Institutions & Organizations

Institutions As Private Governments

"Large organizations can be viewed, in many respects, as private governments. They are con- cerned about their autonomy and their sovereignty in relation to other organizations in their environment, such as labor unions, government, regulatory agencies, professional associations and other private "governments" (i.e., corporations). Negotiating with elements of their environ- ment is analogous to having a "foreign policy" and "international relations." Similarly, the in- ternal life of large organizations is structured by a particular political system that defines legitimate authority, the rights and responsibilities of its "citizens," the processes for dealing with conflicts, the rewards for good "citizens" and the punishments for bad "citizens," and the scope of influence the "state" has over its "citizens" (Harshbarger, 1973; O'Day, 1974). Some organizations approximate totalitarian states, some approximate erations with regard to the rights of "citizens" and the their lives (Perrucci, Anderson, Schendel, Trachtman, 1980, pp. 150-151).

"According to the literature, organizational justice can be conceived of as an impression management process (Bies, 1989; Bies & Shapiro, 1987, 1988; Greenberg, 1990a). In many cases, looking fair may be more important than being fair (Bies, 1987; Greenberg, 1988, 1990)" (Gundlach, Douglas, Martinko, 2003, p. 109).

Gundlach, M., Douglas, S., & Martinko, M. (2003). The Decision to Blow the Whistle: A Social Information Processing Framework. The Academy of Management Review, 28(1), 107-123.

Perrucci, R., Anderson, R.M., Schendel, D.E., Trachtman, L.E. (1980). Whistle blowing: Professionals' resistance to organizational authority. Social Problems, 28(2), 149-164.