Introductory Essay—Improvisation as a Mindset for Organizational Analysis

Karl E. Weick
Additional contact information
Karl E. Weick: School of Business Administration, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109

Organization Science, 1998, vol. 9, issue 5, 543-555

Abstract: The purpose of this essay is to improve the way we talk about organizational improvisation, using the vehicle of jazz improvisation as the source of orienting ideas. I start with two brief descriptions of the complexity involved when musicians compose in the moment. Then I review several definitions intended to capture holistically what is happening when people improvise. Next, I take a closer look at selected details in improvisation, namely, degrees of improvisation, forms for improvisation, and cognition in improvisation. These understandings are then generalized from jazz to other settings such as conversation, therapy, and relationships of command. I conclude with implications for theory and practice.

Date: 1998
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (50)

Downloads: (external link)
http://dx.doi.org/10.1287/orsc.9.5.543 (application/pdf)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:inm:ororsc:v:9:y:1998:i:5:p:543-555

Access Statistics for this article

More articles in Organization Science from INFORMS Contact information at EDIRC.
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Chris Asher ().