Discussion Note: Using Metaphors to Understand and to Change Organizations: A Critique of Gareth Morgan's Approach

Willy McCourt

doi:10.1177/017084069701800307

Discussion Note: Using Metaphors to Understand and to Change Organizations: A Critique of Gareth Morgan's Approach

Organization Studies ◽

10.1177/017084069701800307 ◽

1997 ◽

Vol 18 (3) ◽

pp. 511-522 ◽

Cited By ~ 40

Author(s):

Willy McCourt

Keyword(s):

Organizational Change ◽

Cognitive Change ◽

Making Sense ◽

Discussion Note ◽

Metaphoric Thinking

A critique of Gareth Morgan's approach to metaphor is used as the vehicle for an assessment of the value of metaphoric thinking to understanding and acting in organizations. Metaphor is shown to be an epistemologically valid approach to making sense of organizations, although not at the expense of traditional literal language approaches. Metaphoric thinking is located within the OD model of organizational change, where it functions as a valuable aid to cognitive change, while sharing some of the limitations of OD itself. Some issues for further research are outlined.

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Sensemaking and identity management amidst major organizational change

10.32469/10355/88107 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

◽

Madeline Pringle

Keyword(s):

Organizational Change ◽

Graduate Students ◽

Online Education ◽

Student Teaching ◽

Identity Management ◽

Theoretical Work ◽

Organizational Leaders ◽

Structured Interviews ◽

Making Sense ◽

Management Processes

Organizational change is inevitable and its impacts will affect all members, albeit to different degrees. These changes also bring about uncertainty, especially as it pertains to one's organization-based identities. However, when studying change and identity, organizational communication scholars have often missed studying the interplay of one's many organization-based identities and how these are made sense of and managed amidst major organizational change. This thesis employs a phronetic-iterative methodology to analyze 16 semi-structured interviews with U.S. graduate students to understand how they have made sense of and managed their organization-based (i.e., graduate student, teaching assistant/instructor, department, university) identities after the COVID-19-induced transition to fully online education in Spring 2020. Analysis of this data suggested that participants used two types of ideal self discursive resources to make sense of and manage these identities, while also experiencing their sensemaking and identity management processes in two distinct stages. Additionally, participants revealed the importance of organizational places as it pertained to making sense of this change and its impacts. With these findings, this thesis extends theoretical work surrounding sensemaking, identity, and place, especially as it pertains to organizational change and providespractical recommendations for organizational leaders in academia to assist some of their highly impacted and identity-precarious populations--graduate students.

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