Power and Rules (The Dynamics of Organizational Action)

Author: (French) E. Friedberg, translated by Zhang Yue et al.
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-10-01
Features: This book starts directly from the widest and most general attributes of organizational phenomena, viewing them as a process of constructing and reconstructing the field of action—where collective action occurs—based on their dynamic nature. This approach aims to grasp and analyze organizations, which is the new synthesis the book seeks to achieve. It is one of the classic works of the distinguished French organizational sociologist Ehrengard Friedberg. The book explores the relationship between power and rules, studying and revealing the nature, characteristics, structure, functions, and operational mechanisms of organizations at the action level. The author transcends the dualism in related research that treats organizations and collective action as opposites, arguing that organizations are fundamentally dynamic and are processes of constructing and reconstructing the field of action. By generalizing organizations and viewing them as one of the fields of action, the author reveals the inherent uncertainty in the essence of construction and order within organizations. Through the surface order of action, he explores the power processes, negotiation processes, and gradual structuration processes that occur within them. In the book, the author introduces the concept of "local order," arguing that it is always a product of the partial, regional, and contingent aspects of social structure, while social structure itself is both a product of order and its recreation. The explanation of social structure can be found in the analysis and revelation of specific organizational processes within different fields of action.