Abstract
This thesis explores the under-researched topic of emotions in Chinese organizations from a systems-psychodynamic perspective, both theoretically and empirically. It is made up of three papers, two of which use psychoanalytically-informed inductive interviews with 46 participants from a broad range of Chinese organizations, including schools, private and state-owned companies, and multinational companies based in China. Paper one contributes to a theory of emotional life in organizations characterized by a culture of repression. Paper two presents a case study of fear and contributes to the methodological apparatus of organizational studies by applying psychoanalytic techniques for interviews and their interpretation. The theoretical paper three creates a new strand of research in paternalistic leadership by incorporating into this management construct the emotional dimension by focussing on the unconscious dynamic of envy.In interpreting the empirical data, a general tendency was found for organizations to restrain or even to eliminate emotions, which was accompanied by fear of emotions. This fear was strategically used as a management tool, interacting with workplace authoritarianism, ambiguity and idealization. The marginalization of emotions leads to a working culture of long hours and the mindless pursuit of materialistic things. Specific management phenomena derived from the above dynamics include a 996 work style (employees work each day from 9 am to 9 pm, 6 days per week), nepotism, excessive power concentrated in the leadership role, ambiguous discourse, and idealized work incentives.
Chinese leadership, often conceptualized as paternalism, is a style that combines strong discipline and authority with fatherly benevolence and moral integrity. This thesis argues that it is more beneficial to draw on the construct of paternalistic leadership by looking at the emotional dynamics in each leader-follower interaction, rather than to examine it as a leadership prototype or to use it for quantitative measurements. Using a psychodynamic model of envy in giving-receiving relations, it understands envy as intimately intertwined with both leadership and the familial self. An unbalanced relationship between those who give and those who receive can lead to the deprivation of self, which in turn can cause massive unconscious envy. An excess of envy is an important indicator of whether a paternalistic leader is benign and sustainable, or malicious and unsustainable.
| Date of Award | 14 Sept 2022 |
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| Original language | English |
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| Supervisor | Juani Swart (Supervisor) & Chenjian Zhang (Supervisor) |