Journal of Contemporary Administration

Who Is Management Research For?

Fabio Vizeu — 2022-09-14

Objective: this paper was written as an essay in a proposition from Adorno, as well as a text influenced by critical and Philosophical hermeneutic. It presents a fundamental question that we have rehearsed: Who is Management research for? Provocations: we take as a basis the reflection on the discursive and social differences between the academic field and the world of meaning of management practitioners, to realize how contradictory our practices and institutionalized structures of communication become, as they do not meet the fundamental objective of science, that is, the transformation of the reality in which it focuses. Conclusions: the hermeticism of our area is not an unsolvable problem, it is enough to see that in other fields the applicability of scientific knowledge happens. Our community needs to wake up to this, before society realizes that, as it is, we are expendable.

It Has Gone and No One Knows if It Will return: The Progressive Disappearance of the Original Theory

José Henrique de Faria — 2022-05-12

Objective: the objective of this text is to question the academic production that focuses on either the descriptions about the researched subject, with reflections in which the immediate form of the object predominates, or the use of pre-existing theoretical models and conceptions, which end up directing the investigation to the presupposition contents. Provocation: ‘productivist logic’ has thrown theory away from the academic spotlight, giving more value to pragmatic objectivism and the undeniable evidence provided by empiricism. The so-called ‘scientific productivism’ is based either on the immediate determination of the object in the constitution of knowledge or on a direct result of the thought assumption about reality: in both cases, knowledge would emerge from the absence of the permanent interaction between the object and the consciousness, dialectically mediated by thought. Elaborating original theory requires from the ‘Epistemological Act’ a permanent and critical investment in the reality and in the theories available. In the absence of this investment, descriptive analyses and those that reproduce early theoretical assumptions, as if the existing theory were immediately a condition of representation of the reality, fulfill a formalistic ritual and do not reveal the multideterminations of the objects in its concrete constitution. Conclusion: it is urgent to reaffirm the place of theory as the objectively elaborated form of the representation of reality, as a requirement of the scientific condition beyond description, phenomenal mentions, notes, narratives, forms, assumptions, and ideological mysticism. The theory is not the dogmatic guarantee of definitive true knowledge, but of the in-depth, methodologically oriented elaboration of the onto-practical and epistemic condition.

Conscious Capitalism and Construction of Humanized Relationships: A Study in a Credit Cooperative from the Sensemaking Perspective

Célia Dorigan de Matos Furlanetto — 2022-08-30

Objective: this study aims to understand how the purpose of a credit union organization focused on humanizing financial relations can be institutionalized from the stakeholder’s interpretation and action. Theoretical Framework: this purpose was analyzed based on the concepts of an integrated perspective in terms of sensemaking, construction of humanized relations, conscious capitalism, and organizing, which allowed for a contextualized and non-linear reflection on the studied phenomenon, going beyond formal and tangible parameters of the manifested expectations of the cooperative’s strategic guidelines. Methods: the research strategy is a case study for presenting the uniqueness of a specific phenomenon, using content analysis as a technique from the data triangulation of semi-structured interviews, participant observation, and document analysis. Results: as a result, it was possible to conclude that the legitimacy of the cooperative’s strategic purpose goes through an interpretative process of individuals and their different roles that, when interacting among themselves, provide a basis for actions toward incorporating the purpose with a focus on humanized relations because it is a process of social construction and retrospective re-signification of strategic parameters that delineate behaviors. Conclusions: this study provides an expanded look at a specific phenomenon (humanized financial relations) in organizations guided by particular and universal principles (credit unions) that, while competing with non-cooperative financial institutions (banks), need to balance economic and social interests, without ceasing to be competitive.

Open Government in São Paulo: An Analysis of Open Public Policies

Daniel José Silva Oliveira — 2022-07-22

Objective: to identify how and when the open government principles, specifically transparency, participation, and collaboration, are being incorporated into the public policy cycle phases in local governments. Theoretical framework: theories related to public policy analysis and open government. Method: a single case study with an incorporated focus on the open government initiative of the São Paulo City Hall, where three distinct public policies were analyzed from a theoretical-analytical framework built by integrating the approach of the public policy cycle with the three open government principles. Results: the study showed that in none of the analyzed policies there was the full incorporation of these principles in the five phases of the policy cycle and that little progress was made regarding the requirements for them to be considered open policies. Conclusions: the study contributes to narrowing the theoretical-methodological gap concerning the effectiveness of open government initiatives. The method offers conditions to be applied in different realities and can be used in future research to better understand how open government principles are being incorporated into public policies of governments that have signed open government commitments.

Temporal Flow of Technology Transfer Capability: Beyond the Lifecycle

Cleverton Rodrigues Fernandes — 2022-07-14

Objective: to analyze the behavior of technology transfer capability over time in Brazilian public institutions of higher education. Method: the extended case method was adopted in two national institutions of reference in technology transfer management. Interviews, observations, and document analysis were the main techniques for data collection. The analysis was performed using also the techniques of the extended case method. Results: became evident that the behavior of a capacity, during its existence, may not obey a linear curve, but vary over different stages and undergo different mutations. Conclusions: it was concluded that the lifecycle of a capability would not be exactly equivalent or limited to the heuristic of a biological lifecycle with predictable entropy until the total collapse. Unlike this, considering the environment and the conjuncture, a capability can come back to exist as long as it is understood as opportune and feasible. The findings advance the understanding of the technology transfer process that now has the explanatory potential of dynamic capabilities.

Building a State Capacity Index for Municipal Governments of Minas Gerais

Gustavo Bastos Braga — 2022-07-11

Objective: state capacity constitutes the set of essential competences that government institutions have (or should have) in order to achieve public objectives. However, the multidimensional nature of the ‘state capacity’ construct implies a major research challenge for the scientific academy and a major management challenge for public managers. Theoretical framework: the creation of State Capacity Index (SCI) follows the same procedures as the Human Development Index (HDI). Method: the search for variables (proxies) that are pertinent to the Brazilian context and that empirically allow the measurement and operationalization of state capacity was carried out through extensive bibliographic research. Therefore, SCI allowed the general examination of the ‘state capacity’ construct. Results: the results are disparities in the municipal administrative structures of Minas Gerais. Conclusion: it is suggested the need for incentives and investments in the dimensions that cover the State Capacity Index, namely: administrative, political, and fiscal.

Longitudinal Effects of Sectoral Concentration on the Brazilian Insurance Market Performance

João Vinícius França Carvalho — 2022-06-08

Objective: to evaluate the concentration in different Brazilian insurance lines of business (LOB) and analyze effects on premium revenues and profitability. There is evidence that the Brazilian insurance market holds the main characteristics of an oligopoly. Theoretical approach: it is based on Industrial Organization, a field of Economics that is dedicated to studying the market structure, importance, and arrangement of firms, in addition to impacts derived from concentration on competition. Method: regression models for panel data are used. The data are official from the Brazilian insurance market, arranged monthly between Feb./2003 and Dec./2018, totaling 82,443 observations from 135 insurers operating in 17 segments. For each segment, the main concentration indices in the literature were calculated and their effects on premiums and profits were estimated. Results: increases in concentration indices are related to reductions in insurance companies’ premiums revenues, but without a reduction in profits. However, if an insurer is among the market's largest, and is part of an economic group, the effects are nullified and the concentration can generate increases in premiums’ revenues and profits, suggesting that it exercises some market power by raising premiums, reinforcing the structure-conduct-performance hypothesis. Conclusions: the sectorial concentration is greater in life than in non-life LOB, with evidence pointing to the four largest insurance companies, with the highest collections between 2003 and 2018, holding 90% of the market share. In addition, the collection in the life LOB, is more than 80% of the average, concomitant with a drop in the total number of players.

Multiple Cases of Pro-life Volunteering in a Neo-Aristotelian Ethical Approach

Maria Clara Figueiredo Dalla Costa Ames — 2022-05-11

Objective: to understand the relationship between moral virtues and phronesis from volunteers of civil society organizations that work for the protection and assistance of pregnant women, known as pro-life. Theoretical framework: the perspective of virtue ethics is presented in the neo-Aristotelian approach as a theoretical framework, according to which human conduct is understood as based on the dispositions of character, the moral virtues, as well as through practical wisdom or phronesis, with the purpose (telos) of human flourishing. Method: the research strategy consists of a qualitative multiple case study approach in Brazilian (n = 2) and Spanish (n = 2) organizations, focusing on their volunteers (n = 17 participants). The field was accessed through participant observation, semi-structured face-to-face interview, and documentary research, thematically analyzing their content with the aid of NVivo software. Results: the results suggest how they act and learn virtues throughout their experience as volunteers – prudence (phronesis), temperance, courage, and hope – to know how to approach, advise, judge, or restrain judgment and help pregnant women establish priorities and perspectives for the future (foresight). Evidence supports the relationship of the phronesis-temperance and phronesis-hope relationship to balance current priorities and future expectations. Conclusion: different contexts may reveal similar virtues in volunteer practices. The results reinforce the assumption of the unity of virtues. Evidence, limitations, and research possibilities are discussed.

Agency of Objects in the Food Consumption Abandonment

Ivana Graziele Gregory — 2022-04-25

Objective: we aim to understand how objects influence the practice of abandonment of unhealthy food categories. Theoretical background: previous studies explore different typologies to explain variations in anti-consumption behavior and abandonment of product categories from a consumer-oriented perspective. In this study, we follow the new materialism onto-epistemology to recognize that objects have agentic capacities in anti-consumption practices. Specifically, we highlight the abandonment of certain food categories as the interruption of an intersubjective relationship involving consumers and objects. Method: our empirical plan adopts an interpretive perspective to describe practices of abandonment of soft drinks and meats and the way consumers build new relationships with these objects. Data collection makes use of in-depth interviews. Results: the results indicate that the nutritional and production characteristics of these foods negatively impact the lives of consumers, other living beings, and nature. To mitigate this impact, consumers adopt abandonment practices attempting to break with the procedural relationship and the effects of these objects on their lives and on nature. Conclusions: theoretical contributions reveal that the procedural relationship between objects and consumers operates at different levels of complexity, according to the agentic capacity of the object, limiting or making easy the abandonment of unhealthy food categories.

Use of Photography in Organizational Research: Legitimacy and Potential

Henrique Muzzio — 2022-05-19

Objective: to discuss the use of the photographic method to produce evidence in organizational research and contribute to the debate so that the method achieves greater legitimacy from the nuances that delimit the organizational field. Proposal: present characteristics, approaches of the photographic method, limitations, and possibilities of its application as a means of producing evidence in organizational research with rigor, relevance, accuracy, and impact, discussing practical aspects of photographic analysis and the dilemmas that accompany the researcher in its use. Examples of reflections helpful to researchers when using photographic analysis are also presented. Conclusions: given the restricted use of photography in organizational research, the reduced scope of articles published with photographic analysis, and the potential that the method has to produce evidence, the essay encourages actors in the field to expand the use of photography. Moreover, the article discusses how photography can achieve more significant space among researchers, editors, reviewers, and readers. Given the broad theoretical and methodological scope in which photography can be applied and the contemporary technological facilities, overcoming this reduced use is more related to the need for greater legitimacy of photography by peers than the specifics of the method.

Board of Directors’ Interlocks: A Social Network Analysis Tutorial

Claudine Pereira Salgado — 2022-04-14

Objective: the literature on board interlocks has increased in recent years, focusing on understanding board composition and its relationships with other companies’ boards. Such studies usually require multiple procedures of data extraction, handling, and analysis to create and analyze social networks. However, these procedures are not standardized, and there is a lack of methodological instructions available to make this process easier for researchers. This tutorial intends to describe the logical steps taken to collect data, treat them, and map and measure the network properties to provide researchers with the sources to replicate it in their own research. We contribute to the literature in the management field by proposing an empirical methodological approach to conduct board interlocks’ research. Proposal: our tutorial describes and provides examples of data collection, directors’ data treatment, and the use of these data to map and measure network structural properties using an open-source tool — R statistical software. Conclusions: our main contribution is a tutorial detailing the steps required to map and analyze board interlocks, making this process easier, standardized, and more accessible for all researchers who wish to develop social network analysis studies.

Like, Share, and React: Twitter Capture for Research and Corporate Decisions

Djeison Siedschlag — 2022-09-13

Context: social media have an immense amount of information, being a space for its dissemination. Individuals, online connections, are able to filter or give visibility to certain information, to the detriment of others. The central problem lies in monitoring posts and reactions aimed at corporate actions and strategies. In addition to this monitoring, companies can make decisions based on the data collected. Objective: to develop and structure a social media management tool. Methods: to achieve the general objective, the article was developed in three main steps. The first was to suggest a free software script for capturing and initial analysis of Twitter posts. The second step was to categorize this analysis and identify resources and competencies needed by companies. Finally, actions to be taken by companies for social media management were suggested. Results: the developed script enabled the automated extraction of data, which were stored in a database for analysis and management of online interactions. The actions were proposed based on the case study developed. Conclusions: in the practical field, this study contributes to the process of extracting data from Twitter by proposing a new script for capturing data, identifying the main categories of influence of digital activists and monitoring social media through strategic actions. By demonstrating that the script is effective in extracting data, it is possible to carry out further studies and implement the social media management monitoring process.

Technique for the Analysis of Social Participation in Councils: Operationalizing Concepts

Karla Sessin Dilascio — 2022-05-18

Objective: this technological article presents a research technique used in the analysis of deliberative decision-making processes reports and their related variables to provide insights for institutional design analysis for an empowered participatory governance. Method: a descriptive analysis was used to articulate a viable heuristic of creation of a research technique for the operationalization of selected variables from a previously concluded case study, identifying aspects of document analysis, coding content analysis, and qualitative-quantitative translation strategies. Results: an adapted binary decomposition technique proved to be useful in the identification of operational variables from the analysis of the decision-making processes reports that can contribute to the production of concise diagnosis on relevant aspects of the institutional design of community councils and its role for the participation of traditional communities in their decisions. Conclusion: this article contributes to the expansion of the analytical dimension of deliberative community councils reports, including those related to traditional communities decision-making processes, and can serve as a relevant instrument for researchers for measuring institutional mechanisms of participation, empowerment, and democratic deliberation. The institutional design of community councils can be therefore improved by an increased understanding of the modes of participation of traditional communities in decision-making processes within such deliberative democratic spaces.