College of Professional Studies
Department of Professional
& Community Leadership
MODERN ORGANIZATION THEORY
PAD 5107: Online Course
Wm. M. Haraway, III Ph.D.
wharaway@uwf.edu
Building 77, Room 121C
(850) 473-7243 Office
(850) 995-8419 Home Office
Campus Office Hours:
Tuesday: 2-5 p.m.
Wednesday: 2-5 p.m.
Or by appointment
Course Overview
Organization theory attempts to balance psychology=s emphasis on individual
development with explanations of human behavior rooted in the structure and culture of
organizations. Most people spend much of their lives in organizational contexts. They often
complain about the quality of life in these settings. Currently there are a variety of efforts to
reform and restructure organizationsBpublic and private. However, in order to improve
organizations, we first need to understand what they are, how they got to be that way and
influence those who work in and are served by them. These are the focal concerns of this course.
Emphasis will be placed on the uniqueness of public organizations and the significance of
praxisBrelating theory to practice.
Toward that goal, the course is designed as a graduate seminar requiring participants to
demonstrate initiative and perform independent study. Discussions of readings will be based on
the experiences, knowledge, skills, and abilities of participants, in addition to those of the
professor. This will require that all assignments (readings, presentations, and papers) be
completed in a timely manner.
Student Learning Outcomes
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To describe the elements of organizational structure and culture.
To identify traditional and contemporary theories explaining organizational structure and
behavior.
To understand ways in which organizational structure and culture influence the behavior
of members of the organization.
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To demonstrate fluency in the use of organizational terms, frames, and concepts.
To describe methods used to study organizations.
To identify emerging models and issues for organizations.
Required Readings
Scott, W. Richard and Gerald F. Davis. Organizations and Organizing, Rational Natural, and
Open System Perspectives. New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 2007. (Assignments Re:
Scott)
Gortner, Harold F., Kenneth L. Nichols, and Carolyn Ball. Organization Theory,
A Public and Nonprofit Perspective, 3ed. CA: Wadsworth, 2007. (Assignments
Re:
GMN)
Cohen, Steven and William Eimicke. Tools for Innovators, Creative Strategies for Managing
Public Sector Organizations. California: Jossey-Bass, 1998. (Assignments Re: C
& E)
Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association. 5ed. Washington DC:
American Psychological Association, 2001. (APA on syllabus).
Course Requirements and Grading
Midterm Examination-35%
Applied Research Paper-40%
Online Participation/Drop box Assignments-20%
Diagnostic Essay-5%
Expectations for Academic Conduct
As members of the University of West Florida academic community, we commit
ourselves to honesty. As we strive for excellence in performance, integrity (both personal and
institutional) is our most precious asset. Honesty in our academic work is vital, and we will not
knowingly act in ways that erode that integrity. Accordingly, we pledge not to cheat, nor to
tolerate cheating, nor to plagiarize the work of others. We pledge to share community resources
in ways that are responsible and that comply with established policies of fairness. Cooperation
and competition are means to high achievement and are encouraged. Indeed, cooperation is
expected unless our directive is to individual performance. We will compete constructively and
professionally for the purpose of stimulating high performance and standards. Finally, we accept
adherence to this set of expectations for academic conduct as a condition of membership in the
UWF academic community.
Standards for Written Assignments
Students are expected to read, understand, and comply with the requirements of the Fifth
Edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA) for all
assignments and manuscripts. This includes the AEthical Standards for the Reporting and
Publishing of Scientific Information@ included therein. All work submitted online and/or in
writing for this course must be the student's own and may not have been used whole and/or in
part for any other purpose without the professor's prior written permission (if in doubt you must
ask the professor).
Assistance
Students with special needs who require specific examination-related or other courserelated accommodations should contact the Director of Disabled Student Services (DSS),
dss@uwf.edu , (850) 474-2387. DSS will provide the student with a letter for the instructor that
will specify any recommended accommodations.
Class Schedule & Assignments
Week 1:
Building an Online Community (Online Learner Orientation)
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Week 2:
Review and complete the Online Orientation, student D2L training, and
complete your student biography in the D2L “Classlist” link.
Participate in the group threaded discussion under the “Discussion” link.
Review the Syllabus, Research Paper Guidelines and Requirements,
Motivation Humor, instructor’s vita, and the several related articles in the
“Important Course Information” link. You will also find a printable
course schedule of assignments so that you can work ahead when possible.
Organization Theory and Practice - An Overview
Scott, Chapter 1 - The Subject is Organizations.
Recommended Reading: ASocrates Discovers Generic
Management@ (Classics of Organization Theory, Shafritz, Jay M. and
Ott, J. Steven, Harcourt Brace, CA: 1996).
Recommended Reading: APublic Administration and the Public Interest"
(Classics of Organization Theory, Safritz, Jay M. and Ott, J. Steven,
Wadsworth, CA: 1992).
Threaded Discussion
Week 3:
The Public Administration Context
GMN, Chapters 1-2 - What are Organizations and How are
Bureaus Different?
GMN, Chapter 3 - Law and Legal Authority; Efficiency
and Rationality; Psychology and Social Relations; and Politics and
Power.
Threaded Discussion
Week 4:
Rational, Natural, and Open Systems Perspective
Scott, Chapters 2-5 - Three Perspectives on Organizations.
Recommended Reading: Scott, Chapters 6-8 (pp.123-229) -Organization
Environments, Creating Organizations, and Boundary Setting/Spanning.
Threaded Discussion
Week 5:
Structural Complexity and Organizational Design
GMN, Chapter 4 - Organization Structure & Design.
Recommended Reading: The Structure of Organizations,
1979 (Mintzberg, Henry, Prentice Hall, NJ: 18-34).
Threaded Discussion
Week 6:
Sources of Structural Complexity: Technical Core & Peripheral
Components
Scott, Chapter 9 - The Technical Components.
Scott, Chapter 10 - The Peripheral Components.
Threaded Discussion
Drop Box Assignment: Personal Theory Style Diagnostic Essay
Electronically Due
Week 7:
Structural Influences on Dynamic Processes: Communication
GMN, Chapter 5 - Formal and Informal
Communication (Interpersonal Communication and Communication
Networks).
Recommended Reading: "Internal Communication: Mistakes
Only Really Smart People Make," (Organizational Behavior, An
Experiential Approach, 2001, Prentice Hall, CA: 146-149).
Threaded Discussion
Submit a 1-page paper to the drop box that updates the instructor
about your applied research paper project for the course. Remember
that your topic must be approved by the instructor in advance before
your begin your research (See Guidelines for the Applied Research
Paper in the Important Course Information Link)
Week 8:
Midterm Examination Week
Complete and electonically submit your midterm examination in the
dropbox.
Week 9:
Control Systems in Public Organizations
GMN, Chapter 6 - Bureaucratic Control of
Organizations.
Scott, Chapter 11 - Goals, Power, and Control.
Recommended Reading: Trust in Organizations, Frontiers of
Theory and Research (Kramer, Roderick M. and Tyler, Tom R.,
Sage, CA: 16-38).
Threaded Discussion
Week 10:
Organizational Decision Making
GMN, Chapter 7 - Decision Making in Public
Organizations.
Recommended Reading: "The Proverbs of Administration,"
Simon, Herbert A. Public Administration Review (Winter 1946): 6,
53-67.
Threaded Discussion
Week 11:
Theories of Work Motivation
GMN, Chapter 8 - Work Motivation in the Bureau
Setting (Content, Cognitive Process, and Behaviorist Theories of
Work Motivation).
C & E, Chapter 1 - Understanding and Applying
Innovation Strategies in the Public Sector.
Recommended Reading: "The Giving of Orders," Follett, Mary
Parker (In Scientific Foundations of Business Administration, 1926,
Williams & Wilkins; reprinted in Classics of Organization
Theory, 1996, pp. 156-162).
Recommended Reading: "A Theory of Human Motivation,"
Maslow, Abraham H., Psychological Review 50 (1943): 370-396.
Threaded Discussion
Week 12:
Applications of Theory to Practice: Leadership and Management
GMN, Chapter 9 - Leadership & Management in
Public Organizations.
Scott, Chapter 13 - Organizational Effectiveness.
C & E, Chapter 2 - Strategic Planning.
Recommended Reading: "Leadership in an Organized Anarchy,"
Cohen, Michael D. and James G. March. Classics of Organization
Theory, pp. 385-399).
Threaded Discussion
Week 13:
Organization Change and Development (OD)
GMN, Chapter 10 - Public Sector Organization
Change and Development.
C & E, Chapters 3-4 - Reengineering & Total Quality
Management (TQM).
Recommended Reading: "Rewriting Government's DNA," Osborne,
David and Peter Plastrik. The New Democrat vol. 9, no.
2 March/April 1997, pp. 8-12.
Recommended Reading: "Reinvent Government or Rediscover It?"
Goodsell, Charles T. Public Administration Review 53 no. 1,
January/February 1993: 85-87.
Threaded Discussion
Week 14:
Diagnosing Organizational Problems and Identifying Organizational
Pathologies
C & E, Chapter 5 - Benchmarking and Performance
Management.
Scott, Chapter 12 - Organizational Pathologies.
Threaded Discussion
Week 15:
Part I:Emerging Models and Issues for Public Organizations
C & E, Chapter 6 - Team Management.
Recommended Reading: "Institutionalized Organizations:
Formal Structure as Myth and Ceremony," John W. Meyer and Brian
Rowan. (In The New Institutionalism in Oranizational Anaylsis,
Powell, Walter W. and Paul J. DiMaggio, eds., 1991: 41-62).
Recommended Reading: The Wisdom of Teams, Creating the HighPerformance Organization, 1993, Katzenbach, J. R. and D.K.
Smith. MA: Harvard Business School Press, 9-84).
ThreadedDiscussion
PartII:Praxis - Summary & Conclusions
C & E, Chapter 7 - Privatizing and Contracting Out Public Goods and
Services.
Recommended Reading: "Rediscovering Process Values in
Employee Grievance Procedures," Haraway, III, W. M. Administration
& Society 34(5), November 2002, 499-521.
Complete the Online Student Evaluation of Course/Instructor
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Drop box Assignment: Course Research Papers Due
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RESEARCH PAPER GUIDELINES
The major intellectual project of the course that students are expected to complete is the
formal research paper. The paper must be written in APA format and style. To that end,
students are expected to read, understand, and comply with the requirements of the Fifth Edition
of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA) for all assignments
and manuscripts. This includes the "Ethical Standards for the Reporting and Publishing of
Scientific Information" included therein. All work submitted online and/or in writing for this
course must be the student's own and may not have been used whole and/or in part for any other
purpose without the professor's prior written permission (if in doubt you must ask the instructor).
Students should select a paper topic consistent with their personal interests and
intellectual curiosity that can be well managed within semester time parameters, based upon
academic and other workloads. Thus, it is important to keep the focus of the research paper
narrow by defining an "angle on or dimension of" public organizations. The instructor is
available to assist in this effort. Please note that your paper topic must be approved in advance
by the instructor.
It is expected that the formal paper will be carefully researched and well-written. Toward
that goal, the paper must use correct grammar, spelling, and punctuation. The completed paper
shall be a minimum of 20 pages in length and not exceed 25 pages (excluding cover, endnotes,
appendices, and references/bibliography). The research paper must be submitted no later than
the last day of semester classes. Students are encouraged to complete and submit papers earlier
if practicable. Late papers will be substantially discounted in grade, unless the delay is caused
by a documented illness and/or personal emergency.
A. Research papers will be graded based upon the following criteria:
1. Grammar, spelling, and punctuation (proofread and spell check).
2. Knowledge and understanding of the assigned readings and classroom
discussions.
3. The ability to integrate knowledge from different sources (texts, library
research, class discussions, and real life situations).
4. Analysis of materials to reach conclusions and support them in an
organized, coherent manner.
5. Compliance with minimum/maximum length and submission requirements.
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Outline for Personal Organization Perspective Diagnostic Essay
I. The organization perspective (Rational, Natural, or Open Systems Perspective) that I find
myself most attracted to as a basis for analysis is ....
A. The essence of this perspective as I understand it is..........
B. The events in my background, as aspects of my Apersonality or identity@ and other
factors that lead me to be predisposed toward this are.........
II. The organization perspective that I find myself least attracted to is ....
A. The essence of this perspective as I understand it is........
B. The events in my background, as aspects of my Apersonality or identity,@ or
other factors that I feel lead me to be predisposed toward this perspective
are..........
III. What would be the most characteristic errors in organizational analysis and action that a
person holding my organization theory preference would make?
A. What would such a person tend to project into or onto organizational
situations?
B. What would such a person tend not to see in organizational situations?
C. An example of a frequently occurring situation and the mistaken action that such a
person would take is.......