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Showing posts with the label social structure

Trust of Each Other is Declining According to a General Social Survey

Made with Electronic Drum Set What is trust worth? A poll by the General Social Survey indicates that about 1/3 of Americans trust each other. This is a big step downward from a 1972 survey that indicated that about ½ of Americans trust each other. Around 2/3rds say that “you can’t be too careful” dealing with others.  Trust is trending downward and this should concern a number of people.   Trust can bring some wonderful things in society. The entire economic system and social structure depends on trust. Trust that if you work hard you will receive a reward, trust that people will treat you fairly, and trust that you can walk down the street without injury. Trust is the glue that binds all of society into one neat socio-economic package. It is hard for people to determine what leads to more or less trust. We can say that its base is a whole host of reasons that may include opportunity, systematic justice, culture, interpersonal relationships, family life or even world ev

Thomas Reid’s and Thomas Pain’s Common Sense

Thomas Reid was a philosopher (1710-1796) who moved from being a pastor to professorship at King’s College in Aberdeen in 1752.   After completing his dissertation he founded the Scottish School of Common Sense with his 1764 book entitled An Inquiry into the Human Mind on the Principles of Common Sense. He eventually replaced Adam Smith at the University of Glasgow. His philosophies didn’t die in the university but continued to spread around the world causing new structures to develop. Modern day America owes as much to Thomas Reid as it does to Thomas Pain. One European concept of Common Sense led to the American Revolution and the shot heard around the world.  The School of Common Sense was particularly important in Scotland as an almost national philosophy. It is a philosophy which believes that most understanding is within the grasp of the common human mind.   The average human being, with some capacity to make judgments, can determine the general truths and falsehoo

The Social Context and Social Cognition of Projected Strategy Formation

Strategy is not only the logical components of actions that lead to goal achievement. True strategy has significant social aspects based within the cognitive understanding of workers, stakeholders, and even customers. A paper by Vallaster and Muehlbacher (2012) outlines the social representations inherent within strategy formation and its social context of development.  Strategic success must take into account actions, interactions, and negotiations of multiple actors. Each person realizes the strategy through his or her own vantage points and previous practices. Strategy must fit within others mental framework in order to be successful and fully implemented throughout an organization. Strategizing takes includes 1.) narratives, 2.) actors personal interests, 3.) organizational design, culture and past practices, and 4.) market factors. Strategic development should take into account the multiple factors and their potential weight in order to be successful and navigate the soci

Book Review: Theory U-Leading from the Future as it Emerges

Dr. Otto Scharmer builds off of previous research in the concept of presencing of self to further help executives and managers find a more creative and genuine place within their management style. His book Theory U Leading from the Future as it Emerges discusses understanding the blind spot, entering the U field, and presencing. Decision-makers who can enter the U field are capable of managing to a higher and more accurate degree than those who don't. Theory U is a change management process originally developed by Dr.Friedrich   Glasl and Dirk Lemson. They sought to develop a method by which consciousness is used to handle conflict and processes manifested in relationship dynamics and conflicts. The Theory was then picked up by Dr. Otto Scharmer who included the concepts of presencing and capitalism. It is this presencing that releases creative and productive energy. The original theory analyzed technical/instrumental subsystems, social subsystems and cultural subsys