Essay Week 1
Essay week 1
Clegg et al state in their book Managing and organization:
“ Being rational means systematic application of various techniques to achieve some given end or goal. “
They also say: “ Rationality is action that is produced according to some rule; action that is not random or unpatterned.” (Clegg , 2011, p. 52)
This means that rationality is action which is done for a specific goal and done according to some rules or patterns. So rationality is twofold: on the one hand it has to do with the individual’s need for something and thus his or her way of getting that which he or she needs. At the same time it has to do with the way in which the individual reaches those needs. The action taken to reach the needs, goals, should be according to specific guidelines, thus rules. Those rules are culturally and historically defined. These rules state the actions that are allowed for the individual to take in order to reach his or her goal, but also state the actions that are “not-done”. For example driving a car can be rational and not rational depending on the way one drives the car. On a certain highway the speed limit is 100km/h. If someone drives faster than 100 km/h then he or she will get a speeding ticket. If one drives 100 km/h then the driving is rational because it is according to the rules and one drives with the goal of not getting a speeding ticket. If one decides to drive 120km/h it is not rational anymore because the driving is not done according to the rules even though one can have a goal of getting to the destination faster.
This definition of rationality is not to be confused with the rational choice theory.
"Rational choice theory uses a specific and narrower definition of "rationality" simply to mean that an individual acts as if balancing costs against benefits to arrive at action that maximizes personal advantage.” (“Rational choice theory,” 2014)
This means that according to the rational choice theory an action is rational if it is
Clegg et al state in their book Managing and organization:
“ Being rational means systematic application of various techniques to achieve some given end or goal. “
They also say: “ Rationality is action that is produced according to some rule; action that is not random or unpatterned.” (Clegg , 2011, p. 52)
This means that rationality is action which is done for a specific goal and done according to some rules or patterns. So rationality is twofold: on the one hand it has to do with the individual’s need for something and thus his or her way of getting that which he or she needs. At the same time it has to do with the way in which the individual reaches those needs. The action taken to reach the needs, goals, should be according to specific guidelines, thus rules. Those rules are culturally and historically defined. These rules state the actions that are allowed for the individual to take in order to reach his or her goal, but also state the actions that are “not-done”. For example driving a car can be rational and not rational depending on the way one drives the car. On a certain highway the speed limit is 100km/h. If someone drives faster than 100 km/h then he or she will get a speeding ticket. If one drives 100 km/h then the driving is rational because it is according to the rules and one drives with the goal of not getting a speeding ticket. If one decides to drive 120km/h it is not rational anymore because the driving is not done according to the rules even though one can have a goal of getting to the destination faster.
This definition of rationality is not to be confused with the rational choice theory.
"Rational choice theory uses a specific and narrower definition of "rationality" simply to mean that an individual acts as if balancing costs against benefits to arrive at action that maximizes personal advantage.” (“Rational choice theory,” 2014)
This means that according to the rational choice theory an action is rational if it is