Administrative Theory and Practice in Developing Countries: A Synthesis

Abstract

Support for this research was provided by the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research and the Faculty of Management Research Committee, McGill University. The authors are indebted to Janice M. Beyer and three anonymous ASQ reviewers for their valuable comments on an earlier draft. Over 70 percent of the world's population lives in developing countriesthatface challenging administrative problems in trying to survive. Therefore, what managers and administrators in these countries do, or fail to do, is of great significance for the building of a universal administrative science. Reviewing 94 articles on organizations in developing countries, the authors looked for patterns in the structure of the research described (i.e., methodology, theoretical topics, geographical coverage, authors' affiliations) and in its substance, with special attention to the degree of correspondence (or fit) between Western-based theory and data provided. The most important findings are: (1) there is a great deal of interest in the utilization of administrative theory and techniques in developing countries; (2) authors of articlesthatfocused onthetechnical core (organizational tasks and technology) were most likelyto find no significant problems in the use of conventional theory in developing countries (strong fit); and (3) those authors focusing on the organization's relationship with its environment were more likely to find serious difficulties (weak fit) in the use of Western ideas, necessitating major adjustments to conventional theory.