The Aston Programme, Vol. 3

Booknews

The series presents the contributions of outstanding research programs whose sustained output of work has had a defining effect on the development of the field of business and management as a discipline. The Aston Programme, begun in 1961 in Birminham, UK, developed a framework and methodology for making cross-sectional comparative analyses of organizations by considering context, organization structure, performance, and organizational behavior. This three-volume set brings together disparately published research papers of the Aston studies and their developments, and the critiques they have attracted over a period of more than 30 years, from 1963 to 1997. Volume I is concerned with the Aston study and its conceptual framework, the results of the first study, the National Study, and further replications in other business and non-business organizations. Volume II focuses on international comparisons between firms in different countries; and Volume III deals with extensions to group and individual level studies, methodological issues, and critiques. Contains a name index but no subject index. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknew.com)