title: Defining and assessing organizational culture.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Using theories from several disciplines, the concept of organizational culture remains controversial. Conflicting definitions, lack of semantic clarity, and debate over the most appropriate methods for assessing organizational culture have led to disagreement over the value and validity of such inquiry.
  
  
  METHODS
  This paper reviews development of the concept of organizational culture and methods for assessing organizational culture, focusing on the healthcare environment.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Most work on organizational culture concerns the traditional corporation. Therefore, some adaptation to the central goals and focus of a human services organization are necessary before application to healthcare settings.
authors.affiliation: Jefferson School of Nursing, Thomas Jefferson University, PA, USA. bellot.jennifer@gmail.com
authors.forename: Jennifer
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bellot
mesh_terms: D003695:Delivery of Health Care / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006801:Humans; D015401:Nursing Administration Research; D009742:Nursing Theory; D015279:Organizational Culture; D009626:Terminology as Topic; D017132:Workplace / Q000458:organization & administration*