Anyone who has spent time in an organization knows that dysfunctional
behavior abounds. Conflict is frequently avoided or pushed underground
rather than dealt with openly. At the same time, the same arguments
often burst out again and again, almost verbatim. Turf battles continue
for extended periods without resolution. People nod their heads in
agreement in meetings, and then rush out of the room to voice complaints
to sympathetic ears in private. Worst of all, when people are asked if
things will ever change, they throw up their hands in despair. They feel
like victims trapped in an asylum.

And people often are
trapped. But they are not trapped by some oppressive regime or
organizational structure that has been imposed on them. They are not
victims. In fact, people themselves are responsible for making the
status quo so resistant to change. We are trapped by our own behavior.

Researchers
and practitioners have often reflected on these things, but there is a
puzzle. On the one hand, there is substantial agreement that these traps
are counterproductive to effective performance. On the other hand,
there is almost no focus on how organizational traps can be prevented or
reduced.

This book argues that whatever theory is used to
describe and understand such organizational traps should be used to
design and implement interventions that reduce and prevent them. Argyris
is one of the world's leading management scholars whose work has
consistently shed light on organizational problems. This book is
essential reading for MBAs, managers, and consultants.