Lewin Meets Confucius: A Review of the OD Model of Change

Abstract

Questions have been raised in recent years about the cultural limits and overall efficacy of organization development (OD) to address the current and emerging problems of contemporary organizations. This discussion attempts to speak to both issues by examining the OD model of change, that is, Lewin's three-stage change process of unfreezing, movement, and refreezing. When the OD model is compared to the model(s) of change based in East Asian and Confucian cultural traditions, different assumptions about change are revealed. The analysis suggests that different culturally based models of change exist and are likely to lead adherents to employ different change methods and approaches. Consideration of both models as valid points to a possible synthesis that would address developmental and transformational change processes. More research into the change models and assumptions inherent in different cultures and cosmologies is needed not only to inform current OD practice but to expand the range of change theories and methods available for dealing with contemporary organizational issues.