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Resistance is a label generally applied by managers and consultants to the perceived behaviour of organization members who seem unwilling to accept or help implement an organizational change. Herman (1990) sounds a cautious note in this regard:
There is a distinct possibility that the organisational development and training functions have been seduced by the "systems viewpoint", and have lost sight of the importance of developing and training autonomous individuals (p. 13).
"Resistance" is used typically as a label by those who perceive themselves as agents of a change and may not be used of themselves by those who are the targets of the label. In this article, I will review some of the current approaches to understanding resistance to change and argue that the "person-centred approach" of Carl Rogers is a useful way of understanding and dealing with issues of individual resistance to organizational change.
SOURCES OF INDIVIDUAL RESISTANCE TO ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE
Watson (1969) defines resistance as "all forces which contribute to stability in personality or in social systems" (p. 488). Zaltman and Duncan (1977) provide a similar definition: "We define resistance here as any conduct that serves to maintain the status quo in the face of pressure to alter the status quo" (p. 63). In their view resistance may be caused by the change agents and may be justifiable in cases where the change may be harmful to individuals or to a group. It is useful to remember that every change involves some form of loss and letting go something that is familiar. Change requires going from the known to the unknown. It dissolves meaning and challenges assumptions which an individual has built up about himself or herself (Tannenbaum and Hanna, 1985).
What then are the sources of resistance to organizational change? Kotter and Schlesinger (1979) list the common sources: parochial self-interest, misunderstanding and lack of trust, different assessments of what change is needed and a low tolerance for change. An examination of their list shows that, in their view, the sources of resistance exist in both the personality and the environment.
In regard to sources of resistance in the personality, Watson (1969) describes nine sources of resistance to change: homeostasis (the body's inbuilt regulating mechanism towards wholeness and stability); habit (whereby the familiar...