Fear and loathing in Harrogate: or an exploration of the mutual constitution of organisation and members
Ford, Jackie M. Harding, Nancy H.
Ford, Jackie M.
Harding, Nancy H.
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2008
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There have been no studies in organization research of conferences as part of the world of work. This paper describes a reflexive ethnographic study of one management conference. It finds that upon arrival at the places and spaces of the conference processes of self-making as conference attendee are set in train. Self-making subsequently takes place within processes of domination and subordination, achieved through fear, infantilization, disparagement and seduction. Reading this through the lens of Freudian-informed interpretations of the Hegelian master/slave dialectic, the paper argues that conferences are one of the means of control over academic, managerial and professional employees. Control is achieved through dialectical interactions between conference and employee.
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Ford J.M. and Harding N.H.(2008). Fear and loathing in Harrogate: or an exploration of the mutual constitution of organisation and members. Organization. Vol. 15, No. 2, pp. 233-250.
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