Behavioral Theory of the Firm
Published on 8. May 2020
345 pages
978-1-83974-422-8 (ISBN)
Description
The behavioral theory of the firm first appeared in the 1963 book A Behavioral Theory of the Firm by Richard M. Cyert and James G. March. The work on the behavioral theory started in 1952 when March, a political scientist, joined Carnegie Mellon University, where Cyert was an economist.Before this model was formed, the existing theory of the firm had two main assumptions: profit maximization and perfect knowledge. Cyert and March questioned these two critical assumptions.-Print ed.
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Content
- Intro
- ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
- 1 - INTRODUCTION
- 2 - ANTECEDENTS OF THE BEHAVIORAL THEORY OF THE FIRM
- 2.1 The Theory of the Firm
- 2.2 Organization Theory
- 2.3 Research Questions in a Revised Theory of Firm Decision Making
- 2.4 Summary
- Appendix. Mathematical Theory of the Firm
- 3 - ORGANIZATIONAL GOALS
- 3.1 The Problem of Collective Goals
- 3.2 The Goal Formation Process
- 3.3 Business Goals and Price and Output Decisions
- 3.4 Summary
- 4 - ORGANIZATIONAL EXPECTATIONS
- 4.1 Expectations in Theories of Business Decision Making
- 4.2 Four Case Studies in the Use of Expectations
- 4.3 Communications in Theories of Business Decision Making
- 4.4 Two Experiments on Organizational Communication
- 4.5 Implications for a Theory of Organizational Expectations
- 5 - ORGANIZATIONAL CHOICE
- 5.1 A Partial Model of Organizational Choice
- 5.2 The Firm as an Adaptive Institution
- 5.3 Standard Operating Procedures
- 5.4 Summary
- 6 - A SUMMARY OF BASIC CONCEPTS IN THE BEHAVIORAL THEORY OF THE FIRM
- 6.1 Goals, Expectations, and Choice
- 6.2 Four Major Relational Concepts
- 6.3 The Basic Structure of the Organizational Decision-Making Process
- 7 - A SPECIFIC PRICE AND OUTPUT MODEL
- 7.1 General View of Price and Output Determination in a Retail Department Store
- 7.2 Details of Output Determination
- 7.3 Details of Price Determination
- 7.4 Tests of the Detailed Models
- 7.5 Summary
- 8 - A GENERAL MODEL OF PRICE AND OUTPUT DETERMINATION
- 8.1 A General Model
- 8.2 An Exploration of Some Properties of the Model
- 8.3 Summary
- 9 - A MODEL OF RATIONAL MANAGERIAL BEHAVIOR
- 9.1 Managerial Rationality and Profit Maximization
- 9.2 Motivating the Model
- 9.3 The Model
- 9.4 A Particular Application of the Analysis
- 9.5 Conclusion
- 10 - A MODEL OF TRUST INVESTMENT BEHAVIOR
- 10.1 General Considerations
- 10.2 Postulates and Data for the Model
- 10.3 The Decision Model
- 10.4 Testing the Model
- 10.5 The Model and the Behavioral Theory of the Firm
- 11 - SOME IMPLICATIONS
- 11.1 Descriptive Analysis. The Firm
- 11.2 Descriptive Analysis: Aggregates of Firms
- 11.3 Descriptive Analysis: Nonbusiness Organizations
- 11.4 Normative Analysis: The Firm
- 11.5 Normative Analysis: Economic Policy
- 11.6 Summary
- A - ASSUMPTION, PREDICTION, AND EXPLANATION IN ECONOMICS
- A.1 Nature of Prediction and Explanation
- A.2 Prediction in Economics
- A.3 Nature and Use of Assumptions
- A.4 A Positive Approach
- B - COMPUTER MODELS IN DYNAMIC ECONOMICS
- B.1 Theory Construction (Model Building)
- B.2 General Characteristics of Computer Models
- B.2.1 Comparison of computer models with operations research simulations and econometric models
- B.3 Methodological Problems of Computer Models
- B.4 Review of the Literature
- B.5 Future of Computer Models
