Dados is one of the most widely-read social sciences journals in Latin America. Created in 1966, it publishes innovative works, originating from academic research, by Brazilian and foreign authors. Edited by IESP-UERJ, it aims to reconcile scientific rigor and academic excellence with an emphasis on public debate based on the analysis of substantive issues of society and politics.
Dados n. 12 Rio de Janeiro 1976
Abstract
This article seeks to delineate the basic theoretical trends for the study of complex organizations as well as some possible strategies of analysis associated with those perspectives. The organizational literature may be grouped in three major trends: a) the classical perspective, within wich the Weberian approach plays a major role due to its centrality in terms of producing substantive hiypotheses and lines of investigation; b) the behavioral perspective, which encompasses from studies of a structural nature to studies of processes; and e) the systems approach, which focuses more directly on the structural characteristics of organizations and their dynamic relations with the environment. The guidelines for grouping the literature under these three labels are as follows: 1. to detect a process where the organization is initially treated as a closed system turned inwards, till its consideration as an open system in relation to the environment; 2. to reflect some of the development of the intellectual production in the area, which starts with a concern with structures, going through a consideration of processes to finally arrive at an integration of both trends. Some basic strategies of analysis are clearly associated with those major trends detected in the literature, specially in terms of the movement structure/individual/both. The three main strategies may be thought of in terms of Lazarsfeld and Menzel's discussion of the properties of colectivities, namely: an analysis of the actors' roles, the cluster of social relations within the organization, and the characteristics that distinguish the organization as a whole. Finally, the article discusses the main attempts to classify variables and concepts, presenting a typology which 1s intended as a practical guide for the empirical study of complex organizations.
Perspectivas Teóricas no Estudo de Organizações
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