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Legitimate peripheral irritations

Thomas Basbøll (Department of Management, Politics and Philosophy, Copenhagen Business School, Frederiksberg, Denmark)

Journal of Organizational Change Management

ISSN: 0953-4814

Article publication date: 30 March 2012

669

Abstract

Purpose

In 2010, the author published a practical critique of some of Karl Weick's writings, to which Weick offered a rejoinder. The purpose of this paper is to use his response as an occasion to reflect on the rhetorical conditions of critique in the sensemaking tradition.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper provides a rhetorical analysis of Weick's response to the author's critique, showing that it is directed at the ethos of the critic. For the purpose of the analysis, ethos is conventionally defined as the character, competence and goodwill of the speaker.

Findings

The analysis shows that Weick's dismissal of the author's critique suggests the lack of a “dwelling place” (the primordial sense of “ethos” in pre‐Socratic Greek) for critical scholarship in sensemaking research.

Originality/value

All scholarly communities need a space for the critical evaluation of the claims their members make. In an attempt to establish such a place, the author counters the standard disciplinary pedagogy of sensemaking, which is inspired by Lave and Wenger's “legitimate peripheral participation”, with a call for legitimate peripheral irritation.

Keywords

Citation

Basbøll, T. (2012), "Legitimate peripheral irritations", Journal of Organizational Change Management, Vol. 25 No. 2, pp. 220-235. https://doi.org/10.1108/09534811211213900

Publisher

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Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2012, Emerald Group Publishing Limited

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