The reliability and validity of the control graph approach to measuring organizational control structure and individual perceptions of control are examined through a review of previous studies and new data from managers, supervisors, and employees in six offices of a government agency. The results suggest that the approach has significant problems with reliability when used to measure organizational structure and problems with validity as a measure of individual perceptions of control structure. A theoretical account of the diversity of control mechanisms operating in organizations is developed to help explain why these problems exist.
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