Goal Displacement and the Intangibility of Organizational Goals

Goal attainment in organizations is maximized when goal displacement is minimal. Goal displacement is minimal where goals are tangible. If there is a high degree of goal intangibility, goal attainment can still be maximized by keeping tangible goals directed toward the central intangible goals, but it is reduced by displacing tangible goals to peripheral goals of system maintenance. The system of evaluation and sanctioning reinforces both the peripheral displacement of goals and the neglect of the claimed goals in favor of goals designed to maintain the organization primarily as an end in itself. Increasing goal attainment is difficult, since those who have most authority to support such activity frequently are not inclined to do so. Five major hypotheses and a model on the marginal propensity to perform are suggested for describing the relationships discussed in this analysis. W. Keith Warner is associate professor and A. Eugene Havens is assistant professor in the Department of Rural Sociology, The University of Wisconsin, Madison.