Private Management and Public Policy: Another Look at Interpenetrating Systems Theory

The book Private Management and Public Policy by Lee E. Preston and James E. Post has had a major impact on the business and society field. The authors introduced the concept of public policy into the field as an alternative way of thinking about social issues that was different from the concept of social responsibility that was so popular in the early years of the field. The concept of interpenetrating systems theory they developed attempted to provide theoretical support for business's involvement in public policy and to deal with the problem of atomic individualism that has only recently been recognized. The field is indebted to the authors for developing the broad outlines of an alternative theory of the firm in society that offers the possibility of overcoming traditional dichotomies that have plagued the field since its inception.