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'This book overturns the conventional thinking about organization and identity and puts in its place a wholly new theoretical synthesis. It is not just an extraordinarily incisive commentary on modern life but it is also a key to thinking about identity in new ways which will prove an indispensable guide as we move beyond social constructionism. Remarkable' - Nigel Thrift, Vice-Chancellor, The University of Warwick

Explores the process by which historically specific "self- interested" behaviors were conceptualized. It is contended that "self- interested" behavior is in fact real, but it is not a fixed & timeless human essence. It is demonstrated how, in a particular historical era & in relation to particular objectives, a specific type of self-interested personhood was invented. The historical context in which this mode of "self-interest" appeared as a normative creed whose dissemination was characterized as a possible medium for salvation is examined. The singular notion of "self" promoted by this creed, & its performative function as a strategy intended to establish social pacification, is emphasized. The chapter's overall aim is to suggest a more sympathetic treatment of the historical plurality of self-interested behaviors. K. Coddon

This book focuses on the state of Organization Theory, its purpose, object, and practical relevance. In recent years, disquiet has mounted within the field of organizational analysis, broadly defined, about the overly theoretical and a-or anti-organizational state of Organization Theory and its consequent lack of practical purchase, not least in the light of pressing economic, social and political concerns that are often profoundly organizational in nature. The book argues that predominant contemporary modes of theorising within the field, and in particular the stance associated with them, have had the effect of occluding and dissolving Organization Theory's core object - formal organization - and, as a consequence, dissipating its practical focus and reach. The book seeks to contribute to the goal of reviving Organization Theory as a practical science of organizing and rehabilitating its core object 'formal organization' through a re-examination and re-assessment of the outlook, comportment and attitude - stance - animating its classical antecedents. 0