Participative Management: Concepts, Theory and Implementation
Abstract
The Journal of Applied Behavioral Science Participative Management: Concepts, Theory and Implementation By Ervin Williams (Editor). School of Business Administration, Georgia State University, Georgia Publishing Services Division, Atlanta, 1976. 285 pp., $9.95. Reviewed by Mark Plovnick, Clark University The subject of participative management, or more generally leadership styles, has received a great deal of attention over the years in academic as well as work arenas. The book consists of a collection of readings designed to "... bring together in one source, basic participative management theory, a broad range of research on the subject, and a number of methods and tech- niques to assist the practitioner in its implementation." The readings are presented in three categories, as suggested by the book title: a section with articles describing conceptual approaches to participa- tive management, a section on relevant empirical studies, and a section with articles describing problems and techniques associated with implementation. This categorization may be a good idea, but is difficult to do, as many of the articles could be positioned in two or more of the sections. Overall, the articles presented do include a wide range of perspectives on the efficacy of a participative management approach including applications