Practicing Organization Development: A Guide for Leading Change: A Third Edition

THE HELIOTROPIC EFFECT AND OTHER INSIGHTS FOR ORGANIZATION DEVELOPMENT

In biology, the heliotropic effect refers to the phenomenon whereby plants track the sun as it moves across the sky. In a human sense, it is the tendency to both seek and draw on sources of positive energy (Cooperrider, 1990). Empirical evidence confirms that human beings have a natural inclination toward, and thrive most when exposed to, the positive (Cameron, 2008b).

When considering questions of organizational change, the idea of heliotropism fits with the Lewinian concept of force fields (Lewin, 1951). In essence, Lewin postulates that change occurs when the forces against change are overcome by the forces for change. Where heliotropism exists, it serves as an energy ...