THE ESSENCE AND ATTRIBUTES OF INTER-ORGANIZATIONAL RELATIONS

• Main Author: Magdalena SZYDEŁKO
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Rzeszow University of Technology 2018-12-01
• Series: Humanities and Social Sciences
• Subjects: inter-organizational relations; interactions; bonds; attributes of relationship
• Online Access: https://hss.prz.edu.pl/hss/article/view/216
• ISSN: 2300-5327; 2300-9918

This paper describes a valid, important and interesting scientific issue concerning the inter-organizational relations, limited to the theoretical interpretation and attributes of this category. The abilities to build, develop and improve the relations between organizations are currently one of the key conditions of their effective external growth. The theory of inter-organizational relations is a response to the needs of contemporary organizations that intend to develop various forms of cooperation in order to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of the performed processes, achieve additional synergistic effects and to improve their competitive advantage. The purpose of this paper is to present the essence and attributes of inter-organizational relations in the context of the researchers' dispute concerning the interpretation of this category. The indicated cognitive gap requires a significant epistemological effort and conceptual work. The purpose of the work has determined the research methods, including the analysis of theoretical considerations and results of the research on inter-organizational relations contained in the literature, observation of the economic practice and deductive reasoning. Due to the lack of unanimity of the researchers in defining the inter-organizational relations, the following two meanings of this concept have been proposed: sensu largo and sensu stricto. They have been introduced with reference to the presented definitions of the three concepts: relations, interactions and bonds. Assuming two perspectives in the interpretation of the described category is a new point of view in the continuing dispute of management theoreticians specialized in inter-organizational relations.