The Structuring of Organizations

The Structuring of Organizations
Author: Henry Mintzberg
Publisher:
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2009
Genre:
ISBN:

Synthesizes the empirical literature on organizationalstructuring to answer the question of how organizations structure themselves --how they resolve needed coordination and division of labor. Organizationalstructuring is defined as the sum total of the ways in which an organizationdivides and coordinates its labor into distinct tasks. Further analysis of theresearch literature is neededin order to builda conceptualframework that will fill in the significant gap left by not connecting adescription of structure to its context: how an organization actuallyfunctions. The results of the synthesis are five basic configurations (the SimpleStructure, the Machine Bureaucracy, the Professional Bureaucracy, theDivisionalized Form, and the Adhocracy) that serve as the fundamental elementsof structure in an organization. Five basic parts of the contemporaryorganization (the operating core, the strategic apex, the middle line, thetechnostructure, and the support staff), and five theories of how it functions(i.e., as a system characterized by formal authority, regulated flows, informalcommunication, work constellations, and ad hoc decision processes) aretheorized. Organizations function in complex and varying ways, due to differing flows -including flows of authority, work material, information, and decisionprocesses. These flows depend on the age, size, and environment of theorganization; additionally, technology plays a key role because of itsimportance in structuring the operating core. Finally, design parameters aredescribed - based on the above five basic parts and five theories - that areused as a means of coordination and division of labor in designingorganizational structures, in order to establish stable patterns of behavior.(CJC).

Learning to be

Learning to be
Author: Edgar Faure
Publisher: UNESCO
Total Pages: 348
Release: 1972-01-01
Genre:
ISBN: 9231042467

Strengthening Forensic Science in the United States

Strengthening Forensic Science in the United States
Author: National Research Council
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 348
Release: 2009-07-29
Genre: Law
ISBN: 0309142393

Scores of talented and dedicated people serve the forensic science community, performing vitally important work. However, they are often constrained by lack of adequate resources, sound policies, and national support. It is clear that change and advancements, both systematic and scientific, are needed in a number of forensic science disciplines to ensure the reliability of work, establish enforceable standards, and promote best practices with consistent application. Strengthening Forensic Science in the United States: A Path Forward provides a detailed plan for addressing these needs and suggests the creation of a new government entity, the National Institute of Forensic Science, to establish and enforce standards within the forensic science community. The benefits of improving and regulating the forensic science disciplines are clear: assisting law enforcement officials, enhancing homeland security, and reducing the risk of wrongful conviction and exoneration. Strengthening Forensic Science in the United States gives a full account of what is needed to advance the forensic science disciplines, including upgrading of systems and organizational structures, better training, widespread adoption of uniform and enforceable best practices, and mandatory certification and accreditation programs. While this book provides an essential call-to-action for congress and policy makers, it also serves as a vital tool for law enforcement agencies, criminal prosecutors and attorneys, and forensic science educators.

Cato Papers on Public Policy, Volume 13

Cato Papers on Public Policy, Volume 13
Author: Jeffrey A. Miron
Publisher: Cato Institute
Total Pages: 215
Release: 2012-01-29
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1938048938

The new edition of this annual publication offers highly innovative articles by recognized national experts on contemporary economic and public policy issues. The pieces selected for publication in this year's issue reveal in-depth, original research on gold pricing during the Depression, the Federal Reserve's program for managing pressures on short-term funding markets, executive compensation, and the impact of shifts in punishment policy on prison incarceration rates.

Intergroup Attitudes and Relations in Childhood Through Adulthood

Intergroup Attitudes and Relations in Childhood Through Adulthood
Author: Sheri R. Levy
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 288
Release: 2008-02-15
Genre: Psychology
ISBN: 0190293500

This edited volume captures an exciting new trend in research on intergroup attitudes and relations, which concerns how individuals make judgments, and interact with individuals from different group categories, broadly defined in terms of gender, race, age, culture, religion, sexual orientation, and body type. This new approach is an integrative perspective, one which draws on theory and research in the areas of developmental and social psychology. Throughout human history, intergroup conflict has often served as the basis for societal conflict, strife, and tension. Over the past several decades, individual and group mobility has enabled individuals to interact with a wider range of people from different backgrounds than ever before. On the one hand, this level of societal heterogeneity contributes to intergroup conflict. On the other hand, the experience of such heterogeneity has also reduced stereotypes, and increased an understanding of others' perspectives and experiences. Where does it begin? When do children acquire stereotypes about the other? What are the sources of influence, and how does change come about? To provide a deeper understanding of the origins, stability, and reduction of intergroup conflict, scholars in this volume report on current, cutting edge theory and new research findings. Progress in the area of intergroup attitudes relies on continued advances in both the understanding of the origins and the trajectory of intergroup conflict and harmony (as historically studied by developmental psychologists) and the understanding of contexts and conditions that contribute to positive and negative intergroup attitudes and relations (as historically studied by social psychologists). Recent social and developmental psychology research clarifies the multifaceted nature of prejudice and the need for an interdisciplinary approach to addressing prejudice. The recent blossoming of research on the integration of developmental and social psychology represented in this volume will appeal to scholars and students in the areas of developmental psychology, social psychology, cognitive psychology, education, social neuroscience, law, business, and political science.