Sociology of Organizations
- Week 1 -
Sociology is the scientific study of social phenomena. The influence of social
contexts and resulting collective human behavior is studied. Sociology of
organizations is rather the study of the relationships which develop between
people as they organize themselves or are organized in work. How these patterns
influence and are influence by the actions and interactions of people is analyzed,
as well as how people make sense of their lives and identities.
Coleman’s diagram is commonly used as a blueprint to help you build
sociological theories. It is used to ensure that certain crucial elements are
included in a theory. Sociology studies the relation between macro-conditions
and macro-outcomes. Coleman’s diagram can be utilized to go beyond common-
sense claims, ones that simply look at the direct relation between macro-
condition and macro-outcome. The diagram also considers individual behavior
and how behavioral reactions of many may lead back to a macro-outcome.
If you systematically follow Coleman’s diagram when forming your theory, you
ensure that arguments on bridge assumptions, transformation rules and
individual level theory are made explicit. You do not try to simply explain the
macro effect on its own. A Coleman’s diagram can follow up another Coleman’s
diagram, collective effects create another social condition after all. A Coleman
Fleet may be used to make a feedback loop explicit and thus to expand on the
Coleman diagram when it fails to cover a theory fully.
People generally pursue social contact because of their own interest. A
spontaneous social order exists because of this social marketplace.
There are six strands of theory regarding sociology of organizations,
they will be explained in more detail below.
1) Managerial – psychologistic theory
2) Durkheim human-relations theory
3) Interactionist-negotiated-order teory
4) Weber social-action-institutional theory
5) Marxian labour-process theory
6) Post-modern/post structuralist theory
, 1 – The managerial-psychologistic strand
Taylorism: the science of dividing specific tasks to allow employees to complete
assignments as efficiently as possible. This, together with psychological
humanism – a philosophy that stresses the importance (and goodness of) of
human experience – form the foundation of this strand. Individual actions and
agency work together with social processes, cultures and structures.
According to Taylor, work should be decomposed to enhance efficiency. Doing
(employee-side) should be separated from thinking (employer-side) and tasks
should generally be simple. Human behavior can be explained by demand and
supply, so pay systems provide incentive. This strand is purely analyzing the
micro-level of the Coleman diagram as it views people as rational and economic.
Fordism encourages the use of specialized machinery and interchangeable
parts. Mass production was the goal. Better wages and overall wealth would in
turn lead to more customers. Engineers take the lead in rationalizing industrial
relations, with a standardization of the work process and the human element.
Human behavior is manipulated to maximize output and efficiency.
According to psychological humanism management does promote efficiency, but
the incentives and conditions need to be favorable. In addition, all humans need
to have their core needs satisfied to be at their most productive.
Needs Examples
A Belonging Family, friends, romantic partner
B Physiological Drinks, food, shelter, warmth
C Safety Security, stability
D Self- Development, creativity, the pursuit of talent
actualization
E Self-esteem Achievement, status, recognition, respect
In hierarchical order according to Maslow: B -> C -> A -> E -> D
Recent studies show that all needs matter, but the hierarchy can be ignored. The
importance also varies between people.
Two-level theory of motivation:
1) Hygiene factors.
2) Motivation factors.
Scientific management (Taylor/Ford) and psychological humanism (Maslow) study
different incentives, but both:
-Focus on the micro-level.
-Draw distinctions between management and employees.
-Aim to manipulate employee behavior.
-Implicitly believe that there is a best way of organizing.
2 – The Durkheim Human-Relations strand
The works of Durkheim – who mostly studied social processes – and the Human
Relations school – that delves deeper into individual actions and agency – are of
great importance in this strand.
, Durkheim emphasized the social system around individuals as an autonomous
and externally existing society. Social underpinnings of cognitions such as norms
values and ways of doing guide the people of such a society. There is an
emphasis on macro level.
The industrial revolution took place in four phases:
1) The pre-capitalist phase (up to 1500). People generally performed the same
labor. Solidarity was mechanical, members of a society had common values and
beliefs.
2) The pre-industrial phase (1500 - ~1800). Labor was socially divided.
Solidarity was organic, it arose out of the need of individuals for one another’s
services.
3) The industrial phase (1800 – 1960). Labor was technically divided, this meant
that work was not divided at a societal level, but on an organizational level.
4) A post-industrial phase (1960 and onwards).
Hawthorne effect: the behavior of individuals is influenced by the knowledge
that they are observed.
Human relations emphasizes informal relations, social cohesion, sentiments and
interdependencies as determinants of output. Compared to the managerial-
psychologistic strand, there is much more macro-focus. The two strands both
draw distinctions between management and employees and aim to manipulate
worker/employee behavior. The Durkheim Human-Relations strand would,
however, rather achieve the best way of organizing through social incentives
rather than economic incentives.
Anomie: the lack of the usual social or ethical standards in a group.
3 – The Interactionist-Negotiated Order Strand
This strand bridges micro and macro. Individual actions and agency are related to
social processes, cultures and structures. Organizations and their members are
restricted by the same rules they often (try to) bend.
Goffman posits that order results from ongoing interactions between actors.
Individuals and society are mutually interdependent. In this strand, psychology
and sociology is combined and negotiations are emphasized over rationality or
sentiments. Organizational order emerges from a continual process of
adjustment.
When there is a transgression of the social order, the relationship between two
actors can be re-instated according to institutional rules. Equality is assumed, but
institutional powerplay may occur. An asymmetrical power relationship can be
dormant until a transgression happens. Internally, the weaker of the two might
negotiate their identity by fighting for preservation of said identity. In modern
times: working from home has a better influence on employees if it’s an informal
arrangement with the manager.
4 – The Weber Social Action-Institutional Strand
This strand emphasizes the interplay between material and ideas – or objectivity
and subjectivity. Modernization is viewed as a continuing rationalization wherein
tradition is replaced by technology: the disenchantment of the world.
- Week 1 -
Sociology is the scientific study of social phenomena. The influence of social
contexts and resulting collective human behavior is studied. Sociology of
organizations is rather the study of the relationships which develop between
people as they organize themselves or are organized in work. How these patterns
influence and are influence by the actions and interactions of people is analyzed,
as well as how people make sense of their lives and identities.
Coleman’s diagram is commonly used as a blueprint to help you build
sociological theories. It is used to ensure that certain crucial elements are
included in a theory. Sociology studies the relation between macro-conditions
and macro-outcomes. Coleman’s diagram can be utilized to go beyond common-
sense claims, ones that simply look at the direct relation between macro-
condition and macro-outcome. The diagram also considers individual behavior
and how behavioral reactions of many may lead back to a macro-outcome.
If you systematically follow Coleman’s diagram when forming your theory, you
ensure that arguments on bridge assumptions, transformation rules and
individual level theory are made explicit. You do not try to simply explain the
macro effect on its own. A Coleman’s diagram can follow up another Coleman’s
diagram, collective effects create another social condition after all. A Coleman
Fleet may be used to make a feedback loop explicit and thus to expand on the
Coleman diagram when it fails to cover a theory fully.
People generally pursue social contact because of their own interest. A
spontaneous social order exists because of this social marketplace.
There are six strands of theory regarding sociology of organizations,
they will be explained in more detail below.
1) Managerial – psychologistic theory
2) Durkheim human-relations theory
3) Interactionist-negotiated-order teory
4) Weber social-action-institutional theory
5) Marxian labour-process theory
6) Post-modern/post structuralist theory
, 1 – The managerial-psychologistic strand
Taylorism: the science of dividing specific tasks to allow employees to complete
assignments as efficiently as possible. This, together with psychological
humanism – a philosophy that stresses the importance (and goodness of) of
human experience – form the foundation of this strand. Individual actions and
agency work together with social processes, cultures and structures.
According to Taylor, work should be decomposed to enhance efficiency. Doing
(employee-side) should be separated from thinking (employer-side) and tasks
should generally be simple. Human behavior can be explained by demand and
supply, so pay systems provide incentive. This strand is purely analyzing the
micro-level of the Coleman diagram as it views people as rational and economic.
Fordism encourages the use of specialized machinery and interchangeable
parts. Mass production was the goal. Better wages and overall wealth would in
turn lead to more customers. Engineers take the lead in rationalizing industrial
relations, with a standardization of the work process and the human element.
Human behavior is manipulated to maximize output and efficiency.
According to psychological humanism management does promote efficiency, but
the incentives and conditions need to be favorable. In addition, all humans need
to have their core needs satisfied to be at their most productive.
Needs Examples
A Belonging Family, friends, romantic partner
B Physiological Drinks, food, shelter, warmth
C Safety Security, stability
D Self- Development, creativity, the pursuit of talent
actualization
E Self-esteem Achievement, status, recognition, respect
In hierarchical order according to Maslow: B -> C -> A -> E -> D
Recent studies show that all needs matter, but the hierarchy can be ignored. The
importance also varies between people.
Two-level theory of motivation:
1) Hygiene factors.
2) Motivation factors.
Scientific management (Taylor/Ford) and psychological humanism (Maslow) study
different incentives, but both:
-Focus on the micro-level.
-Draw distinctions between management and employees.
-Aim to manipulate employee behavior.
-Implicitly believe that there is a best way of organizing.
2 – The Durkheim Human-Relations strand
The works of Durkheim – who mostly studied social processes – and the Human
Relations school – that delves deeper into individual actions and agency – are of
great importance in this strand.
, Durkheim emphasized the social system around individuals as an autonomous
and externally existing society. Social underpinnings of cognitions such as norms
values and ways of doing guide the people of such a society. There is an
emphasis on macro level.
The industrial revolution took place in four phases:
1) The pre-capitalist phase (up to 1500). People generally performed the same
labor. Solidarity was mechanical, members of a society had common values and
beliefs.
2) The pre-industrial phase (1500 - ~1800). Labor was socially divided.
Solidarity was organic, it arose out of the need of individuals for one another’s
services.
3) The industrial phase (1800 – 1960). Labor was technically divided, this meant
that work was not divided at a societal level, but on an organizational level.
4) A post-industrial phase (1960 and onwards).
Hawthorne effect: the behavior of individuals is influenced by the knowledge
that they are observed.
Human relations emphasizes informal relations, social cohesion, sentiments and
interdependencies as determinants of output. Compared to the managerial-
psychologistic strand, there is much more macro-focus. The two strands both
draw distinctions between management and employees and aim to manipulate
worker/employee behavior. The Durkheim Human-Relations strand would,
however, rather achieve the best way of organizing through social incentives
rather than economic incentives.
Anomie: the lack of the usual social or ethical standards in a group.
3 – The Interactionist-Negotiated Order Strand
This strand bridges micro and macro. Individual actions and agency are related to
social processes, cultures and structures. Organizations and their members are
restricted by the same rules they often (try to) bend.
Goffman posits that order results from ongoing interactions between actors.
Individuals and society are mutually interdependent. In this strand, psychology
and sociology is combined and negotiations are emphasized over rationality or
sentiments. Organizational order emerges from a continual process of
adjustment.
When there is a transgression of the social order, the relationship between two
actors can be re-instated according to institutional rules. Equality is assumed, but
institutional powerplay may occur. An asymmetrical power relationship can be
dormant until a transgression happens. Internally, the weaker of the two might
negotiate their identity by fighting for preservation of said identity. In modern
times: working from home has a better influence on employees if it’s an informal
arrangement with the manager.
4 – The Weber Social Action-Institutional Strand
This strand emphasizes the interplay between material and ideas – or objectivity
and subjectivity. Modernization is viewed as a continuing rationalization wherein
tradition is replaced by technology: the disenchantment of the world.
