Organizational effectiveness: Toward an integrated model for schools of nursing

Assessing the quality of academic institutions involves much more than the opinions of peers or experts. Examination of the organizational effectiveness of schools of nursing has been neglected. Current emphasis on assessing educational outcomes has diverted attention from the construct, organizational effectiveness, and more comprehensive theory driven approaches to evaluation. This review of the organizational effectiveness literature focuses on the major assessment models: goal attainment, human relations, open systems, internal processes, culture, and life cycle. Attention is given to the influence of organizational maturation on an integrated model of organizational effectiveness. Selected macrolevel studies of schools of nursing are examined, and an agenda for nursing research is proposed. Copyright (C) 1997 by W.B. Saunders Company.