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6 Page Summary On Philip Selznick.edited

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Running Head: SELZINICK’S FOUNDATION OF ORGANIZATIONAL THEORY 1
Selznick’s Foundation of Organizational Theory
Institutional Affiliation
Date

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SELZINICK’S FOUNDATION OF ORGANIZATIONAL THEORY 2
Introduction
Philip Selznick’s 1948 article Foundation of the Theory of Organization introduced a few
concepts to improve an organization’s approach to attain their desired goals. By classifying
an organization as a cooperative unit, understanding the organization’s adaptive social system,
minimizing the conflict between someone’s personal goals and achieving the organizational goals,
and resolving disputes are a few techniques Selznick addressed to help secure the success of an
organization (Őnday, 2016). It is therefore quite evident that Philip Selznick is one of the
significant contributors and proponents of neoclassical organizational movement which started in
the 1930s and his 1948 article on the foundations of organizational theory laid out one of the most
influential contributions in organizational theory. Philip Selznick postulated that individuals in
organizations could hold what he termed as dichotomous role sets. Such role sets militate against
organizations having the same rational vision and objectives as the individuals. To counteract the
problem of divergent goals and objectives, he introduces the issue of cooptation theory, whereby
organizations tend to accommodate the whims of individuals for the sake of continuity and
stability. These strategies are valuable viewpoints to share with the people who work for the
organization; however, they will not be enough to lead an organization to “the maintenance of its
integrity and continuity.”
Summary
Selznick defines an organization as "an arrangement of personnel facilitating the
accomplishment of an agreed purpose through the delegation of functions and responsibilities."
Furthermore, organizations are known as both an economy, and at the same time, an adaptive
social structure” At the level of the economy, an organization is subject to manipulative tendencies
by the powers that be to ensure it achieves its set goals and responsibilities. Again, at the level of

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Running Head: SELZINICK’S FOUNDATION OF ORGANIZATIONAL THEORY Selznick’s Foundation of Organizational Theory Institutional Affiliation Date 1 SELZINICK’S FOUNDATION OF ORGANIZATIONAL THEORY 2 Introduction Philip Selznick’s 1948 article Foundation of the Theory of Organization introduced a few concepts to improve an organization’s approach to attain their desired goals. By classifying an organization as a cooperative unit, understanding the organization’s adaptive social system, minimizing the conflict between someone’s personal goals and achieving the organizational goals, and resolving disputes are a few techniques Selznick addressed to help secure the success of an organization (Őnday, 2016). It is therefore quite evident that Philip Selznick is one of the significant contributors and proponents of neoclassical organizational movement which started in the 1930s and his 1948 article on the foundations of organizational theory laid out one of the most influential contributions in organizational theory. Philip Selznick postulated that individuals in organizations could hold what he termed as dichotomous role sets. Such role sets militate against organizations having the same rational vision and objectives as the individuals. To counteract the problem of divergent goals and objectives, he introduces the issue of cooptation theory, whereby organizations tend to accommodate the whims of individuals for the sake of continuity and stability. These strategies ar ...
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