Organizational theory

Organizational theory Name Course Instructor Date There are diverse organizational theories that focus on organizations and organizational structures. The evolution of organization theory has changed through various paradigms, with studies focusing on specialized concerns (Scott & Davis, 2007). In many cases, the dominant paradigms represented the dominant trends of the leading corporations (Davis & Marquis, 2005). However, the paradigm approach has not always been able to explain new emerging trends, and hence problem-driven approaches are more prominent. Equally, globalization has affected the way organizations conduct there businesses necessitating the need to integrate new theoretical approaches in line with changes in the society. This essay focuses on how organizational theory evolved between 1993 and 2005. One of the changes in organizational theory has been because of paradigm development. This relates to technological uncertainties brought forth by increasing knowledge and focus on scientific fields or specialties (Pfeffer, 1993). There are various consequences to different fields because of technological uncertainty, and this has affected the way various fields develop (Pfeffer, 1993). Besides technical creativity affecting the nature of various fields of study, social practice also have a direct impact on the study of different fields of study. There are challenges to organizational studies as there is limited paradigm development, and consensus which limit knowledge advancement. In the 1990’s paradigm-driven work on organizational studies was still a common theme among scholars. Nonetheless, there was a competing school of thought which pointed out that knowledge was socially constructed and there was need for more diverse approach rather than less as advocated by Pfeffer (Cannell & Paetzold, 1994). Supporters of this viewed that there would be little advancement in organizational theory, as paradigm development emphasizes on a high degree of consensus. Where there is too much emphasis on consensus, scholars would more likely focus on a single or few paradigms. However, the paradigm driven work was not to be ignored, as this made it easier to set criteria for which to judge and analyze different fields including organizational studies. In order to propose theories there is a need to point out that hypotheses are not theories. Hypotheses are simply propositions and concepts that link theories and data, focusing on how variables are related (Sutton & Staw, 1995). Even in organization studies, there has been recognition that hypotheses cannot replace logical explanations. In order to improve research on organizational theory, there has been insistence that focusing on specific ideas is better suited to improve theories that highlighting on too much empirical tests and hypotheses (Sutton & Staw, 1995). Thus, when proposing organizational theories, researchers need to focus on few conceptual statements which can easily be connected to each other, allowing researchers to logically connect ideas as to why there is a phenomenon being studied. Organization theory has increasingly shifted towards problem- driven aspects since the 1980’s, as opposed to the older approach which was paradigm driven. Various theories have been proposed over time, but the shift towards problem-driven work has focused less on hypotheses. This approach highlights on question events in the world rather than begin by focusing on hypotheses (Davis & Marquis, 2005). One of the challenges in the discipline of organization studies is that there is no central paradigm (Pfeffer, 1993). According to Davis & Marquis (2005), organizations have evolved and mechanisms based theorizing approaches have been effective in linking organizational theories to social change processes. Essentially, organization theory has evolved between 1993 and 2005 to incorporate...