The abstract and complex nature of decision-making processes and structure in colleges and universities is discussed from the perspective of organizational behavior theory developed in the industrial sector. After an introductory discussion of the history of organizational problems in higher education, the two main sections of the book are presented, dealing respectively with (1) organizational influences on decision-making, and (2) individual perceptions of decision-making. Each part is self-contained. Part 1 covers several subsections: a framework for analysis; authority structures and vertical information flow, inter-unit coordination, power, and collegiality; and the dispersion of authority. Part 2 discusses the following: a framework for faculty as judges of decision-making effectiveness; the influence of organizational characteristics on faculty perceptions of administrator effectiveness; and the influence of personal characteristics on faculty perspectives of power and authority. A concluding section on institutional governance and individual responsibility notes that in contrast to some notions in the current literature on organization in academe, there is really only one decision-making structure, with different parts employed as the contingencies of organizational decision-making demand. The different parts are responses to pressures existing in all kinds of organizations. A sugject index is included, and 345 references are provided. (SM)