Sexuality in organizations

François de March (1)

1 LIRSA - Laboratoire interdisciplinaire de recherche en sciences de l'action

Purpose – This article aims to examine the theme of “sexuality in organizations” according to the theory of eroticism of Georges Bataille (1897-1962). Design/methodology/approach – The author reviewed Bataille’s essays in order to identify the salient points of his analysis of eroticism, before applying them to the organizations. Findings – The anthropologic notions of prohibition and transgression (antagonistic yet complementary) facilitate a different view of the opposition formulated in critical management studies as between desexualization and resexualization. These notions also open up quite a number of lines of research in the analysis of the sexuality of organizations. Research limitations/implications – These lines of research call for further work particularly in the basic ground work. Originality/value – Georges Bataille’s insights have been used very rarely in organizational analysis, even those of critical stream in management. The theme of sexuality in organizations has been largely ignored by mainstream.

Mots clés: Sexuality in organizations; Georges Bataille; Taboos; Eroticism; Erotism; Prohibition and transgression

Domaines: Gestion et management

François de March. Sexuality in organizations. Society and Business Review, 2014, 9 (1), pp.74-84. ⟨10.1108/SBR-02-2013-0018⟩. ⟨hal-01385134⟩