Coercion Versus Care: Using Irony to Make Sense of Organizational Surveillance

Abstract

We identify two "discursive formations" of organizational surveillance (two coherent but competing systems of representation) that figure prominently in organization and management studies: the "coercive" formation and the "caring" formation. These formations have allowed communities of researchers who share basic theoretical assumptions to build distinctive bodies of knowledge about surveillance's purpose and consequences. We propose an ironic approach that allows us to consider the coercive and caring aspects of organization surveillance together--a move that, by acknowledging ambiguity and paradox, allows a dialogue to develop between the two research communities.