B.Soc.Sc., Ph.D., FFCS
Emeritus Professor
- About
-
- Email Address
- p.dawson@abdn.ac.uk
- Telephone Number
- +44 (0)1224 273236
- School/Department
- Business School
Biography
Patrick Dawson is an Emeritus Professor at the University of Aberdeen. He holds a PhD in industrial sociology from the University of Southampton and he has held positions in Universities in Australia, England, Sweden, Denmark and Scotland. As an international expert on change and temporality, Patrick has worked on a number of Australian Research Council (ARC) and Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) funded projects in collaboration with scholars at other universities. He has examined change and innovation in a number of organizations including: LG Electronics, Pirelli Cables, BHP Billiton, Royal Dutch Shell, British Rail, General Motors, Hewlett Packard, TNT and the CSIRO.
With an extensive publication list of over 60 refereed journal articles, 12 books, 50 book chapters, an Hindex of 23 and i10 index of 40, his is an international leader in Management research. His reputation has led to frequent invites to chair conference streams as well as regular keynote speaking appearances. In addition he has worked on the Editorial Board of several learned and special edition journals and In 2003, was made a Research Fellow of the Australian and New Zealand Academy of Management (ANZAM), and in 2005, was awarded the ongoing position of Distinguished Member.
- Research
-
Research Overview
My main research interests centre on organizational change, time and temporality, creativity and innovation.
Underpinning my research and theoretical development has been the refinement and elaboration of a process approach to understanding change. This perspective originally formulated in my 1994 book Organizational Change: A Processual Approach promotes the importance of viewing change as a non-linear dynamic rather than as a simple progressive series of stages commonly advocated in the mainstream literature. The approach stresses the importance of examining movements as-they-occur from a current position (when possible at the initial conception of a need to change) through processes of change (the planning and implementation of change) to a period of review and evaluation (a post-change period). Examining changes as-they-happen is central in building knowledge of complex change processes rather than linear models that focus on after-the-event accounts. Data are collected throughout these processes from stakeholders and employees at all levels (not just management) and examined within a broader contextual frame that takes account of the past (historical and retrospective analyses) and the future (analyses of future expectations before and after the event), as well as the current ongoing processes of change (Dawson, 2013: 252). It is based on the assumption that change is complex and at times chaotic (Alvesson & Sveningsson, 2016). It recognizes that the unplanned, unforeseen and unexpected will occur and that consequently, organizational change should not be reduced to a list of simple sequential steps (Dawson, 1994).
This processual perspective highlights the importance of temporality and context (the history and culture of organizations), political processes, power plays and decision-making that engages people in negotiations, in communications that may be misinterpreted or reinterpreted in various ways that create further uncertainties, ambiguities and confusion. It spotlights how forms of ‘equivocality’ (where multiple interpretations exists) may be progressively resolved through collective sensemaking processes, whilst also sustaining conflicting interpretations between different groups that may be further reinforced through processes of change (Dawson, 2003). Attention is given to the temporal reconstitution of practices (management strategy, change interventions and workplace reconfigurations) and how people give and make sense of the way social and material processes, activities and actions unfold over time. In short, change is viewed as a complex, dynamic, non-linear, temporal process (see also, Dawson and Skykes, 2016).
- Publications
-
Page 1 of 2 Results 1 to 10 of 15
In search of innovative capabilities of communities of practice: a systematic review and typology for future research
Management Learning, vol. 47, no. 5, pp. 506-524Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1350507616646698
- [OPEN ACCESS] http://aura.abdn.ac.uk/bitstream/2164/6152/1/Prepublicationversion.pdf
Organizational Change and Temporality: Bending the Arrow of Time
Routledge Taylor & Francis Group, New York. 254 pagesBooks and Reports: BooksUnderstanding the Diversity of User Requirements for Interactive Online Health Services
International Journal of Healthcare Technology and Management, vol. 15, no. 3, pp. 253-271Contributions to Journals: ArticlesChange Bites: Stories from the Field
Perspectives on Change: What Academics, Consultants and Managers Really Think About Change. Burnes, B., Randall, J. (eds.). Routledge Taylor & Francis Group, pp. 51-63, 13 pagesChapters in Books, Reports and Conference Proceedings: ChaptersIn search of freedom: legacies of management innovations for the experience of work and employment
Employment Relations Record, vol. 15, no. 1, pp. 4-26Contributions to Journals: ArticlesTemporal practices: time and ethnographic research in changing organizations
Journal of Organizational Ethnography, vol. 3, no. 2, pp. 130-151Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/JOE-05-2012-0025
- [OPEN ACCESS] http://aura.abdn.ac.uk/bitstream/2164/4063/1/TimeandEthPreFinal.doc
Reflections: on time, temporality and change in organizations
Journal of Change Management, vol. 14, no. 3, pp. 285-308Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/14697017.2014.886870
- [OPEN ACCESS] http://aura.abdn.ac.uk/bitstream/2164/4667/1/TimeJCM14Jan2014.docx
Stories affording new pathways: bridging the divide between aged and disability care
Journal of Organizational Change Management, vol. 27, no. 5, pp. 819-938Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/JOCM-12-2013-0245
Miners’ tales: stories and the storying process for understanding the collective sensemaking of employees during contested change
Group & Organization Management: An International Journal, vol. 38, no. 2, pp. 198-229Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1059601112472367
Occupational Health and Safety Management in Organizations: A Review
International Journal of Management Reviews, vol. 14, no. 3, pp. 328-344Contributions to Journals: Articles- [ONLINE] DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2370.2011.00319.x