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Organization Studies
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Karl Weick and the Aesthetics of Contingency

Eric M. Eisenberg

University of South Florida, USA

In this essay, I reflect on Karl Weick’s best-known texts as a means of tracing his influence on the field of organizational communication. From this perspective, his main contributions are: (1) recognizing the centrality of language and interaction in the social construction of organizational realities; and (2) focusing squarely on communicative praxis as a site for improving our understanding of cognition and culture. Beyond these substantive contributions, an ‘aesthetics of contingency’ pervades Weick’s writings. I maintain that this perspective presents a much needed alternative to seeking meaning and stability through the pursuit of various fundamentalisms.

Key Words: Karl Weick • contingency • ambiguity • organizational communication • equivocality • sensemaking • heedful interrelating

Organization Studies, Vol. 27, No. 11, 1693-1707 (2006)
DOI: 10.1177/0170840606068348
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