Revisiting perspectives on George Homans: correcting misconceptions. Issue 1 (8th January 2018)
- Record Type:
- Journal Article
- Title:
- Revisiting perspectives on George Homans: correcting misconceptions. Issue 1 (8th January 2018)
- Main Title:
- Revisiting perspectives on George Homans: correcting misconceptions
- Authors:
- Muldoon, Jeff
Liguori, Eric W.
Bendickson, Josh
Bauman, Antonina - Abstract:
- Abstract : Purpose: This paper aims to correct some misconceptions about George Homans. Specifically, it clarifies the relationship between Homans and Malinowski, explains why Homans is rightfully considered the father of social exchange, shows Homans' perspective on altruism and self-interest and analyses Homans' place in management's complex history. Design/methodology/approach: This is a conceptual paper which synthesizes both primary and secondary sources on Homans, social exchange theory (SET), Malinowski and other Homans' contemporaries and theories, which, in aggregate, help dispel some common misconceptions in the literature today. Findings: This paper disperses several common misconceptions about Homans and his work. First, the findings show that beliefs that Homans was unaware of Malinowski are not justified, as Homans was not only aware of Malinowski but also significantly influenced by Malinowski's work. Second, this manuscript clarifies that while Homans, for specific reasons, focussed on self-interest, his work accounted for altruism. Lastly, this paper also further cements Homans' place in history as the father of social exchange. Originality/value: Recent misconceptions have emerged in the literature calling to question not only Homans' legitimacy as the father of social exchange but also some of his views on the theory itself. By clarifying these misconceptions, this paper enables scholars from a variety of management fields to better understand historicalAbstract : Purpose: This paper aims to correct some misconceptions about George Homans. Specifically, it clarifies the relationship between Homans and Malinowski, explains why Homans is rightfully considered the father of social exchange, shows Homans' perspective on altruism and self-interest and analyses Homans' place in management's complex history. Design/methodology/approach: This is a conceptual paper which synthesizes both primary and secondary sources on Homans, social exchange theory (SET), Malinowski and other Homans' contemporaries and theories, which, in aggregate, help dispel some common misconceptions in the literature today. Findings: This paper disperses several common misconceptions about Homans and his work. First, the findings show that beliefs that Homans was unaware of Malinowski are not justified, as Homans was not only aware of Malinowski but also significantly influenced by Malinowski's work. Second, this manuscript clarifies that while Homans, for specific reasons, focussed on self-interest, his work accounted for altruism. Lastly, this paper also further cements Homans' place in history as the father of social exchange. Originality/value: Recent misconceptions have emerged in the literature calling to question not only Homans' legitimacy as the father of social exchange but also some of his views on the theory itself. By clarifying these misconceptions, this paper enables scholars from a variety of management fields to better understand historical foundations of SET and its impact on current research. … (more)
- Is Part Of:
- Journal of management history. Volume 24:Issue 1(2018)
- Journal:
- Journal of management history
- Issue:
- Volume 24:Issue 1(2018)
- Issue Display:
- Volume 24, Issue 1 (2018)
- Year:
- 2018
- Volume:
- 24
- Issue:
- 1
- Issue Sort Value:
- 2018-0024-0001-0000
- Page Start:
- 57
- Page End:
- 75
- Publication Date:
- 2018-01-08
- Subjects:
- Management history -- Social exchange theory -- Bronislaw Malinowski -- George C. Homans
Management -- History -- Periodicals
Public administration -- History -- Periodicals
658.009 - Journal URLs:
- http://info.emeraldinsight.com/products/journals/journals.htm?id=jmh ↗
http://www.emeraldinsight.com/1751-1348.htm ↗
http://www.emeraldinsight.com/journals.htm?issn=1751-1348 ↗
http://www.emeraldinsight.com/ ↗ - DOI:
- 10.1108/JMH-06-2017-0027 ↗
- Languages:
- English
- ISSNs:
- 1751-1348
- Deposit Type:
- Legaldeposit
- View Content:
- Available online (eLD content is only available in our Reading Rooms) ↗
- Physical Locations:
- British Library DSC - 5011.331050
British Library DSC - BLDSS-3PM
British Library HMNTS - ELD Digital store - Ingest File:
- 6075.xml