Pinpointing the deeper structures, processes and mechanisms of change within interactional fields

Abstract

This paper seeks to understand how we might identify the “underlying logics” and “deeper structures” that bring about change in phenomena. We argue that this represents a move from a classical perspective focusing on discrete exchange, and that this requires a processual or relational approach to understanding in contrast to a substantialist or variables-based approach. One way of advancing our understanding of the emergence of change is to consider the site of interaction. That is the interactional field where actors act and interact with other actors and entities as well as the broader environment; where resources are exchanged, imported or exported; where change is instigated and transferred across time and space. We suggest interactional fields are the sites of plasticity where change actually takes place. To understand the causal structure and processes taking place in an interactional field we draw on the concept of natural and social kinds. We discuss how interactional fields are located in time and space, which influence and are influenced by the trajectories of change and development. While we believe this applies to change in general we apply our thinking to organizational change.