Perspective--Finding the Organization in Organizational Theory: A Meta-Theory of the Organization as a Social Actor

• Published in: Organization science (Providence, R.I.) R.I.), 2010-02, Vol.21 (1), p.290-305
• Main Authors: King, Brayden G, Felin, Teppo, Whetten, David A
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: goals; organization theory; organizational identity; responsibility; social actors; sovereignty
• ISSN: 1047-7039; 1526-5455
• DOI: 10.1287/orsc.1090.0443

Organization theory is a theory without a protagonist. Organizations are typically portrayed in organizational scholarship as aggregations of individuals, as instantiations of the environment, as nodes in a social network, as members of a population, or as a bundle of organizing processes. This paper hopes to highlight the need for understanding, explicating, and researching the enduring, noun-like qualities of the organization. We situate the organization in a broader social landscape by examining what is unique about the organization as a social actor. We propose two assumptions that underlie our conceptualization of organizations as social actors: external attribution and intentionality. We then highlight important questions and implications forming the core of a distinctively organizational analytical perspective.