A Comparison of Union Consciousness in Centralized and Participatory Unions

Pennsylvania State Univ University Park, University Park PA

Investigators

Abstract

0129920 Durrenberger This research tests the consequences of centralized vs. de-centralized organizations on union locals that represent health care workers in Chicago and in Pennsylvania. Using consensus analysis based on triads tests the researchers will test the hypothesis that union consciousness will be more developed among union members in more de-centralized organizations than in the more centralized ones. The results will advance our understanding of the relationship between the organization of power and the organization of cognitive structures, the relationship between organization structures and patterns of thought. The methodological contributions will be to further the development of consensus as a social science measurement technique, to relate it to ethnographic knowledge. The practical contributions will be to assess the differences between centralized and participatory organizations in general, and to inform unions about the implications for their members of these structures.