How our ?values? influence the manner in which organizational research is framed and interpreted

Those who are enslaved to their sects are not merely devoid of all sound knowled`e\ but they will not even stop to learn;On the Natural Faculties\ Book I\ Chapter 02\ p[ 46[ While written almost 1999 years ago\ Galen|s quote is especially relevant and timely today[ Knowledge is undoubtedly expanding at an ever!increasing pace in the organizational sciences[ As a consequence\ a number of organizational scholars have noted the need for applied research to be di}erent\ new\ original and unique "Gioia and Pitre\ 0889^Mone and McKinley\ 0882#[ This all!encompassing quest for new and interesting research topics\ seemingly a {~avor of the month| mentality\ has led to a discipline acknowledged by many of its leading scholars to be one lacking in relevance "Slocum\ 0886#[ We propose that this perceived lack of relevance is further exacerbated by the current predominance of a values perspective utilizing instrumental or cost!bene_t explanations for organizational behaviors "Locke and Becker\ 0887#[ The purpose of this Incubator article is to examine how di}ering values perspectives can have varying interpretive relevance for organizational research[ We _rst provide a working de_nition of the values concept[ Interestingly\ while the concept of values has many meanings in the social sciences\ the word itself is a rather late!comer to our English vocabulary[ 0 In fact\ the word { values| did not even appear in the Oxford En`lish Dictionary until shortly before the advent of World War II "Himmelfarb\ 0883#[ More recently\ from an organizational perspective\ Beyer "0870\ p[ 055# de_ned values as {rationalized normative systems of preferences for certain courses of action or certain outcomes[| According to Beyer|s de_nition\ values primarily involve an individual|s opinions and beliefs about what should be or what is desirable[ In other words\ values are not considered to be constant or static entities[ Additionally\ they are not typically tied to a particular code or standard and\ as such\ are often considered to be primarily situationally!determined "Mone and McKinley\ 0882#[ The prevailing utilitarian values perspective in organizational research proposes that actions