Shared Emotions

It is worth repeating that many social scientists find comfort in the assumption that what really matters in understanding and improving organizational performance is that which is visible and quantifiable. Buildings and offices; equipment and technology; systems and processes; policies and procedures; services or products; and organizational hierarchies and executives, managers, supervisors, and employees performing varied tasks are among other visible components (Jaques, 1995). It is regrettably the illusion of the concreteness of these organizational attributes that makes periodic reengineering and downsizing of organizations seem like a reasonable pursuit. Yet, as noted by many observers of the workplace, these draconian actions do not typically meet expectations and often have unintended human consequences (Allcorn, Baum, Diamond, & Stein, 1996; Kets de Vries, 2001). There is, of course, more to the workplace than meets the eye. Ultimately, emotional and unconscious organizational dynamics shape what happens in the workplace (Amado, 1995). Thus, the managerial pursuit of a “more efficient organizational structure” confronts the psychological reality of the workplace where techno-rationalism gives way to latent psychosocial dynamics that have so far defied reengineering.