Typologies are an important way of organizing the complex cause-effect relationships that are key building blocks of the strategy and organization literatures. Here, I develop a novel theoretical perspective on causal core and periphery, which is based on how elements of a configuration are connected to outcomes. Using data on high-technology firms, I empirically investigate configurations based on the Miles and Snow typology using fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA). My findings show how the theoretical perspective developed here allows for a detailed analysis of causal core, periphery, and asymmetry, shifting the focus to midrange theories of causal processes.

A personal narrative is presented that explores the author?s experience as editor of the ?Academy of Management Journal,? during the years 1967?1969.

Top management teams make strategic decisions, and the products of their decision making influence organizational performance. However, a subtle paradox is embedded in this relationship. This study focuses on conflict as the crux of this paradox and provides evidence from two different samples of conflict's consistent yet contradictory effects on decision quality, consensus, and affective acceptance.

This study explored situations in which current organizational goal priorities require rewards allocation logics that contradict traditional distributive norms and the natural characteristics of resources. Data from Chinese and U.S. business organizations showed that the Chinese employees were economically oriented and preferred to invoke differential rules (those that result in unequal distribution of rewards) for the allocation of both material and socioemotional rewards whereas their U.S. counterparts were humanistically oriented and preferred a performance rule for the allocation of material rewards but equality rules for socioemotional rewards. The results are discussed in the light of organizational goal priorities, cultural traditions, and other sociohistorical factors.

People frame and make sense of their worlds through the use of cognitive categories, which researchers can only indirectly access. Public corporate statements are easily accessible and comparable across companies and over time, but it is unclear to what extent such statements reflect organization members' cognitive categorizations. This study is the first to directly compare executives' public and private statements to explore whether and along what dimensions public statements reflect internal company communications. Comparisons of internal and external documents generated by the forest products industry over ten years revealed no significant correlations in the two sets of documents between executives' positive or negative evaluations of events and situations; however, the correlations between their perceptions of control were positive and significant.

This study examined the cognitive processes involved in handling job problems in two business organizations. Two situational characteristics, discrepancy between a goal and performance and the frequency of a problem's occurrence, and two individual characteristics?cognitive complexity and the accessibility of ?script tracks? in memory (conceptual structures)?were found to be associated with these cognitive processes. Job complexity moderated the relationship of cognitive complexity with promotability.

In this article the author discusses research he conducted that examined the beliefs held by managers who work in different parts of the same organization. The author notes that the existence of similar beliefs could be the result of managerial practices designed to promote consensus and conformity while differing beliefs could be the result of different work roles. The author notes that previous research has shown the later to be true. In carrying out his research the author discusses how he has chosen to divide parts of an organization, noting that he utilizes Mintzberg's five basic parts which are the operating core, technostructure, middle line, support staff and strategic apex. This research focuses on the beliefs held by managers in the middle line and the technostructure.

This study identified implementation tactics used by managers in making planned changes by profiling 91 case studies. Analysis revealed four types of tactics, variations within these tactics, and hybrid tactics. These tactics are described and related to their success rates and conditions surrounding their use. The study found a 100 percent success rate when key executives used an intervention tactic, but observed this tactic in less than 20 percent of the cases. Both the persuasion and participation tactics had 75 percent success rates; persuasion had the highest frequency of use, 42 percent, and participation the lowest, 17 percent. Both made high demands on resources. Implementation by edicts had a 43 percent success rate and a 23 percent frequency of use. Intervention tactics and their variations were effective for all types of changes and under varying levels of time pressure and importance, suggesting that managers should use these tactics more often.

The article discusses research pertaining to the effect of race on age stereotyped attitudes. Black and white business students were asked to rate 30-year old and 60-year old workers based on work-related dimensions including performance capacity, potential for development, stability, and interpersonal skills. In the study black students always rated older workers lower than younger workers. The results indicate that black respondents held more extreme age stereotypes than their white counterparts. Experts speculate that the differences may be due to scholastic achievement factors.

The subjective evaluation of an organization's effectiveness (or competence) by its top executives was found to be an excellent predictor of the subsequent survival and growth of the organization. Although financial criteria of profit and revenue growth were the best predictors, several nonfinancial indicators also were significant.