What Next for Chaos Theory? From Metaphor to Phase Space

In the management and social sciences literature, chaos theory has been used primarily as a metaphor to understand organizational phenomena. Using metaphors to understand organizations is a novel idea that has gained much acceptance, thanks to the pioneering work of Morgan (1986). However, chaos theory\u27s value as a metaphor has been overused and offers little that cannot already be explained using existing theories and frameworks. Because chaos theory is a mathematical theory, we believe its mathematical principles offer the greatest application to the management literature. In this paper, we offer the use of phase space, a tool of chaos theory, as a way to analyze firm performance

In Pursuit of Crisis Readiness: An Examination of Managerial Characteristics, Firm Size, Industry Domain and Strategic Type within the Miles and Snow Framework

A crisis refers to an unpredictable event that can seriously threaten an organization. Crisis readiness is an integral part of the crisis management process and refers to the level of preparedness an organization possesses in response to a potential catastrophic event. Findings from a survey of 275 managers in the United States revealed that top managers with production/engineering and general management backgrounds reported higher degrees of crisis readiness capabilities than did their counterparts with other backgrounds. Likewise, higher levels of crisis readiness were reported in larger, manufacturing organizations than in smaller, service organizations

Validation of Self-Report Measures Using Ratings By Others

A set of ratings by others was obtained in conjunction with a collection of self-report data on subjective quality of life. Respondents and two or three "relevant others" nominated by them rated the respondents' satisfaction with aspects of their life. The correlations between respondent-respondent, respondent-other, and other-other ratings provide estimates of the convergent and discriminant validity of the self-ratings and ratings by others. The results of these analyses provide evidence for the external validity of self-ratings in the quality of life area. More importantly, they illustrate the possibility of using ratings by other as a validation criterion for self-ratings in general. The validity of ratings by others who vary in their relationship with their respondents is also explored, and suggestions for further uses of ratings by others are providedPeer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/69039/2/10.1177_004912417600400305.pd

The validity of measures of self-reported well-being

Using a new analytic approach, construct validity estimates are developed for proposed social indicators of self-reported well-being. Two separate investigations are reported: the first involves data on six aspects of well-being each assessed by six methods from 222 adults in one geographic area; the second, a partial replication and extension, involves a more limited set of indicators measured on a sample of 1297 respondents representative of all American adults.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/43686/1/11205_2004_Article_BF00286161.pd

Loneliness: theory, Research and Appliacations

vi, 302 hlm.; Ind.; 22 c

Propensity for Participative Decision-Making, Job Satisfaction, Organizational Commitment, Organizational Citizenship Behavior, and Intentions to Leave Among Egyptian Managers

Relationships among job satisfaction, organizational commitment, organizational citizenship behavior, propensity for participative decision-making PPDM, and intentions to leave have been assessed in a number of studies of Western managers. However, there is a dearth of such research in non-Western organizations. This study examines these relationships among Egyptian managers and suggests prospective directions for additional research in the field. © 2003, MCB UP Limite