Public Administration Perspective

Designing a chaos management model, a model for chaos prediction and management in Iranian public universities.

Document Type : Based on PhD Thesis

Authors

1 PhD Student in public administration, Department of Management, Faculty of Management and Economics, Lorestan University, Khorramabad, Iran

2 Professor, Department of Management, Faculty of Management and Economics, Lorestan University, Khorramabad, Iran.

3 Associate Professor, Department of Management, Faculty of Management and Economics, Lorestan University, Khoramabad, Iran.

Abstract

Purpose: In the ever-changing and dynamic landscape of business and management, traditional approaches are usually unable to navigate the complexities of the modern world. This is where chaos theory enters the management arena, offering a fresh perspective on how organizations can thrive in what seems to be an increasingly chaotic world. In this context and in line with chaos management in the business world, The formation of chaos is a new field in the literature of management and organization. The current research was conducted with the aim of designing the chaos management model in the studied public universities of Lorestan universities.
Design/ methodology/ approach:  This research is a qualitative research based on the Grounded theory, relying on the philosophical foundations of the interpretivism school. The research expert community consisted of managers and professors of the management department of Lorestan University, 19 of whom were selected as members of the statistical sample using the purposeful sampling method. The identifiers of the chaos management model were collected using a semi-structured interview and analyzed using the Strauss and Corbin coding method (386 key concepts, 40 sub-categories and 15 main categories).
Research Findings: Based on the findings of the research, the classified data were divided into three categories of creating factors, predictors of the formation of chaos and countermeasures and results, which causal conditions, contextual conditions and intervening conditions in the category of antecedents of chaos and strategies in The category of predictors of chaos formation and countermeasures were included in the model. The concept of chaos was chosen as the central phenomenon, which includes four categories of strange attractions, fractal geometry, dynamic process, and butterfly effect. Causal conditions were placed in the form of two categories of internal factors and external factors. Intervening conditions in the form of strengthening factors on meritocracy, justice and education and weakening factors indicated lack of financial resources and lack of necessary information. The five main categories of  political conditions, cultural factors, economic factors, social factors, and legal and regulatory factors  were identified as the background conditions for the model. Chaos intelligence, changeability, changemaking and recreation and development of human resources were chosen as strategies. As a result strategies of anticipating and dealing with chaos, positive consequences such as organization development and transformation, innovation, chaos management, agile management and systemic approach can be expected.
Limitations & Consequences: This research is associated with the limitations of qualitative research. The theoretical view of the researcher in the categorization of qualitative data and the intervention of his subjectivity, experience and knowledge in the categorization and naming of categories is one of the limitations of the present research, which has been tried to reduce the mentioned limitation by using the help of evaluators outside the research to examine the analysis of qualitative data.
Practical Consequences: Considering that the correct and optimal strategy against possible chaos is to have a proactive and forward-looking view, not a reactive approach after the event, and without doubt, predicting and recognizing the signs of chaos in time will equip the organization with chaos intelligence, therefore relying on the theory of chaos and accessibility to a chaos formation model, thinking managers can enable  universities to identify chaotic and uncertain fields and environments even in small periods of time, and based on the chaos management model, they can predict chaos and prevent crises.
Innovation or value of the Article: While the term chaos may conjure up perceptions of disorder and confusion, chaos theory provides a framework that helps managers understand and utilize the inherent complexity of their organizations. In this article, chaos theory in management and how to use it to increase organizational flexibility and adaptability in facing internal and external issues and problems has been investigated. Also considering the lack of domestic and foreign researches in the field of the predictability of chaos formation and the lack of a native model in the above field, it can be said that the above research is innovative in the theoretical field and expansion of the dimensions and indicators of the chaos management model.
 
Paper Type: Original Paper
 

Keywords

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Public Administration Perspective
Volume 16, Issue 1 - Serial Number 61
April 2025
Pages 38-68