Rethinking the Knowledge Controversy in Organization Studies
A Generative Uncertainty Perspective
Walter R Nord author Ann F Connell author
Format:Hardback
Publisher:Taylor & Francis Ltd
Published:14th Mar '11
Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back
Recently the field of organization studies has been plagued by intense, disruptive controversy about what counts as knowledge. This book, written by the major researchers and voices in the field of organization studies, attempts to respond to this controversy by offering the topic of "generative uncertainty" as the primary vehicle for rethinking about this issue. The authors prefer admitting uncertainty to making unwarranted assumptions. The ideas about questioning the possibility of knowledge that is certain goes back to before the time of Socrates. This unique, historical look at the study of organization studies will be of interest to all students and scholars of this field.
"Nord and Connell’s book is a timely contribution. They remind us of questions that have been debated for at least two millennia: how do we know that we know? What counts as knowledge? And they proceed to discuss them with impressive breadth and frank reflexivity in what may be their most important work to date: part an encyclopedic review, part an intellectual memoir, part a philosophical manifesto." - Sheen S. Levine, Columbia University, USA, in Administrative Science Quarterly
"I am so proud of the authors for having written such a tome. It will be required reading for so many students. I believe it's the most important book published on the matter of organization studies since March and Simons (1958) volume."- Craig Pinder, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada
"Anyone teaching in the area of organization studies will find it a useful summary and statement about the history and current state of the debate, even if they disagree with the authors' conclusions. If you are looking for a good primer and argument about the history and background of the meta-assumptions involved in organizational studies, this book is well worth reading."- Mayer N. Zald, Department of Sociology, University of Michigan, USA
"What is new and unique is the thorough and detailed historical review of philosophy of science issues as they relate to organization studies." - John Luhman, East New Mexico State University, USA
"This book contributes to recent debates about the nature of knowledge by providing a careful and serious survey of the history of Western skepticism. With a focus on organization studies, the authors explain how "constructive uncertainty" can make discussions more productive by helping scholars to avoid polarized positions."- William H. Starbuck, University of Oregon and New York University, USA
"This book will attract attention; it will be debated and discussed and reviewers will find it controversial for different reasons. Instructors will find it a very useful guide for students for whom these debates sometimes seem very abstract and unclear. It is written in a very clear and accessible style so undergraduates will be able to grasp it easily."- Stewart Clegg, Research Director CMOS, Faculty of Business, University of Technology, Sydney
ISBN: 9780415875127
Dimensions: unknown
Weight: 498g
278 pages