The ‘missing masses’ of resistance : an ethnographic understanding of a workplace dispute

Knights, David and McCabe, Darren John (2016) The ‘missing masses’ of resistance : an ethnographic understanding of a workplace dispute. British Journal of Management, 27 (3). pp. 534-549. ISSN 1045-3172

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Abstract

The literature on resistance has largely attended to human agents whether in terms of collective action or individual subjectivity. Through focusing on the ‘missing masses’ or mundane material artefacts, this paper seeks to show how actor network theory (ANT) can advance our understanding of resistance. Drawing upon ethnographic research during a workplace dispute, this study explores how material artefacts as well as human actors reflect heterogeneous relations that together successfully mobilized opposition to the imposition of compulsory redundancies in a UK university. In so far as the mingling and entanglement of humans and non-humans have been largely neglected in accounts of resistance, we believe that an ANT informed account contributes in distinctive ways to this literature.

Item Type:
Journal Article
Journal or Publication Title:
British Journal of Management
Uncontrolled Keywords:
/dk/atira/pure/subjectarea/asjc/1400/1400
Subjects:
?? general business,management and accountingstrategy and managementmanagement of technology and innovationbusiness, management and accounting(all) ??
ID Code:
80237
Deposited By:
Deposited On:
18 Jul 2016 11:28
Refereed?:
Yes
Published?:
Published
Last Modified:
30 Aug 2024 23:54