The Exploratory Study Of Organization Taboos In Business Organizations

Organization taboos are referred to the prohibitions that are not offended in the organizations. They exist in clear rules or hidden ways, which can be experienced and restrict organization members. This study tries to explore organization taboos in business organizations and how to perceive organizational taboos. The author interviewed 109 respondents, including both managers and employees. Two types of organization taboos were concluded in the interviews: visible taboos and invisible taboos. Furthermore, five topics were distinguished in the invisible taboos: folk taboos, moral norms, authority and influence, colleague relations and organization identity. Subsequently, the author explored the function and management connotation of organization taboos and suggested that, organization taboos were referred to a behavioral expectation specifying that organization members should not behave in given circumstances. They restrain the organization members' actions and thoughts, build up organizations' order and greatly influence organization members.According to the interviews,the author showed five channels to perceive organizational taboos: the base organizational information about social environment, culture, rules and regulations, inner manuals;organization practice; informal organizations and channels; the top management's leading styles and lessons learned. Once organization taboos are violated by organization members, they will exert intangible influence. As an individual, only if he perceives and abides by organization taboos, he will be really involved in the organization.