The Interactional Study of Organizations

Abstract

The article reviews recent perspectives on the study of organizations, including negotiated order and the "new" organizational theory. It argues that both are inherently limited by their failure to address certain methodological problems in the relationship between theory, analysis, and data. The answer may lie in a more detailed consideration of the role of language and the possiblity of inspecting it for evidence of the devices employed by organization members to coordinate action.