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In The Process Of Becoming The Organizational Culture Of The Metropolitan Academic Library

Organizational culture may be defined as the shared norms, values, and beliefs of an organization. The culture expresses itself through symbols and sagas. Organizational culture shapes the behavior of those within the organization and provides a lens through which its members can interpret reality. This study sought to define the organizational culture of the Metropolitan Academic Library. The study was guided by Schein‘s five levels of cultural assumptions: assumptions about external adaptation issues; assumptions about internal integration; assumptions about the nature of truth and reality; assumptions about the nature of time and space; and assumptions about human nature, activity, and relationships. In order to triangulate data, I gave the librarians and library technical assistants of the Metropolitan Academic Library the Martin Culture Survey. I then conducted a multi-day, on-site visit, where I interviewed members of the Metropolitan Academic Library, made observations about the library, and performed document analysis. I found the culture of the Metropolitan Academic Library to be ―in the process of becoming.‖ The culture present in the library was not deep or rich; however, I did find some shared values, symbols, and sagas. With a recent turnover in administration, change was a dominant story of the Metropolitan Academic Library. The librarians and library technical assistants valued campus engagement, the people within the library, and service to the library patrons. These values find symbolic recognition in the coffee shop located in the library, the Christmas party, and the reference desk. Popular sagas of the Metropolitan Academic Library include the story of its humble origins and the building renovation

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:ucf.edu/oai:stars.library.ucf.edu:etd-3079
Date01 January 2011
CreatorsMartin, Michael Jason
PublisherSTARS
Source SetsUniversity of Central Florida
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
Typetext
Formatapplication/pdf
SourceElectronic Theses and Dissertations

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