This paper is a response to criticism raised by the 'radical' school against an 'orthodox' science of organizations. By focussing the debate on an empirical case used by the 'radicals', that of Chinese organizations during the Cultural Revolution, the paper rejects the 'radical' argument as having no empirical support. A 'radical fallacy' which attempts to delegitimize macro-organizational analysis outside the Marxist framework is highlighted.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
China Facts and Figures1983Annual 6. Florida: InternationalAcademic Press.
2.
Clegg, S.R., and D. Dunkerley1977Critical issues in organizations. London : Routledge and Kegan Paul.
3.
Clegg, S.R., and D. Dunkerley1980Organization and class control. London : Routledge and Kegan Paul.
4.
Clegg, S.R., and W. Higgins1987 'Against the current: organizational sociology and socialism '. Organization Studies8/3: 201-221.
5.
Donaldson, L.1985In defense of organization theory: a reply to the critics . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Falkenheim, V.1981'Autonomy and control in Chinese organization: dilemmas of rural administrative reform' in Organizational behavior in Chinese society. S. C. Greenblatt, R. W. Wilson and A. A. Wilson (eds). New York: Praeger.
8.
Giddens, A.1971Capitalism and modern social theory. London: Cambridge University Press.
9.
Giddens, A.1972Politics and sociology in the thought of Max Weber . London: Macmillan.
10.
Hearn, F.1978 'Rationality and bureaucracy: Marxist contributors to a Marxist theory of bureaucracy'. The Sociological Quarterly19: 37-54.
11.
Henley, J.S., and M.K. Nyaw1986a 'Developments in managerial decision making in Chinese industrial enterprises' in Organization and management in East Asia. S. Clegg, D. Dunphy, and G. Redding (eds.), 267-300. Hong Kong: University of Hong Kong Press.
12.
Henley, J.S., and, M.K. Nyaw1986b 'Introducing market forces into managerial decision-making in Chinese industrial enterprises'. Journal of Management Studies23/6: 635-656.
13.
Henley, J.S., and M.K. Nyaw1987'The development of work incentives in Chinese industrial enterprises — material versus non-material incentives' in Management reforms in China. M. Warner (ed.), 127-148. London: Frances Pinter.
14.
Laaksonen, O.1984'The managerial and power structure of Chinese enterprises during and after the Cultural Revolution'. Organization Studies5/1: 1-21.
15.
Laaksonen, O.1988Management in China. New York : Walter de Gruyter.
16.
Lee, H.Y.1979 'Mao's strategy for revolutionary change: a case study of the Cultural Revolution'. China Quarterly77: 50-73.
17.
Lee, P.N.S.1986'Enterprise autonomy policy in post-Mao China: a case study of policy-making, 1978-83'. The China Quarterly105: 45-71.
18.
Perrow, C.1972The radical attack on business. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich.
19.
Shenkar O.1984 'Is bureaucracy inevitable? The Chinese experience '. Organization Studies5/4: 289-306.
20.
Starr, J.B.1979Continuing the revolution: the political thought of Mao . Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press.
21.
The China Official Yearbook1985/6 1986Hong Kong: Salem International Publications.
22.
Weber, H.1947The theory of social and economic organization (trans. Henderson and Parsons). New York: Free Press.
23.
Zhao, L.K., and, G.T. Lu1986'Employment and wages in China's cities and towns ' in China reforms for excellence, Hong Kong: VIP Management Consultants.