Mapping Employees' Mental Maps of patronage

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Ph.D. Candidate in Human Resource Management, Department of Management, Faculty of Humanities, Si.C., Islamic Azad University, Sirjan, Iran

2 Professor, Department of Management, Faculty of Humanities, Si.C., Islamic Azad University, Sirjan, Iran

3 Assistant Professor, Department of Management, Faculty of Humanities, Payam Noor University, Tehran, Iran

Abstract

Objective: Patronage as a procedure and strategy derived from incorrect politicization and in fact one of the forms of political corruption in organizations. The present study was conducted with the aim of identifying employees' perceptions of this phenomenon to achieve in-depth knowledge.
Method: In this study, Zaltman's metaphor elicitation technique (ZMET) was employed as the research method. Fourteen employees of the organization were selected using purposeful concept sampling, focusing on individuals who were more likely to possess in-depth, experience-based insights into the phenomenon of patronage. The sample size was determined based on the principle of data saturation, where no new themes or concepts emerged after the 12th interview, and two additional interviews were conducted to confirm saturation. Although the sample size may limit statistical generalisability, it is considered sufficient for qualitative depth and conceptual richness, which are the primary goals of metaphor-based interpretive studies. Participants were asked to bring images that they believed represented the meaning of patronage. During the interview sessions, questions were asked about these images, and the responses were analysed to extract underlying concepts. To ensure validity and reliability, external peer review and participant validation (member checking) were conducted and confirmed.
Results: Review and analysis of the results indicated 12 concepts, which in order of frequency were: "the marginalization of organizational goals", "decreased job satisfaction and organizational commitment", "strengthening unhealthy intra-organizational networks", "fear of sponsors in attracting and promoting competent individuals in the organization", "predominance of materialistic view of external phenomena and individual self-interest", "valuing flattering activities among managers (organizational narcissism)", "the phenomenon of cronyism and nepotism", "the marginalization of transparency in the appointment process and mechanisms", "deepening of selection policies based on political intrigues", "tolerance towards administrative corruption", "weakness of expertise among managers", "tendency for high power of sponsors (with organizationally contaminated behaviors)" were identified as mental map structures, and drawing the cause-and-effect relationships between them based on interviews conducted and the opinions of subject matter experts led to the completion of the mental map as the final product of the process.
Conclusions: According to the findings, it can be concluded that patronage is one of the problems in the organization that can be prevented by using organizational strategies and creating integrated regulations.

Keywords

References

  1. منابع فارسی:

    1- ابویی اردکان، محمد؛ مهرگان، محمد رضا؛ معینی، علی؛ شامی زنجانی، مهدی و فهیمی, میترا. (1398). طراحی چارچوبی برای تعیین روش‌شناسی‌های مناسب تحقیق در عملیات به‌منظور معماری‌سازی سیستم. مدیریت صنعتی، 11(2)،207-232.

    2- اسدی­نژاد جمالی، محمد و زارعی، محمدحسین (1401). نقش مولفه های ساختاری بر فساد اقتصادی. تحقیقات حقوقی، 25(97)، 36-61.

    3- سعادت طلب, آیت؛ فتحی واجارگاه, کورش؛ فراستخواه, مقصود و خراسانی, اباصلت (1393). بررسی موانع آموزش و بهسازی اعضای هیأت علمی در دانشگاه‌های دولتی شهر تهران (مطالعه کیفی). مطالعات اندازه‌گیری و ارزشیابی آموزشی، 4(6)، 29-56.

    4- صفری، ثنا؛ صفری، اسماعیل؛ سرمدی، محمدرضا و فرج الهی، مهران (1397). برنامه‌ریزی استراتژیک آموزش از دور در دانشگاه پیام نور. آموزش عالی ایران، ۹ (۳)، ۱۱۵-۸۹

    5- فاضلی، حبیب الله و رجبی، هادی (1401). نهاد حامی پروری و سقوط دولت پهلوی دوم (در چهارچوب رویکرد نهادگرایی جدید). فصلنامه دولت­پژوهی، 8(29)، 21-45.

    6- فاضلی، حبیب اله و رجبی، هادی (1401). نهاد حامی پروری و سقوط دولت پهلوی دوم (در چهارچوب رویکرد نهادگرایی جدید). دولت پژوهی، 8(29)، 88-120.

    7- کیانی، ندا و رادفر، رضا (1394). شناسایی و رتبه‌بندی عوامل مؤثر بر بهره‌وری سازمان با استفاده از مدل دیماتل. مدیریت بهره‌وری، 9(4(35)، 111-130.

    8- همتی، محبوبه، علویان، مرتضی و کریمی، علی (1399). دولت پرببندال : چارچوبی تئوریک برای فهم فساد سیاسی. دوفصلنامه پژوهش سیاست نظری، 14(27)، 21-36.

    References:

    1. Abuei Ardakan, M., Mehregan, M. R., Moeini, A., Shami Zanjani, M., Fahimi, M. (2019). Designing a framework for determining appropriate methodologies for operations research for system architecture. Industrial Management, 11(2), 207-232. Doi: 22059/imj.2019.266782.1007497. (In Persian)
    2. Ambrose, M. L., & Schminke, M. (2009). The role of overall justice judgments in organizational justice research: A test of mediation. Journal of Applied Psychology, 94(2), 491–500. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0013203
    3. Asadinejad Jamali, M., Zarei, M. H. (2022). The role of structural components on economic corruption. Legal Research, 25(97), 36-61. Doi: 10.29252/jlr.2021.185503.1766. (In Persian).
    4. Berenschot, W., & Aspinall, E. (2022). How clientelism varies: Comparing patronage democracies. In Varieties of Clientelism (pp. 1-19). Routledge. Doi: 10.1080/13510347.2019.1645129
    5. Fazeli, H., and Rajabi, H. (2022). The patronage institution and the fall of the second Pahlavi state (within the framework of the new institutionalist approach). Quarterly Journal of State Studies, 8(29), 21-45. https://doi.org/10.22054/tssq.2022.41982.702 (In Persian)
    6. Fazeli, H., Rajabi, H. (2022). The Patronage Institution and the Fall of the Second Pahlavi State (within the Framework of the New Institutionalist Approach). State Studies, 8(29), 88-120. https://doi.org/10.22054/tssq.2022.41982.702 (In Persian)
    7. Fuenzalida, J., & Riccucci, N. M. (2019). The effects of politicization on performance: The mediating role of HRM practices. Review of Public Personnel Administration, 39(4), 544-569. DOI:1177/0734371X18758378
    8. Gao, Z. C. (2020). Efficient management of novel coronavirus pneumonia by efficient prevention and control in scientific manner. Zhonghua jie he he hu xi za zhi= Zhonghua jiehe he huxi zazhi= Chinese journal of tuberculosis and respiratory diseases, 43, 274-291. DOI:1177/0734371X18758378
    9. Groves, Kevin S. (2019). Examining the impact of succession management practices on organizational performance: A national study of U.S. hospitals. Health Care Management Review, 44 (4), 356-365. Doi: 10.1097/HMR.0000000000000176.
    10. Hemmati, M., Alavian, M., Karimi, A. (2020). The Perpetual State: A Theoretical Framework for Understanding Political Corruption. Bi-Quarterly Journal of Theoretical Politics Research, 14(27), 21-36. https://political.ihss.ac.ir/Article/12326. (In Persian)
    11. Karimakhani M, Rostamkhani F. Investigating the Relationship between Parenting Style and Resilience and Job Motivation through the Mediation of Incompatible Schemas in Employees of the Headquarters of the Ministry of Energy in Tehran. RJMS 2023; 30 (7) :1-10
      URL: http://rjms.iums.ac.ir/article-1-7840-fa.html
    12. Kiani, N., Radfar, R. (2015). Identifying and ranking factors affecting organizational productivity using the Dematel model. Productivity Management, 9(4(35), 111-130. https://journals.iau.ir/article_520956.html (In Persian)
    13. Lindberg, S. I., Bue, M. C. L., & Sen, K. (2022). Clientelism, corruption and the rule of law. World Development, 158, 105989. DOI: 10.1016/j.worlddev.2022.105989
    14. Meng X, Yang D. Work motivation associated with depression: The role of job burnout and mental
    15. Curr Psychol. 2022:1-12.
    16. Montazeri Mohammad, Tohfeh Mohammad Rasoul. Drawing the employees' mental map of human resource empowerment using Zaltman's metaphorical extraction technique (Case Study: Fars Province Electricity Distribution Company). JOURNAL OF HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT RESEARCH :2024,15 (4), 167-190 .
    17. Ochieng'Opalo, K. (2022). Formalizing clientelism in Kenya: from harambee to the constituency development fund. World Development, 152, 105794. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.worlddev.2021.105794
    18. Patidar, N., Gupta, S., Azbik, G., & Weech-Maldonado, R. (2016). Succession planning and financial performance: Does competition matter? Journal of Healthcare Management, 61(3), 215-227. DOI:1097/00115514-201605000-00009
    19. Pellicer, M., Wegner, E., Bayer, M., & Tischmeyer, C. (2022). Clientelism from the client’s perspective: A meta-analysis of ethnographic literature. Perspectives on Politics, 20(3), 931-947. DOI:10.1017/S153759272000420X
    20. Rothwell, W. (2010). Effective succession planning, ensuring leadership continuity and building talent from within. 4th ed, American Management Association, New York.
    21. Saadat Talab, A., Fathi Vajargah, K., Farastkhah, M., Khorasani, A. (2014). Investigating the obstacles to the education and improvement of faculty members in public universities in Tehran (qualitative study). Educational Measurement and Evaluation Studies, 4(6), 29-56. https://jresearch.sanjesh.org/article_14857.html (In Persian)
    22. Safari, S., Safari, E., Sarmadi, M. R., Faraj Elahi, M. (2018). Strategic planning of distance education at Payam Noor University. Higher Education of Iran, 9 (3), 89-115. Doi: 1001.1.20088000.1396.9.3.4.4 (In Persian)
    23. Veenendaal, W., & Corbett, J. (2022). Clientelism in small states: how smallness influences patron–client networks in the Caribbean and the Pacific. In Varieties of Clientelism(pp. 61-80). Routledge.
Governance and Development
Volume 6, Issue 1
April 2026
Pages 27-51

Files

Share

How to cite

Statistics