RIPCO is the first French- and English-language journal exclusively dedicated to the field of organizational behavior (OB). In 2005, a new editorial team oriented the journal’s work toward OB, specifically the study of behaviors relating to the individual, the dyad, the group, and the organization. These aspects integrate both the study of behavior within organizations and the behavior of organizations. To reflect this, in 2011, the journal changed its name to the Revue Internationale de Psychosociologie et de Gestion des Comportements Organisationnels (International Journal of Psychosociology and Management of Organizational Behaviors)—RIPCO for short.
The journal’s new editorial policy focusses on the study of the structure, functioning, and achievements of organizations, as well as the behaviors that groups and individuals adopt with the aim of making businesses more efficient. In other words, the journal aims to contribute to the understanding, explaining, and improvement of teams’ and individuals’ behaviors within organizations.
OB is an interdisciplinary field because it is fueled by research from a wide variety of disciplines: psychology (and social psychology in particular), ethnology, sociology, anthropology, philosophy, political sciences, economics, information science, decision-making theory, and so on. By drawing on these different areas of study, OB broadens our knowledge of organizational phenomena, without however questioning the liminal texts of psychology and industrial sociology.
RIPCO’s focus on OB therefore makes it an interdisciplinary journal. It publishes theoretical or empirical research on OB, regardless of the type of organization under study (private, state-run, or NGO), the methodology used, and the contexts in which these research papers are written.
Since its creation, the journal has published more than 900 articles. In 2008, it won the ADVANCIA CCIP Award (Paris). It is currently referenced in the following academic journal rankings in France: ESSEC (since 2009), HARZING (since 2010), FNEGE (since 2011), AERES (2012), and confirmed by HCERES (2015). It is also referenced in the following databases: Cairn, Google Scholar, ProQuest Social Science Database, ProQuest Sociology Database, and ProQuest Social Science Premium Collection.
RIPCO publishes academic articles from the disciplines of management science and the humanities in general (psychology, social psychology, psychosociology, sociology, ethology, economics, philosophy, and so on), provided that they shed new light on OB. It accepts submissions from all areas of management science, along with those on topics associated with management processes, including strategy, management control, human resource management (HRM), entrepreneurship, marketing, information systems, quality management, and logistics. All types of analysis are welcome: traditional narrative, systematic, meta-analytical, or scientometric literature reviews intended to summarize the scientific knowledge available on one subject; conceptual analyses proposing new theoretical frameworks; empirical analyses through a survey or case studies (on one individual, a team, or one or several organizations); and, finally, experimental or quasi-experimental studies in which the researcher intentionally tackles a phenomenon in order to observe the consequences (artificial situation) or in which natural causes lead him or her to investigate a particular phenomenon (real situation).
The journal also accepts discussion and scholarly debate articles, considering these necessary for advancing knowledge. However, these are reviewed using a special procedure that differs from that used to evaluate the articles submitted to the traditional academic section.
Levels of analysis
Individual level (micro-level): RIPCO publishes research dealing with the psychological processes responsible for key aspects of individuals’ behavior, which contribute one way or another to organizational life and efficiency. The characteristics and individual processes that are tackled the most by RIPCO include (but are not limited to): learning (processes, approaches, socialization, retroaction, learning organization, behavioral change), personality (types and features), emotions, stress (handling stress), selection methods, communication (impersonal and verbal communication, social desirability, organizational communication), perceptions (selectivity, gender, appearance, attractiveness, and discrimination), beliefs, reactions, values, satisfaction, involvement, professional behavior, judgment, emotional and social intelligence, trust, organizational justice, social exchanges, and well-being.
Group level (meso-level): Topics include the constitution of groups (size, type, type of tasks, formalization level, diversity, theory, team development, virtual teams), group composition, group structure (hierarchy, status), processes (development, leadership, decision-making, cooperating, handling conflicts and issues), power, political influences, teamwork, objectives, creativity, reflexivity, cohesion, adaptability, learning processes, interactions, negotiation, efficiency, quest for meaning, environment, and context.
Within this group level of analysis, RIPCO is particularly interested in the relationships between two people (i.e., on a dyadic level). This includes the supervisor–trainee, mentor–mentee, colleague–colleague, client–seller, and evaluator–evaluated dyads. Research published by the journal on the interactive behavior of dyads tends to focus, among other things, on links versus breaks (e.g., between two partners setting up a company, between a superior and a subordinate), interactions during interviews, and collaborative relationships.
More specifically, the journal encourages research on interpersonal relations, attraction vs. interpersonal repulsion, punishment vs. rewards, help and rejection and their interaction in the workplace, mentoring, coaching, trust, justice, social exchanges, networks, and so on.
Organizational level (macro-level): RIPCO encourages research about organizations—regardless of their size and objective—that looks at their structure, processes, and practices. These organizations could, for example, be multinational businesses, individual businesses, hospitals, associations, sports teams, or orchestras.
The following (but not exhaustive) list provides a few examples of topics related to the objectives, structure, and design of organizations: organizational conception, work design, jobs, organizational structures, roles, functional relations, vertical and horizontal specialization, organizational development, organizational changes, rise and fall, success and failure, culture and organizational ambiance, HRM, work conception, communication, collaboration, creativity, socialization, retroaction, consultations and interventions, leadership, planning of objectives, decision-making, handling issues, governance, power, authority, politics, efficiency, and performance.
The three levels of analysis presented above are not exclusive to each other; rather, they intermingle and strengthen one another. The social and cultural environment within which an organization’s actors evolve can also influence their behaviors. This explains the fact that common themes can be found in different sources at different levels of analysis (e.g., structures, processes, power, conflicts, decision-making, performance, workplace satisfaction, staff shifts and absences, diversity, careers and career development, work–life balance, identification, culture and organizational ambiance, interorganizational processes, national issues, and many others). It is also important to consider the elements linked to organizational context, such as the environment (globalization, diversity, ethics, CSR, and so on) and technology (information systems management, conception and analysis of sociotechnical systems, lean and team management, working from home, call centers, employee surveillance, and so on).
