Social scientists often estimate models from correlational data, where the independent variable has not been exogenously manipulated; they also make implicit or explicit causal claims based on these models. When can these claims be made? We answer this question by first discussing design and estimation conditions under which model estimates can be interpreted, using the randomized experiment as the gold standard. We show how endogeneity – which includes omitted variables, omitted selection, simultaneity, common-method variance, and measurement error – renders estimates causally uninterpretable. Second, we present methods that allow researchers to test causal claims in situations where randomization is not possible or when causal interpretation could be confounded; these methods include fixed-effects panel, sample selection, instrumental variable, regression discontinuity, and difference-in-differences models. Third, we take stock of the methodological rigor with which causal claims are being made in a social sciences discipline by reviewing a representative sample of 110 articles on leadership published in the previous 10 years in top-tier journals. Our key finding is that researchers fail to address at least 66% and up to 90% of design and estimation conditions that make causal claims invalid. We conclude by offering 10 suggestions on how to improve non-experimental research.

On making causal claims : A review and recommendations

Much effort goes into building markets as a tool for economic and social development, often overlooking that in too many places social exclusion and poverty prevent many, especially women, from participating in and accessing markets. Building on data from rural Bangladesh and analyzing the work of a prominent intermediary organization, we uncover institutional voids as the source of market exclusion and identify two sets of activities – redefining market architecture and legitimating new actors – as critical for building ‘inclusive' markets. We expose voids as ‘analytical spaces' and illustrate how they result from conflict and contradiction among institutional ‘bits and pieces' from local political, community, and religious spheres. Our findings put forward a perspective on market building that highlights the ‘on the ground' dynamics and attends to the ‘institutions at play', to their consequences, and to a more diverse set of ‘inhabitants' of institutions.

Building Inclusive Markets in Rural Bangladesh : How Intermediaries Work Institutional Voids

The purpose of this paper is twofold: first, to review and classify scientific publications dealing with those innovative solutions aimed at increasing the efficiency of last-mile delivery in business to consumer (B2C) e-commerce; and, second, to outline directions for future research in this field.,The review is based on 75 papers published between 2001 and 2019 in international peer-reviewed journals or proceedings of conferences, retrieved from bibliographic databases and science search engines.,Due to its importance in affecting the overall logistics costs and, as a consequence, the economic sustainability of a B2C e-commerce initiative, last-mile delivery process deserves particular attention in order to be optimised. The review highlights that, among the main factors affecting its cost, there are the probability to have failed deliveries, the customer density in the delivery areas and the degree of automation of the process. Innovative and viable last-mile delivery solutions – which may impact the mentioned drivers – include parcel lockers, crowdsourcing logistics, mapping the consumer presence at home and dynamic pricing policies. Eventually, some gaps and areas for further research activities have been identified (e.g. mapping customer behaviour, crowdsourcing logistics).,This review offers interesting insights to both academics and practitioners. On the academic side, it analyses and classifies relevant literature about innovative and efficiency-oriented last-mile delivery solutions, proposing directions for future research efforts. On the managerial side, it presents a holistic framework of the main factors affecting last-mile delivery cost and of viable innovative solutions that may be implemented to increase efficiency.

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Innovative solutions to increase last-mile delivery efficiency in B2C e-commerce: a literature review

This comparative longitudinal study of Andy Grove's tenure as Intel Corporation's CEO (1987-1998) documents how he moved Intel's strategy-making process from an internal ecology model to the classical rational actor model. His creation of a highly successful strategy vector pursued through an extremely focused induced strategy process led to co-evolutionary-lock-in with the PC market segment. Intra-company analysis of four new business development cases highlights the inertial consequences of co-evolutionary lock-in. The paper examines implications of co-evolutionary lock-in for long-term organizational adaptation in terms of its effect on balancing induced and autonomous strategy processes and exploitation and exploration in organizational learning.

Strategy as Vector and the Inertia of Co-evolutionary Lock-in

Trauma and Transformation

This article explores how abductive reasoning is central to Mode 2 organization development and change (ODC) research, despite the rarity with which it is made explicit. It differentiates between P...

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/0021886319893016

Rediscovering Abductive Reasoning in Organization Development and Change Research

Untangling non-economic objectives in family & non-family SMEs: A goal systems approach

While organizational access is central to much qualitative research, little is known about how researchers secure it. The purpose of this paper is to provide a systematic assessment of this critical methodological step.,A systematic review was conducted to establish how researchers gained access to organizations for qualitative research. Access type was identified and explanatory indicators were inductively developed to illuminate how access was obtained in a sample of 216 qualitative articles published in Administrative Science Quarterly and Academy of Management Journal between 1986 and 2013. A supplemental review of 306 articles published in Organization Studies over the same period augmented the primary analysis with a broader view of published accounts of access.,Learning prior to entering organizations, researchers’ backgrounds, organizational insiders, and outside contacts facilitated access. The role of these factors, which served as indicators of legitimacy, varied with the type of access. In addition, the authors found that many articles provide little information about how the researchers gained access, regardless of a publication’s domicile.,This study furthers the understanding of how researchers gain access to organizations to conduct qualitative research and discusses the implications of the limited access accounts in published studies. In addition, this research provides practical guidance for authors, editors, and reviewers.

Organizational access in qualitative research

Knowledge and practice : A historical perspective on collaborative management research

This research explores organizational trauma and the phenomenon of organizational posttraumatic growth (OPTG). Many organizations experience traumatic events, events that disrupt core organizationa...

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/0021886320931119

Benjamin Nathan Alexander

Papers

Rediscovering Abductive Reasoning in Organization Development and Change Research

Untangling non-economic objectives in family & non-family SMEs: A goal systems approach

Organizational access in qualitative research

Knowledge and practice : A historical perspective on collaborative management research

Organizational Posttraumatic Growth: Thriving After Adversity: