The Potential of “Frankfurtianess” of Habermas in Organizational Studies

This essay reflects on the convergence between Jürgen Habermas’ work and the theoretical framework put forward by the Institute of Social Research in Frankfurt, arguing in favor of the characteristics of the Frankfurt school in Habermas and pointing out research possibilities in the field of Organiz...

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Detalhes bibliográficos
Autores: Lara, Luiz Gustavo Alves de, Vizeu, Fábio
Formato: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2018
País:Brasil
Recursos:Fundação Getulio Vargas (FGV)
Repositorio:Cadernos EBAPE.BR
Idioma:portugués
inglés
OAI Identifier:oai:ojs.periodicos.fgv.br:article/71270
Acesso em linha:https://periodicos.fgv.br/cadernosebape/article/view/71270
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palavra-chave:Organizational Studies. Habermas. Critical Theory. Frankfurt School.
Estudios organizacionales. Teoría crítica. Habermas. Escuela de Frankfurt.
Estudos organizacionais. Habermas. Teoria crítica. Escola de Frankfurt.
Descrição
Resumo:This essay reflects on the convergence between Jürgen Habermas’ work and the theoretical framework put forward by the Institute of Social Research in Frankfurt, arguing in favor of the characteristics of the Frankfurt school in Habermas and pointing out research possibilities in the field of Organizational Studies (OS). We discuss the essential theoretical aspects of the work by Horkheimer (1975) “Traditional and Critical Theory,” and produce a critique on the use of generational chronology as the main criterion for understanding the intellectual movement of the Frankfurt School. The methodology is based on the critique of the interpretation using the philosophical hermeneutics (RICOEUR, 1990) and observes the propositional nature of an interpretation offered in theoretical essays (MENEGUETTI, 2011). To support the provocative proposition of this work, we establish a dialogue with authors such as Bottomore (2001), Freitag (2004), Nobre (2004), and Melo (2013)) discussing a non-generational characterization of the Frankfurt School’s members and the proximity of Habermas in relation to the pioneer works on the Critical Theory. We believe that (i) the re-reading of the emancipatory purpose (HABERMAS, 2002); (ii) the deconstruction of the impartiality of the scientific knowledge (HABERMAS, 1987); (iii) and the incorporation of the philosophy of language into the Frankfurtian social criticism (HABERMAS, 2012) are important contributions of Habermas to the Frankfurt’s critical theory. As for a proposal for the field of organizational studies, this esseay concludes that recognizing Habermas as a Critical Theory scholar of the Frankfurt School may constitute a new research agenda for the field. The contribution of this essay lies in helping researchers in the field of Organizational Studies to understand Habermas’ work differently and not as a non-critical or utopian production. In this perspective, it is clear that Habermas’ intellectual production is politically engaged in contemporary social problems, which is a dimension neglected by the researchers of the field of Organizational Studies in Brazil.