What are the costs and consequences of living in a society that has undergone an 'organizational revolution'? To what extent is social life in the 21st century dominated by the rational control that is characteristic of bureaucratic organizations large and small? Organizations and Society addresses these broader human questions with a critical perspective, while at the same time explaining the main concepts and theories in the field. Students of all interests'those who wish to run organizations someday, study them, or simply understand their importance in the contemporary social order'will benefit from the insights and cogent arguments of this text for undergraduate classrooms.
PART I: Our Society of Organizations
Chapter 1: Introduction: A Society of Formal Organizations Chapter 2: The Subject Is Organizations. The Issue Is Power Chapter 3: Organizations and Inequality
PART II: Forging the Society of Organizations
Chapter 4: The Rise of Bureaucracy and the Question of Efficiency Chapter 5: The Rise of Bureaucracy and the Question of Power Chapter 6: Are We Beyond Bureaucracy?
Part III: Analyzing Organizations
Chapter 7: The Machine Organization Chapter 8: The Human Organization Chapter 9: The Open Organization Chapter 10: The Limits of Rationality Chapter 11: Rationality and Rationalization as Variables Chapter 12: Final Reflections: Living With Organizations