Abstract :
This review identifies the defining features of rituals and their functions in organizations,
culminating in two key claims. First, organizational rituals can be described on
a spectrum based on the fullness and degree of their expression. Complete or ‘full’
organizational rituals possess a greater number and intensity of ritual features than
‘ritual-like’ activities. The efficacy of an activity corresponds to its alignment with the
features of full rituals. Ritual-like activities are therefore less powerful and more
frequent organizational events than full rituals. Second, it is theorized that rituals work
through three mutually reinforcing mechanisms: cognitive capture, emotional anchoring
and behavioural prescription. It is proposed that rituals work by channelling (1)
cognitive content, (2) affective responses and (3) behavioural activity toward the cultural
expectations of organizations and their members. Organizational rituals may be
characterized as standardized, rule-bound, predictable and repetitive behaviours
undertaken in conditions demanding explicit performance expectations. Rituals are
physically enacted to conform to a specified and invariable sequence, and are invested
with added significance through a combination of formality and symbolism. Nine
inter-dependent functions of rituals are specified,which are to: (1) provide meaning; (2)
manage anxiety; (3) exemplify and reinforce the social order; (4) communicate important
values; (5) enhance group solidarity; (6) include and exclude others; (7) signal
commitment; (8) manage work structure; and (9) prescribe and reinforce significant
events. These functions underline the role that rituals play as communication and
learning systems, drawing attention to what is important and helping to funnel the
thoughts, feelings and behaviours of organizational members. Organizational rituals
are particularly important because they not only illuminate organizational behaviour,
but also entrench or challenge existing cultural values.
