The Theoretical Logic of Strategy

This scholarly work critically examines theoretical deficiencies in the field of strategy, delineating their origins and impact on research and practice. Though it could be viewed as a broadside against the field for the way that it has developed during its first 70 years, it is intended to be an effort to nudge it forward, which will require major institutional reforms not just in how it evaluates its research but also in how it combines theories pedagogically. The author contends that the prevalent publish-or-perish paradigm, successful in the hard sciences, has failed in building a cumulative understanding in the social sciences, including economics, which relies on linkages with others to build cumulative knowledge. This book scrutinizes the consequences of using theory with inappropriate units of analysis, emphasizing the importance of justified expectations. Geared towards researchers, it contributes to the discourse on theoretical development in the field of strategy.