Emery, Fred

History

Emery was born in Narrogin, Western Australia, a drover’s son. His early career demonstrated his academic prowess. At the age of 14, he was Dux (the highest ranking student in a class) of Fremantle High School in Western Australia. He studied science at the University of Western Australia, graduating with an honours degree in 1946 and joining the university staff the following year. Then, moving to the psychology department of the University of Melbourne, he contributed to the literature on rural sociology. He was a UNESCO research fellow in social sciences in 1951–2, developing an association with the Tavistock Institute of Human Relations, whose research methods were [Page 289]strongly influenced by the action research approach of Kurt Lewin. Emery completed his Ph.D. at the University of Melbourne in 1953.

His return to the Tavistock Institute in 1958 led to a fruitful collaboration with a group of practical researchers. Key among them was Eric Trist, who with Emery contributed to a version of systems thinking known as open systems theory. Together, in 1965, they published their much cited Causal Texture of Organizational Environments. Their collaboration continued after Emery returned to Australia in 1969; in 1972, they published Towards a Social Ecology. Both documents, though cognitively sophisticated, are understandable and have clear practical implications. So are several other theoretical publications by Emery from this time.

In 1969, Emery became a senior research fellow in the Department of Sociology at ANU, the Australian National University. Then, still at ANU, he joined the Centre of Continuing Education in 1974. He continued to develop open systems theory, theories of employee participation and the practical applications of both.

His appointment with the Centre for Continuing Education at ANU was discontinued in 1979. From then until his death in 1997, he persevered with his theoretical and practical work as an independent scholar. His house at Skinner Street, Cook, was in continuous intellectual ferment as international and local scholars, business people and community activists moved through his lounge room on a daily basis.

The Australian National Library has a collection of over 700 of his unpublished documents and letters. His work has been continued and extended by his wife, Merrelyn, who has also made contributions to theory and practice in her own right.

Contributions

Emery is known for impactful practical work that is based on an integration of theoretical understanding and practical experience. This work has been influential in some organization development and community development practice. Underpinning his extensive work was a profound conceptual understanding of the relationship between organizations or communities and their environment. This he formulated as open systems thinking. In addition, he understood well the relationship between individuals, teams and organizations or communities and how to engender genuine and full participation. The two theory-backed processes for which he is best known are the participative design workshop and the Search Conference.

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