Four comparative case studies of socioecological responsibility: Organizational paradigms and environmental outcomes within the agroecological business syste

The study examines which characteristics differentiate organizations across a descriptive continuum that ranges from an old paradigm to a new paradigm with regard to socioecological responsibility. The theory focuses on recognizing organizational distinctions across four dimensions (viewpoint, principle, process, and outcome) of six stakeholder relationships (competitor, customer, employee, government, natural environment, and supplier) for placement on Colby's five paradigm continuum between the frontier economic paradigm and a new ecological paradigm. The thesis of the study is that firms operating under eco-development or deep ecology paradigms generate outcomes that are more oriented toward global socioecological goals such as sustainable development.;The theoretical orientation of the study is one in which an organization is viewed as a living system within multiple socioecosystems. The systemic impact of an organization's activity upon its contiguous sociotechnical and ecological systems is an indicator of an organization's socioecological responsibility and orientation toward global social goals such as sustainable development. An integration of Total Quality Management theory with Aldo Leopold's land ethic suggests that an organization's relationship with the land is qualified not only by its own performance, but also by the environmental practices of its suppliers.;The study utilized a qualitative multiple case study research design to facilitate a comparative analysis of four firms in the small-grain milling industry by gathering data on each organization's viewpoint, principles, processes and outcomes. Data collected from interviews with organizational leaders are combined with an analysis of steps in the product chain, and corporate and public documents to assess the organization's leadership paradigm. The study yields a paradigmatic profile, or a mapping of the organization's core values, and a measure of each organization's behavior in the natural environment by performing a qualitative socioecological audit.;The findings of the study reveal that a significant difference exists among environmental actors that operate under different paradigms. The findings have important implications for domestic and international efforts to marshall organizational activity toward global social goals and suggest that new paradigm organizations may represent a form of social, economic, or organizational innovation that is highly coherent with prevailing notions of sustainable development.