Re: Evaluating competing theories

[TQNELSON@aol.com]

In a message dated 7/7/1999 3:34:45 AM Pacific Daylight Time, 
DANSWART@aol.com writes:

<< 
 Can a management theory have examples that disprove it, and still be useful? 
>>

Simply put: nope as any valid relation claimed between the 
"theory/prediction" that has been disproved and observed results will be a 
product of defensive fiction (our economics new is filled with such stories, 
usually beginning, "Economists were surprised by.......).
  
<< People cling to "rules of thumb" because they perceive them as very useful 
in 
 classifying people, events, etc., and they are not that interested in 
 competing theories that may offer greater precision.>>

I'm not sure we are talking improvement/"greater precision." I believe that 
WED was referring to NEW knowledge, NEW theory, not a modification. What 
Juran called "Breakthrough." WED's SoPK does not provide "greater precision." 
 It offers total replacement (rather like [actually, very line] Jefferson's 
(et al. Declaration of Independence did not offer "greater precision" to the 
monarchy of George III).

<< How are competing management theories evaluated by people, and company 
leaders in particular?>>

I would again refer to the teachings of Dr. Elizabeth Kubler Ross on how we 
face death (all change is a form of death, i.e., some part of me "stays 
behind"). In brief, the stages are:
1. Denial: we deny that the change is valid;
2. Anger: we become upset and angry when denial didn't make the theory go 
away (anger may express itself as "fight," or "flight");
3. Bargaining: we "search for examples" of where "our Theory" is valid, we 
attempt to negotiate keeping as much as possible of the old, and accepting as 
little as possible of the change;
4. Depression: we get "sad" about all that will be/has been lost (personally 
as much as organizationally, particularly difficult for those whose 
self-value is dependent on the "past" external system being changed); and
5. Acceptance: we follow Point 14 and "do it!"

Based on the first initials of the five words we (our classes) refer to this 
as "Passing through the Village of DABDA."

Note these are not linear, an individual can hop back and forth through the 
steps, and can become "locked in" to any one of the first four.

And many of us followed the path this morning:
D: That can't be the alarm
A: Why do I have to get up now and go to that stupid.....
B: Just another five minutes (a snooze alarm is an automated version of this)
D: Oh, gads, woe is me, I've got to get up, good-bye lovely, snugly, bed
A: O.K., let's go! Charge! It's MORNING!

A friend of mine paraphrased it this way for his company:
"No way!"
"You try that and I'll fix your wagon."
"Why don't we test it in another department?"
"Oh, Oh. Does management know I opposed it, did you tell anybody?"
"We've always done it that way."

Del Nelson
American River College

When "We, the People..." have been replaced
by dollars, profits, and greed,
It is time to start over
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