Carman in Vancouver, BC writes, “I’m very interested in Gareth Morgan’s metaphors of organization: 1) machine 2) organism 3) brain 5) culture 6) political system 6) psychic prison 7) instrument of domination 8) Flux and Tranformation. Each metaphor has enormous explanatory utility and each is worth discussing in some detail, if you like.”
That sounds very interesting! Let’s use this thread to discuss further. Which metaphor would you like to explore first?
Lisa
Perhaps we could begin with “Brain.” While many are inclined to see the brain as somehow separate from and higher than the rest of the body, Morgan proposes that “intelligence” is, in fact, distributed throughout the entire body—such as the legs hands, feet.
In short, there is no master, centralized intelligence. The brain, says Morgan, “is linked to quasi-independent processes linked to a minimal set of key rules making the whole system appear to have an integrated, purposeful, well-coordinated intelligence.”
This makes sense to me. The intelligence of a symphony orchestra for example, is not confined to the conductor but is rather “distributed” throughout the system. I suggest that society has overstated the role of the brain and understated the integrated functioning of the rest of the body. The separation of “brain” (manager) and “hand” (worker) is a popular practice in organizations. Viewing the entire organization as “brain” however, might be more productive (and realistic).
Your thoughts?