Social Representations of a Railroad: A Case Study on the Railroad Drivers from Minas Gerais to Minas Gerais
Name: UBIRATAN CORREA RIBEIRO DE OLIVEIRA
Publication date: 31/03/2006
Summary: The present dissertation investigates the social representation of a railroad with great historic expression and strong regional characteristics, under the view of some class of workers, the engineers. Considering its initial proposal, the main goal is to describe and interpret Victoria a Minas Railroads symbolic representation, verifying the influence of these representations on the daily work at the investigated institution. Thus, this research develops a reflection on the ruling writings that give priority to conducting aspects on the study of the organizations and suggests a distinguished approach to the matter, with a view on the symbolic dimension existing on the organization. Thus, this dissertation uses a theoretic referential based on social representation theory, on organizational symbolism, on culture in organizations and on management as a social practice. This research focuses on three distinguished situations: the first intends to describe through bibliographic and document analysis, the EFVM historic peculiarities, from its idealization until nowadays, inserting the scenery to be studied; the second, based on discussion analysis methodology, describes the social representations, which emerges from the workers social practices; the third seeks to interpret the representation identified under the light of the chosen theoretic mark. Five representations of the railroad were identified as a result: "hope and prosperity"; "pertaining and recognition"; "power"; "status"; and "the trampoline". At first the result of this representation analysis reveals a "cultural distinguishing" condition of the studied class, WHERE the group unites around their own cultural elements, trying to keep the class impermeable, maintaining its status quo. On second "cultural fragmentation" emerges, WHERE social actions generate different meanings toward same object, allowing new symbolic representations, which interfere directly on the group harmony, generating a transitory condition, never known before. We observe that, beside prescription, beside what is seen at first sight and even beside "appearance", there are symbolic meanings and representations of the railroad, which have determinant influence on the workers perception of the organization. That shows the urgent need of management techniques and culture analysis, as well as organizational symbolism sighting the diversity, complexity, plurality and subjectiveness pertaining to people sharing the same organization environment.
