Examining the role of inspiration in contemporary work organisations

The research presented in this thesis examines the role of inspiration in contemporary work organisations by exploring various meanings attributed to the term inspiration in organisational settings. This research is based on the interpretive philosophical paradigm concerned with understanding of the social world as it is at the level of subjective experience and utilises philosophical hermeneutics as a methodological approach of elucidating inspiration in organisational contexts; whereas philosophical hermeneutics emphasises the importance of conditions in which pre-understanding of inspiration evolves sufficiently to draw technical conceptions of inspiration in organisational settings. The material for developing a progressive understanding of inspiration has been provided by hermeneutic interviews carried out with volunteers at different levels of organisational hierarchy from three participating organisations to identify the various meanings of inspiration and their use, as well as gain a richer understanding how inspiration affects people at work. The findings stemming from participants' accounts were then used to conceptualise inspiration in organisational settings. The results of the study indicate that inspiration is significant to the context of contemporary work organisations and is often intentionally sought out at all organisational levels. The account on inspiration created in this study signifies that currently use of inspiration in organisational contexts lacks theoretical underpinning, wherein inspiration is often merely used in a flexible lexical way to add either clarity or ambiguity to any communication, depending on its context. Overall, having explored inspiration in organisational settings, this study has identified it as an emerging concept, which fundamentally exists and is recognised in contemporary work organisations. The developed conceptualisations of inspiration allow for the rethinking of various aspects of organisational contexts and leadership and motivation theory in particular. The theoretical underpinning for inspiration laid out in this study can be used as a basis for future research