Curious about pragmatism in organization studies – but not sure where to start or continue?
 

We hope this page can give some orientation to PhD students and others interested in pragmatism and organization studies. It is not meant to provide an exhaustive list of information, but rather to share our own experiences, some of the relevant literature, resources and networks of pragmatism-oriented researchers to help you find your own way as you explore pragmatism.

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And if you are up for it, please feel free to connect and share your own experiences in this community!
 

Where can I find key readings on pragmatism?
 

We are continuously collecting a growing body of pragmatism readings that we present in an overview in the following spreadsheet. These readings include:

1. Publications within organization studies that incorporate pragmatism

2. Classical texts on pragmatism (Mead, Dewey, James, Peirce, Follet and Addams)

3. Handbooks and methodological papers inspired by pragmatism

4. Theses informed by pragmatism

Please let us know if you have any suggestions concerning other key readings.
 

Where can I learn to become a more pragmatist-oriented researcher?
 

Reading groups: We have our own reading group and many universities have their own reading groups on pragmatism that might be of interest to you.
 

Summer/Winter schools: There have been a few summer/winter schools relevant for those interested in pragmatism (if you have any leads; please let us know!). These might be interesting to look out for in the upcoming years:

1. Warwick Summer School on Practice and Process Studies

2. Society for the Metaphysics of Science summer school on pragmatism

3. Radboud Summer School: Analytical Pragmatism: An Introduction to Relational Social Science

4. KIN summer school in Amsterdam
    

Conferences and workshops: in 2025, our community organizes a track on EGOS  with supporting workshops.
 

Other (online) resources: There are plenty of online resources for those getting started with pragmatism. You might find these helpful to gain an overview of the landscape:

• Interactive quiz on the basics of pragmatism

• Beyond reading? Search Youtube for introduction videos and recorded lectures on pragmatism such as those by Philippe Lorino or Tim Ingold; or listen to podcasts such as the one by LSE’s Forum for Philosophy, or the one by Soziopod on John Dewey, democracy and education (only in German).

• Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy on pragmatism

• Abductive analysis
   

Where can I connect with other (groups of) scholars interested in pragmatism?
 

Join one of our friendly community events to explore if this group might be of further interest to you.

Moreover, you can have a look at other networks and societies such as:

Societies of classical pragmatism: John Dewey Society, William James Society, The Charles S. Peirce Society, The Mary Parker Follett Network

Broader networks: European pragmatism association, Nordic Pragmatist network, Pragmata

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Intrigued, but have more questions?
 

Join one of our community events or email Stijn (stijn.bruls@ru.nl) & Joana (joana.racine@unisg.ch) with your questions.

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