Life Style, Learning Structure, Congruence and Student Attitudes

Abstract

Recently, Friedlander (1972) has suggested a contingency approach to the study of organizations. He suggests that organizational structure and processes should be contingent upon the nature of the people in the organization. The two major concepts in Friedlander's framework are Life Style and Organizational Structures and Processes. Life style is described as encompassing the values, beliefs and perspectives of the individual and is composed of three dimensions; Formalistic, Sociocentric, and Personalistic. Organizational Structure is described as the social and technological linkages and relationships in the organization and is composed of three dimensions; Bureaucratic, Collaborative, and Coordinative. The formalistic life style dimension reflects values that an individual's actions be guided by directives from formal authorities. Control of the individual's behavior should come from rules, regulations, policies and procedures. Direction should come from those in top positions in the hierarchy. The individual grows and develops by following the established order. The major values reflected in the sociocentric dimension are that an individual should act only after he has reached agreement with others through interpersonal interaction. Mutually derived and accepted group norms should serve as the basis of control of the individual's behavior. The individual grows and develops through the interaction with others. Finally, the values reflected in the personalistic dimension are that an individual's action be guided by his own experience and feelings. Growth and development should result from increased self-awareness. Vinton (1972) has applied Friedlander's framework to the university setting and found that certain learning structures are more compatible with certain life styles than others. He used Friedlander's concept of life style and developed a concept of learning structures as a counterpart to the organization structure and process dimension. The three learning structures he identified are: Teacher-Centered, Class-Centered, and Self-Directed. Teacher-centered learning structure is characterized by highly programmed activities, authority is vested in the teacher, communication is one