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A Behavioral Theory of the Firm—40 Years and Counting: Introduction and Impact

Tepper School of Business, Carnegie Mellon University, 5000 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15213
Norwegian School of Management BI, 0442 Oslo, Norway
argote{at}andrew.cmu.edu
henrich.greve{at}bi.no

In this introductory piece, we take stock of the impact of Cyert and March’s A Behavioral Theory of the Firm, describe current research trends in the behavioral tradition, and introduce the special issue’s papers. A Behavioral Theory of the Firm is one of the most influential management books of all time. In the book, Cyert and March developed theoretical building blocks that became the foundations for current research in organizational studies in management, economics, political science, and sociology. Cyert and March also made theoretical propositions that are investigated and extended in current work on organizational learning theory and evolutionary economics.

Key Words: behavioral theory; bounded rationality; search; aspiration levels; organizational learning; routines; innovation

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