Power and the Limits of Power in Organisational Theory
Introduction
Power and the limits of power in organisations can be understood in many different ways due to different perspective in organisation theory .This essay will be talking about two theoretical perspectives of organisation theory, modernism and critical theory and how these perspectives contribute to the different ideas about power and the limits of power in organisations. To begin, this essay will start by differentiating the basic perspective of modernism and critical theory in organisations.
In ontology, assumption for modernist takes an objectivist point of view, they believe that “reality exists independently of those who live in it”. The modernist believes that there is something out there regardless of whether you know it exists. Example, there may be another planet which exists and has not been discovered, the objectivist point of view would regard that the planet exists. Similarly, the theoretical perspective of critical theory in ontology is the same as they also take an objectivist point of view (Bryman & Bell 2003).
Positivist epistemology is assumed in modernism, where truth can be discovered through conceptualisation and measurements of behaviour. Thus, modernist believes that scientific methods such as experiments and surveys to generate quantitative information. Using a hypothesis that employees can only remain productive for 10hrs in a day, experiments and surveys may be conducted to test the productivity of employees and the reliability of the hypothesis.The statistical data obtained can then be used to explain the optimal hours an employee should work. Therefore, the goal of modernism would be to discover the truths by testing on possible hypothesis, after it has been prove useful, the hypothesis generated would have practical use.
Critical theory in epistemology believes that the knowledge is tainted by an ideology. The knowledge that we knowcannot be assume for what it is. For example, company employees were made to believe
Power and the limits of power in organisations can be understood in many different ways due to different perspective in organisation theory .This essay will be talking about two theoretical perspectives of organisation theory, modernism and critical theory and how these perspectives contribute to the different ideas about power and the limits of power in organisations. To begin, this essay will start by differentiating the basic perspective of modernism and critical theory in organisations.
In ontology, assumption for modernist takes an objectivist point of view, they believe that “reality exists independently of those who live in it”. The modernist believes that there is something out there regardless of whether you know it exists. Example, there may be another planet which exists and has not been discovered, the objectivist point of view would regard that the planet exists. Similarly, the theoretical perspective of critical theory in ontology is the same as they also take an objectivist point of view (Bryman & Bell 2003).
Positivist epistemology is assumed in modernism, where truth can be discovered through conceptualisation and measurements of behaviour. Thus, modernist believes that scientific methods such as experiments and surveys to generate quantitative information. Using a hypothesis that employees can only remain productive for 10hrs in a day, experiments and surveys may be conducted to test the productivity of employees and the reliability of the hypothesis.The statistical data obtained can then be used to explain the optimal hours an employee should work. Therefore, the goal of modernism would be to discover the truths by testing on possible hypothesis, after it has been prove useful, the hypothesis generated would have practical use.
Critical theory in epistemology believes that the knowledge is tainted by an ideology. The knowledge that we knowcannot be assume for what it is. For example, company employees were made to believe