Cooperation Theory and Organizations

Organizational researchers have largely ignored cooperation theory in their analyses of social interaction in organizations. Considerable experimental and field research by social and educational psychologists indicates the dynamics of cooperatively (positively), competitively (negatively), and individualistically (independently) linked goals and suggests their consequences on relationships and productivity. Results overall indicate that cooperation facilitates social interaction and productivity. However, studies done in organizational contexts with representative tasks are needed to generalize confidently to organizational practice. Organizational researchers can extend cooperation theory to understand the dynamics between superiors and subordinates and the relationships among departments. To make cooperation theory useful, knowledge is needed to identify conditions that affect how organizational members perceive their goal interdependence.