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Content:Guest Editorial JBNST - Vol. 234/2+3 - 2014, pp. 116-119.
Original Papers JBNST - Vol. 234/2+3 - 2014, pp. 120-120.
Cohendet, Patrick, Patrick Llerena, Laurent Simon: The Routinization of Creativity. Lessons from the Case of a Video-game Creative Powerhouse JBNST - Vol. 234/2+3 - 2014, pp. 120-141.
+ show abstract- hide abstractThe aim of this contribution is to proceed to an in-depth exploration of the micro-context of
the origin of routines and of their intimate link with organizational creativity. Our view is that
organizational creativity orchestrates continuous interactions between different types of routines,
operating at different levels of the organization. More precisely we propose distinguishing
three types of routines:
– First, the routines issued from formal structures or hierarchical working groups in the firm
(functional groups, project teams, task force, etc.), for which the context of work and coordination
of specialized tasks is defined ex ante by the hierarchy of the firm;
– Second, the routines emerging from informal structures, the “knowing communities” which
is a “generic term that defines different types of autonomous learning groups of individuals
(communities of practice, epistemic communities, and other more or less informal learning
groups) united by common beliefs and interests who voluntarily share their resources on a
long term basis in order to create and diffuse knowledge”;
– Third, the routines that are inherently related to the organizational creativity of the firm,
which are essentially corporate routines as expression of patterns of thinking, feeling and
acting in the corporate culture. In essence they are the genes of collective identity, and take the
shape of project management staging and gating principles and practices, framing collective
divergent exploration and convergent production toward a creative goal.
The contribution is based on an in-depth analysis of the organizational creativity in the worldleading
videogame company, Ubisoft, with a special focus on the studio located in Montréal.
To some extent, Ubisoft is one of the flagships of the “creative industries”, in which the clear
imperative is to sustain creativity on a permanent basis. These reasons explain the choice we
made to test our approach of organizational creativity and routines in this firm. Loasby, Brian J.: The Evolution of Knowledge and Knowledge of Evolution JBNST - Vol. 234/2+3 - 2014, pp. 142-157.
+ show abstract- hide abstractHuman knowledge is a human creation: we seek to make sense by creating patterns, which are
tested in various ways and with differing degrees and kinds of rigour. For each individual cognition
is a scarce resource, but different people can apply it in diverse ways and to diverse subjects:
each application has its own range of convenience and its own dangers. Thus the growth of
knowledge is an evolutionary process of trial and error, the rate and content of which depends
on its organization, both conscious and unconscious. In seeking to develop knowledge methodological
choices are unavoidable, but often unconscious. As Simon pointed out, all evolution,
of life, economic and social systems, and ideas, depends on quasi-decomposability, the limits
of which can never be fully anticipated. Thus uncertainty is inescapable – but it is a condition
of innovation. Buenstorf, Guido, Matthias Geissler: Like Doktorvater, like Son? Tracing Role Model Learning in the Evolution of German Laser Research JBNST - Vol. 234/2+3 - 2014, pp. 158-184.
+ show abstract- hide abstractWe trace individual-level learning and knowledge transfer in public research by matching about
5,000 doctoral dissertations and their advisors over the full history of German laser research.
We study the number of laser-related dissertations per advisor, publication and patent outputs
of advisors and doctoral students, as well as the likelihood that former students started laser
firms or attained professorships. Our results suggest a substantial relevance of non-codified
knowledge and role model learning in public research. There is little evidence of pronounced
barriers to entry into laser research. Nooteboom, Bart: In What Sense do Firms Evolve? JBNST - Vol. 234/2+3 - 2014, pp. 185-209.
+ show abstract- hide abstractDoes evolutionary theory help, for a theory of the firm, or, more widely, a theory of organization?
In this paper I argue that it does, to some but also limited extent. Evolutionary theories of
economies, and of culture, have acquired considerable following, but have also been subject to
considerable criticism. Most criticism has been aimed at inappropriate biological analogies, but
recently it has been claimed that a ‘universal Darwinism’, purged of all such mistaken analogy,
is both useful and viable. Why should we try to preserve evolutionary theory, and will such theory
stand up to sustained critical analysis? How useful is it for theory of the firm? Evolutionary
theory appears to be the most adequate theory around for solving the problem of agency and
structure, avoiding both an overly rational, managerial ‘strategic choice’ view of organizations
and a ‘contingency’ view of organizations as fully determined by their environment. Whether
universal Darwinism stands up to critical analysis remains to be seen. Here, the focus is on
evolutionary theory of organization. Use is made of a constructivist ‘embodied cognition’ view
of cognition and of elements of a cognitive theory of the firm. Murmann, Johann Peter, Jenny Korn, Hagen Worch: How Fast Can Firms Grow? JBNST - Vol. 234/2+3 - 2014, pp. 210-233.
+ show abstract- hide abstractBuilding on recent research on dynamic, high-growth firms – so-called “gazelles” – this paper
explores a simple question that is important in both theoretical and practical terms: What is
the fastest rate at which firms can grow? Based on a sample of seven high-growth firms (Cisco,
GM, IBM, Microsoft, Sears, Starbucks, and US Steel), we find that 162% is the maximum sales
growth rate in any one year that an established company can grow without mergers and acquisitions,
while the maximum rate of employee growth is approximately 115% even including
some mergers and acquisitions. All of the companies in our sample attained a maximum sales
growth rate of above 50%, with most hovering around 75%. Furthermore, the firms’ growth
rates exhibit similar patterns. No company experienced its maximum sales growth rate toward
the latter part of its history. Every company experienced its slowest employee growth rate after
attaining its maximum employee growth rate, usually within a decade of one another. Most
importantly, all firms show an average sales growth that exceeds the average employee growth.
This finding is an indication that successful growing firms have a superior capability to continuously
improve employment efficiency and adjust organizational structures to suit an increasing
workforce. Duschl, Matthias, Antje Schimke, Thomas Brenner, Dennis Luxen: Firm Growth and the Spatial Impact of Geolocated External Factors JBNST - Vol. 234/2+3 - 2014, pp. 234-256.
+ show abstract- hide abstractThis paper studies the relationship between firm growth and external factors. Externalities from
related economic, public research and higher educational activities are traced back to specific
locations in space. The spatial characteristics of their impact are examined within a distancebased,
micro-founded approach. Applying quantile regression techniques on a large sample of
German firms, we empirically disentangle the complex interplay between internal factors (firm
size), external factors and their spatial extent. In particular, we find that the larger firms are, the
more diverse are the activities they benefit from and that the geographical meaning of “nearby”
depends on the kind of activity. Amendola, Mario, Jean-Luc Gaffard: Competition and Increasing Returns JBNST - Vol. 234/2+3 - 2014, pp. 257-273.
+ show abstract- hide abstractThe paper demonstrates the compatibility between competition as a rivalry among firms and
increasing returns resulting from innovative choice. The analysis offers the prospect of a general
theory of economic evolution. It is carried out by means of a model, which makes it possible to
exhibit the time structure of production processes and to sketch out the sequential interaction
of decisions in a process of restructuring of productive capacities for the whole economy. It
shows that several firms can coexist in the market, despite the existence of increasing returns,
yet remain differentiated not so much because they supply differentiated goods, but because
they are each one at a different stage of the life cycle of the production process. Garavaglia, Christian, Franco Malerba, Luigi Orsenigo, Michele Pezzoni: Innovation and Market Structure in Pharmaceuticals: An Econometric Analysis on Simulated Data JBNST - Vol. 234/2+3 - 2014, pp. 274-298.
+ show abstract- hide abstractThe contribution of this paper is twofold. First, it presents the results of a “history-friendly”
simulation model of evolution of the pharmaceutical industry. Second, it aims at contributing
to a more general methodological discussion about agent-based models by proposing an
econometric analysis of the results of the simulations. The case of the pharmaceutical industry
has been studied extensively by scholars because, despite the high level of R&D intensity, the
industry has been characterized by a relatively low levels of concentration. The model is able to
reproduce the main stylized facts of the industry in an evolutionary perspective. In this paper
we extend the analysis conducted in two previous works (Garavaglia et al. 2012, 2013) by
further qualifying the findings with an extensive econometric investigation of the model outputs.
The paper focuses the attention on the determinants of market structure, the innovative
performance of the industry, the diversification in multiple submarkets and the level of prices.
We find that the properties of the technological and demand regimes are key determinants of
the patterns of industry evolution and that the main mechanisms driving the model are the random
processes of search, the discovery of new submarkets as well as the interactions between
patent protection, imitation and price competition. In addition, this paper emphasizes how the
emerging leaders in the industry are those innovative early entrants which entered in large submarkets,
showing the importance of the first mover advantage and of the size of the “prize”
accruing to innovators when they discover a new rich submarket. Chai, Andreas, Alessio Moneta: Escaping Satiation Dynamics: Some Evidence from British Household Data JBNST - Vol. 234/2+3 - 2014, pp. 299-327.
+ show abstract- hide abstractThe tendency of sectoral demand to satiate has long been argued to be a key driver of the structural
change in an economy (Pasinetti 1981; Saviotti 2001). This literature raises the question as
to what extent cross-sectional patterns of household expenditure can be used to make inferences
about how the demand for goods and services will grow over time. Moreover, if indeed satiation
does take place, then firms and entrepreneurs could react to this situation by innovating goods
and services in order to overcome stagnation in demand growth (Witt 2001). We empirically
investigate this ‘satiation-escape’ hypothesis by examining the inter-temporal dynamics of Engel
curves and their derivatives, which reflect how household spending on a good changes with
income. Taking into account changes in the price level, we investigate whether Engel curves
that exhibit cross-section satiation tend to exhibit over time an upwards shift in the satiation
level jointly with a shift in position and shape. Evidence suggests that this is actually the case. Vanberg, Viktor J.: Evolving Preferences and Welfare Economics: The Perspective of Constitutional Political Economy JBNST - Vol. 234/2+3 - 2014, pp. 328-349.
+ show abstract- hide abstractThe theoretical consistency and practical applicability of traditional welfare economics has long
been subject to controversy. More recently the challenge has been added from evolutionary
approaches that the individual preferences on which the welfare calculus is based are themselves
subject to change. The purpose of the present paper is twofold. It takes, firstly, a closer look at the
discussion on the need and feasibility of an evolutionary welfare economics that accommodates
evolving preferences. The particular focus is on proposals advanced by three authors, Carl
Christian von Weizsäcker, Ulrich Witt and Robert Sugden. And it seeks, secondly, to show
that the paradigm of constitutional economics can deal with the evolving-preferences-issue in
a more coherent and consistent way than approaches that remain within the mind-frame of
welfare economics. Schubert, Christian, Martin Binder: Reconciling Normative and Behavioral Economics: An Application of the "Naturalistic Approach" to the Adaptation Problem JBNST - Vol. 234/2+3 - 2014, pp. 350-365.
+ show abstract- hide abstractWhile standard economic theory takes individual preferences as stable and “given”, i.e., independent
of situational context, real-world preferences tend to vary with changing opportunity
sets. This is exemplified by Aesop’s fable of the fox and the sour grapes. This phenomenon
of “adaptive preference formation” poses a vexing problem for normative economics: preferences
which constitute the measuring rod for welfare are in turn shaped by the (economic)
situation of the individual, leading to problems epitomized by Amartya Sen’s “hopeless beggar”
dilemma: The beggar, enduring objectively miserable circumstances, nonetheless claims
to have all his preferences satisfied, which would lead orthodox welfare economics to establish
a high level of well-being. For those who find this counterintuitive, different solutions for
the “adaptation problem” have been proposed in the literature, typically centering on highly
demanding rationality and information requirements. We argue that, in order to cope with this
and related problems of preference endogeneity, welfare economics rather needs to account for
recent psychological insights into the mechanisms that drive preference formation and change.
We then use these insights to suggest and apply a procedural criterion of autonomous preference
formation. Birchenhall, Chris, Paul Windrum: Global Warming: Technology, Preferences and Policy JBNST - Vol. 234/2+3 - 2014, pp. 366-387.
+ show abstract- hide abstractGlobal warming is a market failure in that the market prices of goods do not reflect the externality
imposed on us all by the green house gases (GHGs) emitted in their production. To date
global politics has not provided an effective agreement on how to abate these emissions. Over
and above market failure there is political failure. A proper understanding of this fundamental
institutional failure requires us to consider the interaction between producers, consumers and
politics. We aim to offer a brief introduction to some of the issues involved and point to an
evolutionary analysis in which technology, preferences and policies coevolve. Herrmann-Pillath, Carsten: Naturalizing Institutions: Evolutionary Principles and Application on the Case of Money JBNST - Vol. 234/2+3 - 2014, pp. 388-421.
+ show abstract- hide abstractIn recent extensions of Darwinism into economics, the replicator-interactor duality looms large.
I propose a naturalistic approach to this duality in the context of the theory of institutions,
which means that its use is necessarily dependent on identifying a physical realization. I introduce
a general framework, which synthesizes Searle’s and Aoki’s theories, especially with regard
to the role of public representations (signs) in the coordination of actions, and the function of
cognitive processes that underlie rule-following as a behavioural disposition. Institutions are
causal circuits that connect the population-level dynamics of interactions with cognitive phenomena
on the individual level which ultimately root in neuronal structures. I propose a new
conceptualization of the replicator in the context of institutions: the replicator is a causal conjunction
between (physical) signs and neuronal structures which undergirds the dispositions
that generate rule-following actions. Signs, in turn, are outcomes of population-level interactions.
I apply this framework on the case of money, analysing the emotions that go along with
the use of money, and presenting a stylized account of the emergence of money in terms of the
naturalized Searle-Aoki model. In this view, money is a neuronally anchored sign for emotions
relating with social exchange and reciprocity. The money replicator is physically realized in a
causal conjunction of money artefacts and money emotions. Hanappi, Hardy: Evolutionary Political Economy in Crisis Mode JBNST - Vol. 234/2+3 - 2014, pp. 422-440.
+ show abstract- hide abstractThis paper sets out to discuss recent economic developments from a twofold perspective. Both
spotlights focus on the special role played by the current deep global crisis. The first line of
argument centers on the history of economic ideas and shows how evolutionary economics has
emerged as a promising alternative to mainstream neoclassical thought as well as to traditional
Keynesian macroeconomics. The failure of standard macroeconomics to inform economic policy
in the current situation shows that arguments of evolutionary political economists – from
Malthus via Schumpeter to contemporary scholars – can and should substitute these inadequate
models. The second part of the paper takes the argument for evolutionary political economy
to a methodological level: The deep crisis of economic theory is necessarily also a crisis of
the methodological apparatus used. Though evolutionary economics does not provide a welldefined
alternative set of methods yet, it nevertheless seems to be the best foundation to build
such a new combination, a methodological innovation, out of some of the most recent advances
in formalization. These latter elements are briefly sketched.
Book Reviews Aufderheide, Detlef, Martin Dabrowski (Hrsg.): Effizienz oder Glück? – Wirtschaftsethische und moralökonomische Perspektiven der Kritik an ökonomischen Erfolgsfaktoren JBNST - Vol. 234/2+3 - 2014, pp. 441-444.
Maennig, Wolfgang, Andrew Zimbalist (eds.): International Handbook on the Economics of Mega Sporting Events JBNST - Vol. 234/2+3 - 2014, pp. 445-445.
Solow, Robert M., Jean-Philippe Touffut (eds.): What’s Right with Macroeconomics? JBNST - Vol. 234/2+3 - 2014, pp. 446-446.
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