Values and Practices That Comprises

¶ … values and practices that comprises of the mode of perceiving the reality for the group that is involved with them more particularly in an intellectual study. Etymologically, the concept of paradigm originated first in English literature during the 15th Century to mean an illustration or pattern and it still have such meaning presently. During all these 400 years paradigm has seen its application to the patterns of modulations those are applied to arrange the verbs, nouns and other parts of speech of a language into categories that are more easily comprehended.

Ever since 1960s, paradigm is applied in the sphere of science when Nobel Laureate David Baltimore used the concept to indicate a theoretical framework while emphasizing the works of his two colleagues in the words, "really established a new paradigm for our understanding of the causation of cancer." (Paradigms - the Big Changes and Shifts in Society) Since then analysts in many different fields, inclusive of sociology and literary criticism, more often visualize themselves as functioning or trying to come out of paradigms.

(Paradigms - the Big Changes and Shifts in Society) The concept of paradigm therefore is viewed as one of those obscure academic concepts that have come across many variations in the meaning over the centuries. This has been applied by classical Greeks to mean an original archetype or ideal. Later on this indicated to a grammatical term.

Thomas Kuhn brought out his famous book 'The Structure of Scientific Revolutions' in that he visualized the science is not progressing in an orderly fashion from lesser to greater truth but instead remains constant over a specific doctrine or explanation i.e. A paradigm that is only discarded with a great difficulty and with establishment of a new paradigm.

The superseding of Copernican system depicting sun at the centre of the solar system over the Ptolemaic conception of earth at the centre and the replacement of the Newtonian physics by the Relativity and Quantum Physics are illustration of such ideology. (Paradigms - the Big Changes and Shifts in Society) Kuhn thus advocated that scientific ideologies and analyses are expressed as paradigms taken to the conceptual realities in terms of formal theories that involve formal theories, classical experiments and trusted methodologies.

The scientists practically takes for granted a prevailing paradigm and attempt to expand its scope by reformulating theories, analyzing puzzling data and restructuring more precise measures of standards and phenomena. Over the period of time their efforts involve insoluble theoretical deficiencies or experimental contradictions that successfully bring out the inadequacies of the paradigm or contradict totally. Such difficulties give rise to a problem that can only be overcome by means of an intellectual revolution that overthrows the old paradigm with the help of new one.

A shift in the paradigm alters the fundamental concepts governing research and promotes new levels of evidence, new methods of research, and new pathways of theory and experiment that are not compatible with the old elements. (Paradigm Shift: Encyclopedia Britannica) The paradigm is thus visualized as a structure for perceiving reality. It has been observed that the paradigms shift over the period of time in consequence with the variations in societal values or new scientific information. However, they are shifted often more intentionally having no strong basis for variation.

A form of paradigm shift represents reformulation of a problem as a wide departure from the original conception resulting in setting aside of the original one. Paradigm shift may also occur as a result of some massive irrepressible, unseen force like, 'Franklin Mint Commemorative Plate Tectonics'. (Paradigm Shift-How Some Try to Win by Changing the Rules of the Game) With the existence of inconsistencies within a given paradigm it is difficult to resolve them within the present set of paradigms. The variation in out perception of the reality is necessitated.

It is required to take on new hypotheses and expectations that reformulate the theories, traditions, rules and standards of practice. The need for creation of a new paradigm is felt for resolving the problems the old paradigm. This indicates to the concept of paradigm shift.

(Paradigms - the Big Changes and Shifts in Society) the work of Kuhn is seen as revolutionary in respect of history and philosophy of science and the scope of the concepts of paradigm shifts have been expanded for its application in the fields of political science, economics, and sociology and also in business management.

(Paradigm Shift: Encyclopedia Britannica) The contemporary analysis of paradigms thus initiated with publication of the book the Structure of Scientific Revolutions by Thomas Kuhn in 1962 and extended to other spheres through the books and videos of Joel Barker. The present day organizations have demonstrated a revolutionary change since 1960s. Varied factors impelled such variations. Growing telecommunications, increasing diversity of workers, their perspectives and expectations has resulted in varied values. The public become more conscious to necessitate the organization to become more responsible socially.

Such elements have necessitated adoption of new paradigm so as to become more sensitive, flexible and compatible to the requirement and expectations of the demands of the stakeholders. Most of the organizations felt it essential to abandon the traditional top-down, rigid and hierarchical structures to become more organic and fluid forms. The Managers felt is essential presently to address the requirements of the continual, rapid variations. (New Paradigm in Management) The managers confronting the modern problem of solving major decisions do not find the traditional paradigms to be effective.

They require the management techniques to vary with the changing environment, and evaluate the change and manage change. A striking difference in the new paradigm is found from the traditional ones in its application to the business world. Marilyn Ferguson pointed out different traits of the New Paradigm in his book 'The New Paradigm: Emerging Strategic for Leadership and Organizational Change' published in 1993. The traditional concept of promoting consumption at all costs has been changed to the promotion of appropriate consumption in the new paradigm.

Similarly, the stress on people to fit jobs has been changed to formulate jobs to fit people. The traditional organizational autocracy of imposing goals and top-down decision making has been changed to encouragement of autonomy and worker participation. The stress on division of labor has been shifted to the cross-fertilization by specialists seeing wide relevance. The traditional concepts of aggression and competition have been changed to cooperation. The emphasis on manipulation and dominance has changed to cooperation with nature.

The struggle for stability has been changed to the sense of change. The quantitative growth has been changed to the qualitative as well as quantitative improvement. The strict economic motives have been changed to the spiritual values. The rationalization ideology has been changed to rational and intuitive. This gives rise to new forms of organizations to become more common emphasizing on worker-centered teams, self organizing and self designing teams.

(New Paradigm in Management) Nurture Capital is considered to be an illustration of the paradigm shift that has strived to reformulate many businesses from a structure of domination to the modus operandi of cooperation. This shift is applicable in the sphere of relationship between the persons involved in the business and it is also applicable in establishing the relationship between the enterprise and its environment. The concept of nurture of capital is utilized in two ways.

First it indicates a general transformation in the nature of the enterprise that expresses the attitude of integrity and tells about a new standard by which the performance is to be determined. In such circumstances it is applied to any business at any stage in its own evolution. The term is also used to narrate a particular early phase in the development of a business. (Nurture.