American Anti-Management Theories of Organization: A Critique of Paradigm Proliferation (Cambridge Studies in Management Series Number 25)

About this book

This controversial book strongly criticizes recent developments in the study of organizational structure in the United States. It concentrates on five theories that are fashionable: population-ecology institutional resource dependence agency and transaction costs economics. Each is shown to be flawed either in its logic or by studies of actual organizations. These sharply different theories have fragmented the field and present a negative view of managers. Lex Donaldson argues for an integrated theory built around structural contingency theory that places managers in a more positive light.