In Deep Waters: process theory between Scylla and Charybdis

Abstract

In this paper, I propose a middle way between current process and substance theorising as I argue that both "pure" views are fraught with theoretical problems. I base my proposal on the ontologies of Aristotle and A.N. Whitehead, who both maintain that being and becoming are equally important for a comprehensive analysis of change processes. Drawing on their insights, I develop a conceptual frame that distinguishes between change and becoming, and proposes to use the pairs of potentiality-actuality and activity-relationality as notions that are less fraught with conceptual baggage and more relevant empirically than the distinction between substance and process. Word count: 10497 2 As we all know, the ancient Greeks had a really good time. They were unbothered by disciplinary power, iron cages (except the obvious sort), or high reflexivity. To compensate for that, their cruises were sometimes cut short -often terminally so -by two horrible monsters called Scylla and Charybdis. This bad luck also befell Odysseus on his extended cruise:"Scylla was a supernatural creature, with twelve feet and six heads on long, snaky necks, each head having a triple row of sharklike teeth, while her loins were girt with the heads of baying dogs. From her lair in a cave she devoured whatever ventured within reach,

A Return to the Enduring Features of Institutions

“…Whitehead, a philosopher and mathematician, was, together with Henri Bergson and William James, the most important process philosopher of the twentieth century. As I have argued elsewhere (Weik 2011a), Whitehead's ontology is in many respects very close to Aristotle but replaces the Aristotelian notion of substance with process.…”

Looking elsewhere: Howard S. Becker as unwilling organisational theorist

“…However, for the moment, it is noteworthy that, at least on the face of it, Becker's approach to organisations as people 'doing things together' shares key commonalities with actor network theory, aspects of figurational sociology, and looks to be consistent with a broader 'relational/processual turn' within organisational scholarship (see, for example, Bakken and Hernes 2006;Chia 1996Chia , 1999Tsoukas 2001;Tsoukas and Chia 2002;Weik 2011) Worlds (2008 [1982]), Becker effectively challenges the myth of art as simply 'the work of great, highly talented individuals'. He shows how 'All artistic work, like all human activity, involves the joint activity of a number, often a large number, of people'.…”

Property and Organization Studies

“…In organization studies, considerable effort has gone into attempting to reconnect individual and organizational action (see Weik, 2011) through various theoretical lenses. They all stress different facets of the organization, which are exactly the ones that guide our vignettes: action, semiotics, speech acts, materiality and legality.…”