Into the labyrinth: tales of organizational nomadism

Jerzy Kociatkiewicz () and Monika Kostera ()
Additional contact information
Jerzy Kociatkiewicz: University of Sheffield [Sheffield]
Monika Kostera: UJ - Uniwersytet Jagielloński w Krakowie = Jagiellonian University = Université Jagellon de Cracovie, University of Leeds

Post-Print from HAL

Abstract: Labyrinths and mazes have constituted signi cant spaces for tales of transformation, from prehistoric designs through the myth of the Minotaur and the pilgrimage design in Chartres cathedral to contemporary novels and pictorial representations. Labyrinths and labyrinthine designs can also commonly be found in present-day organizations. is text, based on an ethnographic study as well as on an analysis of academic discourse, explores their signi cance as symbol and as physical structure. Drawing upon the notion of transitional space, it presents labyrinths as an indelible part of human experience, an archetype, and a sensemaking tool for understanding and explaining organizational complexity. e unavoidable presence of labyrinthine structures is presented as a counterpoise to the reductionist tendency towards simpli cation, streamlining and staying on-message, allowing or demanding space for re ection, doubt and uncertainty.

Keywords: Organizational space; Identity; Symbolism; Archetype; Labyrinth (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2015-01-01
Note: View the original document on HAL open archive server: https://hal.science/hal-02423775v1
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

Published in Organization Studies, 2015, 36 (1), pp.55-71. ⟨10.1177/0170840614546154⟩

Downloads: (external link)
https://hal.science/hal-02423775v1/document (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:hal:journl:hal-02423775

DOI: 10.1177/0170840614546154

Access Statistics for this paper

More papers in Post-Print from HAL
Bibliographic data for series maintained by CCSD ().