Resistance, resonance and restoration: How generative stories shape organisational futures
Publication Type
Journal Article
Version
publishedVersion
Publication Date
5-2017
Abstract
Stories are powerful. They reflect our past and shape our futures, but are never complete. Stories connect us to people in organisations – present and past – with whom we feel belonging, and disconnect us from others. Always abstractive, they give incomplete pictures of what was, weaving past accounts into what is and what will be. Because choice-points in storytelling are mostly unconscious, biases and perceptions are always part of narration, tending to reinforce preferred images, identities and trajectories. Storytelling habits, in turn, often accent negative histories and escalate conflict. Because stories are so powerful, it is essential to critically examine how they function in organisations, and to develop ways of supporting generative, inclusive stories.
Discipline
Interpersonal and Small Group Communication | Organizational Behavior and Theory
Research Areas
Organisational Behaviour and Human Resources
Publication
International Journal of Professional Management
Volume
12
Issue
3
First Page
22
Last Page
31
ISSN
2042-2342
Publisher
International Professional Managers Association
Citation
LEBARON, Michelle and ALEXANDER, Nadja.
Resistance, resonance and restoration: How generative stories shape organisational futures. (2017). International Journal of Professional Management. 12, (3), 22-31.
Available at: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/sol_research/2605
Copyright Owner and License
Authors
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.