Health Services Management Research: Does it Matter?

At the risk of challenging the intellectual currents of health services management research, it may at times be better to use no theory than to use poorly developed or misapplied theory. The point here is that theory is central to explaining organizational phenomena, but it is important to apply the...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Health care management review 2000, Vol.25 (4), p.88-92
Main Author: Fried, Bruce J.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aerospace industry
Consolidation
Evolution
Health Care Sector - trends
Health services
Health Services Administration - trends
Health Services Research
Organization theory
Strategic management
THE FORUM
United States
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Summary:At the risk of challenging the intellectual currents of health services management research, it may at times be better to use no theory than to use poorly developed or misapplied theory. The point here is that theory is central to explaining organizational phenomena, but it is important to apply theory correctly and judiciously, and to recognize when a particular theory does not fit or has unacceptably poor explanatory power. In these circumstances, theory can be stifling rather than enlightening. Health industry leaders face a paradox and challenge in health services management research that is not particularly salient for "pure" sociologists and organizational theorists unencumbered by pressures for relevance to a particular sector. At the risk of oversimplifying, organizational theory and behavior "purists" take their theory and go shopping for an applied context. Health services management researchers tend to do the opposite.
ISSN:0361-6274
1550-5030
DOI:10.1097/00004010-200010000-00010