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¶ … episodic" change, and under what circumstances does it occur?
Episodic change is when there is a single, discrete change event. This may occur with something like a merger, the creation of a product or service, or a shift in organizational procedures (such as the introduction of a new computer system). Change is occurring all of the time in the modern business environment, of course, but continuous change processes tend to be more subtle and less apt to promote active resistance to change vs. episodic change, which forces people to change ingrained habits very quickly.
What are some of the individual and/or group tactics used when resisting organizational change?
Some negative forms of resisting change include justifying 'digging in one's heels' via protecting one's turf (hiding personal resistance under the cover it is for the 'good of the organization); justifying resistance as protecting group rather than individual interests in a selfless fashion; shutting one's self off from the main entity by shifting alliances away from the larger organization; and by demanding new leadership (i.e. blaming the old leadership). All of these are forms of conflict avoidance rather than dealing with the true need or roots of change.
Individual Responses to Organization Change
Individual's reactions to significant change in organizations, change...
The struggle begins with 1) shock and denial, 2) moves to anger, 3) to bargaining, or attempts to postpone the inevitable, on to 4) depression, and finally to 5) acceptance. Not everyone moves through all these stages; some never move beyond denial. And so it is with organizational behavior. Some organizational members fight the change to "to the death," constantly denying that the change is necessary. Others embrace the change readily and move with it. Most people are somewhere in between and move through all stages.
Levinson (1976) has argued that whether change is resisted or embraced, all change is nevertheless a loss experience, particularly a loss of familiar routines. And the more psychologically important the loss, the more likely one's behavior will take the form of resistance. Levinson further argued that all loss needs to be mourned (a bachelor party on the eve of a groom's wedding, most often a joyful change, could be thought of as a mourning ritual) and that people should have an opportunity to discuss and deal with their feelings if they are again going to be able to perform effectively on the job.
The phenomenon of resistance to change is not necessarily that of…
Research shows, for example, that when a smoker is told to stop smoking his or her typical reaction is either to continue as usual or increase the rate. Brehm's (1966) theory is that when people believe themselves free to behave in a certain way, they will experience psychological reactance (that is, they will resist) if that freedom is threatened or eliminated. The degree of ease and success with which an organization change is introduced is therefore directly proportional to the amount of choice that people feel they have in determining and implementing the change.
It is also important to and useful to consider the kind of resistance that is being manifested. One should determine whether the resistance is blind, political, or ideological:
Blind Resistance. Some people, no doubt a small minority, are simply afraid and intolerant of change - any change. Two kinds of response may be useful here. One is to provide as much reassurance as possible: moving into something unknown is always discomforting, at least for a while, but things rarely turn out as dire as we imagine. Second, allow time to pass. Some people in this category merely need time to get used to the new idea; it
In that sense, Wilkoff (1995, as cited by Weick & Quinn, 1999) reports on her attempts to intervene between two companies that had fused together in an unsuccessful mergence. The actors of the various companies persistently disagreed due to cultural differences in mindset, whereupon the consultant, recognizing this, changed her strategy. She began meeting with each actor separately and explaining the other's performance from his or her particular cultural assumptions.
Spotlighting Samplings 4 Qualitative Research Research Choices 6 the Phenomenology Method The Ethnography Method DEPTH Four Qualitative Approach Comparison Strengths and Critiques of Case Studies "A research design indicates the full research process from conceptualization of the research problem, generation of data, analysis and interpretation of findings, and dissemination of results" (Magilvy & Thomas, 2009, What and Why… Section, ¶ 4). The Question of Interest What type of research design should the researcher use? To answer the study's critical research
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While the primary cause of stuttering may be related to physiological disposition of the brain (the way it handles language skills and speech patterns), environmental factors may affect the physical condition or may even play a decisive role in triggering its activation. Psychoanalytical therapies may also help stuttering children "re-teach" the behavior of brain -- in other words, adapt to its different functioning -- and help overcome it before
Myth/Opportunity On page 348, #3, Kendall says the media use "thematic framing" and "episodic framing" in portraying poor Americans. Define these terms in your own words and discuss whether the media typically portray the poor as "deviant" or "other" (according to pp. 330-346). Episodic framing looks at specific events, or episodes, while thematic framing attempts to put those events in broader context. For example, a news story on high rates of unemployment
I just tend to go down on myself more. I've been very stressed out lately even though stress is not something I generally have a problem with. I don't know what's wrong. W: Well, fear can make one uneasy and act differently from what one is used to. Do you think that there was something around you, a situation a symbol a person that made you feel even more fearful? I