A Critical Analysis of Theories of Misconduct in and by Organizations Oxford

摘要

The overarching goal of this book is to provide a critical analysis of existing theories of the causes of organizational wrongdoing, and in so doing, to extend the examined theories. Palmer's purpose is even more than this, however, for he states that his aim in writing this book is to "champion the normal organizational wrongdoing perspective" and "to advocate the alternative approach to analyzing the causes of wrongdoing" (p. 283).So, what are the normal wrongdoing perspective and the alternative approach to the analysis of organizational wrongdoing? Palmer defines both by contrasting them with the "conventional view" of the nature of wrongdoing and the "dominant approach" to its analysis, respectively. The conventional view sees wrongdoing as abnormal, and thus wrongdoers "as abhorrent-[as] extraordinary in a malevolent way" (p. 7). In contrast, the normal wrongdoing perspective considers wrongdoers to be "ordinary" and wrongdoing as largely the result "of the full range of structures and processes that shape behavior in organizations," and thus the assumption is that wrongdoing is pervasive, or, normal.