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What contribution can insights from the complexity sciences make to the theory and practice of development management?

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  • Chris Mowles

    (University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield, UK)

  • Ralph Stacey

    (University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield, UK)

  • Douglas Griffin

    (University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield, UK)

Abstract

This paper offers a critique of existing ways of understanding management practice in International Non-Government Organisations (INGOs) and compares and contrasts these with insights drawn from the complexity sciences. The authors put forward a more radical interpretation of complexity theory as it might be taken up in organisations rather than suggesting that it can be accommodated with existing theories based in systems thinking. They suggest that understanding the process of organising as contingent, paradoxical and experiential could profoundly refocus the attention of managers and practitioners alike and lead to an intensifying of practice as more consciously political. In being more open to others, including their partners and beneficiaries, staff in INGOs may be more ready to change themselves and their ideas. At the same time, the authors point out the existing dynamics of current practice and the way it perpetuates itself, no matter how problematic. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Suggested Citation

  • Chris Mowles & Ralph Stacey & Douglas Griffin, 2008. "What contribution can insights from the complexity sciences make to the theory and practice of development management?," Journal of International Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 20(6), pages 804-820.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:jintdv:v:20:y:2008:i:6:p:804-820
    DOI: 10.1002/jid.1497
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Chris Mowles, 2007. "Promises of transformation: just how different are international development NGOs?," Journal of International Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 19(3), pages 401-411.
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    Cited by:

    1. Van Hecken, Gert & Bastiaensen, Johan & Windey, Catherine, 2015. "The frontiers of the debate on Payments for Ecosystem Services: a proposal for innovative future research," IOB Discussion Papers 2015.05, Universiteit Antwerpen, Institute of Development Policy (IOB).
    2. Luz E. Bohórquez Arévaloa & Angela Espinosa, 2015. "Theoretical approaches to managing complexity in organizations: A comparative analysis," Estudios Gerenciales, Universidad Icesi, January.
    3. Robin Mansell, 2010. "Power and interests in developing knowledge societies: exogenous and endogenous discourses in contention," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 29255, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    4. Godofredo Ramizo Jr, 2016. "From Schism to Synthesis: The Off-Centre Radical-Reformist Role of Development Management," Development Policy Review, Overseas Development Institute, vol. 34(6), pages 789-807, November.
    5. Ann-Merete Iversen & Anni Stavnskær Pedersen & Lone Krogh & Annie Aarup Jensen, 2015. "Learning, Leading, and Letting Go of Control," SAGE Open, , vol. 5(4), pages 21582440156, October.
    6. Marta Cecilia Jaramillo-Mejía & Dov Chernichovsky, 2015. "Información para la calidad del sistema de salud en Colombia: una propuesta de revisión basada en el modelo israelí," Estudios Gerenciales, Universidad Icesi, January.
    7. James Copestake & Richard Williams, 2014. "Political-Economy Analysis, Aid Effectiveness and the Art of Development Management," Development Policy Review, Overseas Development Institute, vol. 32(1), pages 133-153, January.
    8. Yunjeong Yang, 2022. "Empowering or managing the locals? Within‐organizational power relations and capacity building of Korean NGOs in Cambodia," Journal of International Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 34(6), pages 1130-1144, August.
    9. Gemma Sou, 2022. "Aid micropolitics: Everyday southern resistance to racialized and geographical assumptions of expertise," Environment and Planning C, , vol. 40(4), pages 876-894, June.
    10. Gulrajani, Nilima, 2009. "The future of development management: examining possibilities and potential," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 24206, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    11. Lena Gutheil, 2020. "Why adaptive management will not save us: Exploring management directives' interaction with practice," Public Administration & Development, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 40(2), pages 129-140, May.

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