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Abstract

Purpose

How companies can become better at knowing what they know, and share what they know have in recent years become dominant fields of research within knowledge management. The literature focuses on why people share knowledge, or why they fail to share knowledge, whilst the discussion of what they actually share has been pinned down to the concept of best practices. In this paper it is argued that there is more to knowledge sharing than the sharing of best practices. Knowledge sharing is more than the closing of performance gaps and the sharing of stocks of knowledge – knowledge sharing is also about bridging situations of organizational interdependencies and thereby supporting ongoing organizational activities.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper is both theoretical and empirical. Theoretically, the concept of organizational interdependence is applied to create a conceptual framework encompassing four types of knowledge to be shared. The theoretical framework is applied on a case company to empirically illustrate how knowledge sharing encompasses different types of knowledge.

Findings

The paper identifies four types of knowledge that are pivotal to share: professional knowledge, coordinating knowledge, object‐based knowledge, and know‐who. Hence, the paper expands the common belief that knowledge sharing is solely about sharing best practices.

Practical implications

Since knowledge sharing encompasses at least four types of knowledge, the practice of facilitating knowledge sharing must necessarily focus on different channels enabling the sharing of knowledge. The practical implications of the paper, hence, direct attention to not solely sharing best practices but also knowledge bridging organizational interdependencies.

Originality/value

The paper argues that best practices have dominated the discourse on what knowledge is to be shared but, to become better at understanding and practising knowledge sharing, states that one must expand one's view on what knowledge is being shared.

Details

Journal of Knowledge Management, vol. 11 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1367-3270

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 23 November 2021

Rodrigo Luiz Morais-da-Silva, Andréa Paula Segatto, Gelciomar Simão Justen, Indira Gandhi Bezerra-de-Sousa and Eduardo De-Carli

Social innovation has been attracting attention in the literature and the practice field due to its intention to create social value. However, the social innovation process is…

Abstract

Purpose

Social innovation has been attracting attention in the literature and the practice field due to its intention to create social value. However, the social innovation process is still poorly studied and is marked by several disagreements in the existing models, often built from data coming from developed countries. So, the focus of this study is to answer the following research question: how is the social innovation process configured in a developing context?

Design/methodology/approach

The study investigated three cases of Brazilian social innovation processes through a qualitative approach. The authors also use the institutional levels perspectives to analyse the cases.

Findings

The main findings indicate that the social innovation process comprises five phases and occurs between the micro, meso and macro institutional levels. Besides, the social innovation process relies on the participation of different partners, in a non-sequential process, with the possibility of returning from one stage to another and is evaluated continuously over time.

Practical implications

This study may be useful for social entrepreneurs and their teams in organisations that generate social innovations (such as social enterprises) to understand how well-established initiatives have organised themselves over time. Public policymakers may also use the insights provided to create more favourable environments to create new social innovation initiatives and expand the existing ones.

Originality/value

The characteristics of the social innovation process revealed in this study contributes to the advancement of the area, mainly because it considers the perspective of institutional levels and is based on data from a developing country.

Details

Business Process Management Journal, vol. 28 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1463-7154

Keywords

Content available
Book part
Publication date: 5 February 2019

Abstract

Details

The Interaction Order
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78769-546-7

Article
Publication date: 1 February 1998

John E. Swan and Michael R. Bowers

Contemporary research on service quality and satisfaction has limitations. First, current satisfaction models treat the consumer as an isolated individual, not considering the…

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Abstract

Contemporary research on service quality and satisfaction has limitations. First, current satisfaction models treat the consumer as an isolated individual, not considering the social context of the service provision. Second, while satisfaction and quality are thought to be process outcomes, the dominant survey research approaches are not well suited to learning about processes. Finally, popular paradigms assume consumers’ determination of service quality and satisfaction is based solely on a set of attributes. Symbolic interaction and ethnographic methods expand the theoretical basis of service quality/satisfaction research beyond an individually centered psychological view to consider social influences and processes, thereby providing a deeper understanding of how consumers experience quality and satisfaction. The knowledge gained from this approach is easily accessible to service managers and may serve to improve employee recruiting, training and evaluation. Examples of employing symbolic interaction and ethnographic methods are provided. Actions to improve the management of service providers are listed

Details

Journal of Services Marketing, vol. 12 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0887-6045

Keywords

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