What lies beneath the surface? The hidden complexities of organizational change for sustainability in higher education

被引:168
作者
Hoover, Elona [1 ]
Harder, Marie K. [2 ]
机构
[1] Univ Brighton, Sustainable Dev Coordinat Unit, Brighton BN2 4GJ, E Sussex, England
[2] Fudan Univ, Dept Environm Sci & Engn, Shanghai 200433, Peoples R China
关键词
Sustainability; Higher education; Organizational change; Meta-ethnography; Qualitative synthesis; UNIVERSITY; CAMPUS; CONCEPTUALIZATIONS; SCIENCE;
D O I
10.1016/j.jclepro.2014.01.081
中图分类号
X [环境科学、安全科学];
学科分类号
08 ; 0830 ;
摘要
Higher education institutions have an important role to play in the transition towards a more sustainable global society. In this context, many universities have embarked on a journey towards 'sustainability', and there has been increasing research on related processes of organizational change. There is evidence that 'human' factors have an important role to play in change processes and numerous case studies capture how these occur, but there is little synthesis of qualitative research in this area. We present a metaethnography of 13 qualitative studies from peer reviewed academic publications. Using a grounded approach, we identified nine themes which we then synthesized in order to develop an in-depth understanding of organizational change processes for sustainability. This led to the identification of a number of hidden contradictions and tensions that seem to characterize such processes. These contradictions and tensions lead to recurring barriers to change and issues that can undermine the very sustainability of change processes. These issues are also influenced by the perception of who has power to affect change, networks and institutional structures. We discuss the implications for research and practice and suggest the need to recognize existing tensions and contradictions through reflexive practice and genuine dialogue as well as developing flexible structures and moving towards 'double loop' learning within institutions. The meta-ethnography presents a look beyond the surface of what has become an increasingly important area of institutional change in higher education, helps to inform practice, and contributes to emerging research imperatives. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
引用
收藏
页码:175 / 188
页数:14
相关论文
共 69 条
[1]  
Allen A., 1999, Sustainability and University Life, P105
[2]  
Alvesson M., 2002, Understanding organizational culture
[3]  
[Anonymous], 2001, ACAD TRIBES TERRITOR
[4]  
[Anonymous], SUSTAINABILITY U LIF
[5]  
Bardati D.R., 2006, International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, V7, P57, DOI DOI 10.1108/14676370610639245
[6]  
Barlett P., 2004, SUSTAINABILITY CAMPU, P29
[7]  
Barlett P.F., 2004, SUSTAINABILITY CAMPU
[8]   Reason and Reenchantment in Cultural Change Sustainability in Higher Education [J].
Barlett, Peggy F. .
CURRENT ANTHROPOLOGY, 2008, 49 (06) :1076-1097
[9]  
Barth M., 2013, ERSCP EMSU C IST
[10]   Synthesising case-study research - ready for the next step? [J].
Barth, Matthias ;
Thomas, Ian .
ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION RESEARCH, 2012, 18 (06) :751-764