The Center for the Sociology of Organizations (CSO) (french: Centre de Sociologie des Organisations) is a research laboratory in
social science
Social science is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of societies and the relationships among individuals within those societies. The term was formerly used to refer to the field of sociology, the original "science of soc ...
s located in
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
. At first the Center focused on topics related to the state and the French government; soon after, it expanded its range of research into public and private organizations, both French and international.
Overview
The Center was founded in 1961 by
Michel Crozier
Michel Crozier (6 November 1922, Sainte-Menehould, Marne – 24 May 2013, Paris) was a French sociologist and member of the ''Académie des sciences morales et politiques'' from 1999 until his death. He also was a fellow of the American Academy ...
, who served as its director until 1993. In 2014 the director is Christine Musselin. The Center is staffed by senior researchers, research associates, and PhD students. The Center research focuses primarily on the structure and action of complex
organizations
An organization or organisation (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is an entity—such as a company, an institution, or an association—comprising one or more people and having a particular purpose.
The word is derived from ...
, research often touches also on
economic sociology
Economic sociology is the study of the social cause and effect of various economic phenomena. The field can be broadly divided into a classical period and a contemporary one, known as "new economic sociology".
The classical period was concerned ...
and
public sociology
Public sociology is a subfield of the wider sociological discipline that emphasizes expanding the disciplinary boundaries of sociology in order to engage with non-academic audiences. It is perhaps best understood as a ''style'' of sociology rath ...
. There are five major research programs focusing on
risk
In simple terms, risk is the possibility of something bad happening. Risk involves uncertainty about the effects/implications of an activity with respect to something that humans value (such as health, well-being, wealth, property or the environme ...
,
higher education
Higher education is tertiary education leading to award of an academic degree. Higher education, also called post-secondary education, third-level or tertiary education, is an optional final stage of formal learning that occurs after completi ...
and
scientific research
The scientific method is an empirical method for acquiring knowledge that has characterized the development of science since at least the 17th century (with notable practitioners in previous centuries; see the article history of scientific m ...
,
health
Health, according to the World Health Organization, is "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease and infirmity".World Health Organization. (2006)''Constitution of the World Health Organiza ...
,
sustainable development
Sustainable development is an organizing principle for meeting human development goals while also sustaining the ability of natural systems to provide the natural resources and ecosystem services on which the economy and society depend. The des ...
,
technology transfer
Technology transfer (TT), also called transfer of technology (TOT), is the process of transferring (disseminating) technology from the person or organization that owns or holds it to another person or organization, in an attempt to transform invent ...
, changes in them organization of
government
A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state.
In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...
.
In 1976, the Center became a laboratory under the
National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS). Since 2001, it has been under the joint sponsorship of CNRS and
Sciences Po
, motto_lang = fr
, mottoeng = Roots of the Future
, type = Public university, Public research university''Grande école''
, established =
, founder = Émile Boutmy
, a ...
. Since 2012, the Center is an integral part of the Interdisciplinary Laboratory evaluation of public policies (LIEPP) of Sciences Po, recognized as a LabEx (Laboratoire d' excellence - Laboratory of Excellence) funded under the Future Investments program.
In 2012, the Center was evaluated in 2012 by l'ARES, the French agency responsible for the evaluation of higher education and research institutions; the agency found that the number and quality of publications demonstrate very strong scientific activity among its members: 105 items in journals with peer listed by AERES or in international databases, including nearly 40% in English; 17 scientific papers, 130 book chapters, and 16 principals works.
References
Notes
Further reading
Constructing Quality: The Classification of Goods in Markets*https://web.archive.org/web/20131231110935/https://sase.org/2009---paris/reflections-from-around-the-globe-at-science-po_fr_83.html
*https://web.archive.org/web/20140815034124/http://sgpp.ac.id/facultystaff/read/detail/3
*https://web.archive.org/web/20160304000507/http://www.mpifg.de/aktuelles/nachrichten_details_en.asp?ID=525
Michel Crozier. The Bureaucratic Phenomenon (Originally published: Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1964)* Local Orders. The Dynamics of Organized Action. Translated by Emoretta Yang. Greenwich, CT: JAI Press, 1997
[Reviewed by Frank Dobbin (Princeton University) in Contemporary Sociology, Vol. 27, No. 6. (Nov., 1998), pp. 600-601]''Bruno Latour: Hybrid Thoughts in a Hybrid World'' By Anders Blok, Torben Elgaard Jensen
''Political Corruption: A Handbook'' edited by Arnold Joseph Heidenheimer, Michael Johnston, Victor T. Le Vine, Victor Le Vine
* Jens Beckert and
Christine Musselin
Christine Musselin (born 10 February 1958) is French sociologist specializing in the sociology of organizations.
From 2002 to 2010 she was the director of the Center for the Sociology of Organizations (Paris).
From 2011 to 2018 Musselin heade ...
(eds) Constructing quality: the classification of goods in markets. Oxford : Oxford University Press, 2013
External links
Center for the Sociology of Organizations official website
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Research institutes in France
Organizations based in Paris
Organizations established in 1961