Rethinking Religion in Organizations: Unpacking the Interplay Between Visible Practices and Invisible Mechanisms

Géraldine Galindo (), Hugo Gaillard (), Caroline Cintas () and Lionel Honoré ()
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Géraldine Galindo: ESCP Europe - Ecole Supérieure de Commerce de Paris
Hugo Gaillard: ARGUMans - Laboratoire de recherche en gestion Le Mans Université - UM - Le Mans Université, UM - Le Mans Université
Caroline Cintas: IAE Rouen - Institut d'Administration des Entreprises (IAE) - Rouen, UNIROUEN - Université de Rouen Normandie - NU - Normandie Université, NIMEC - Normandie Innovation Marché Entreprise Consommation - UNICAEN - Université de Caen Normandie - NU - Normandie Université - ULH - Université Le Havre Normandie - NU - Normandie Université - UNIROUEN - Université de Rouen Normandie - NU - Normandie Université - IRIHS - Institut de Recherche Interdisciplinaire Homme et Société - UNIROUEN - Université de Rouen Normandie - NU - Normandie Université
Lionel Honoré: IAE Tours Val de Loire - Institut d'Administration des Entreprises (IAE) - Tours Val de Loire, UT - Université de Tours, VALLOREM - Val de Loire Recherche en Management - UO - Université d'Orléans - UT - Université de Tours

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Abstract: Religion in organizations is understood as a dynamic continuum structured by two dimensions: its degree of visibility and its ambivalent role as both a resource and a constraint. This perspective foregrounds the centrality of invisible dimensions as constitutive of organizational life. Rather than opposing visibility and invisibility, this EMJ Management Focus section shows how they are continuously co-constructed and how their interplay shapes both individual experiences and collective regulation. The three contributions illustrate distinct positions within this matrix: religion as an invisible collective resource structuring coordination, as a negotiated and contested identity shaping individual coping strategies, and as a double-edged invisible resource influencing emotional regulation and performance. Across these configurations, religion does not occupy a fixed position but rather continuously shifts across visibility and constraint, actively shaping the conditions under which action and coordination become possible. This leads to a reconceptualization of management itself not as the governance of visible practices and behaviors, but as the regulation of invisible forces that sustain, orient, and constrain collective and individual actions.

Keywords: religion at work; religion in organization; management focus; D&I (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026-05-20
Note: View the original document on HAL open archive server: https://hal.science/hal-05628679v1
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Published in European Management Journal, 2026, ⟨10.1016/j.emj.2026.05.004⟩

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:hal:journl:hal-05628679

DOI: 10.1016/j.emj.2026.05.004

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