Artikel
Path dependence and the stabilization of strategic premises: How the funeral industry buries itself
Several studies have shown that path-dependent organizations may pathologically reproduce their paths even in times of crisis. The unchallenged retention of underlying strategic premises seems to play a key role in this selfdestructive process. Whereas the previous literature largely assumes that organizational crises provide sufficient impetus for updating strategic premises, recent empirical studies have highlighted that path-dependent organizations may find this highly difficult. In the present study, I explore how path-dependent organizations stabilize strategic premises even in times of crisis. Drawing on a case study of the funeral industry, I theoretically distill four mechanisms that stabilize strategic premises in path-dependent organizations despite the fierce pressures of organizational crises. While these mechanisms constitute either reflexive modes of processing feedback or generative modes of producing market outcomes, they all inhibit a disconfirmation and, thus, an update of strategic premises. Furthermore, the study presents indicative evidence of how this unchallenged retention of strategic premises leads to the pathological reproduction of the path.
- Language
-
Englisch
- Bibliographic citation
-
Journal: Business Research ; ISSN: 2198-2627 ; Volume: 8 ; Year: 2015 ; Issue: 2 ; Pages: 265-299 ; Heidelberg: Springer
- Classification
-
Management
Transactional Relationships; Contracts and Reputation; Networks
Industry Studies: Services: Other
Business Administration: General
- Subject
-
Path dependence
Lock-in
Strategic premises
Stability
Funeral industry
- Event
-
Geistige Schöpfung
- (who)
-
Wenzel, Matthias
- Event
-
Veröffentlichung
- (who)
-
Springer
- (where)
-
Heidelberg
- (when)
-
2015
- DOI
-
doi:10.1007/s40685-015-0021-4
- Handle
- Last update
-
10.03.2025, 11:45 AM CET
Data provider
ZBW - Deutsche Zentralbibliothek für Wirtschaftswissenschaften - Leibniz-Informationszentrum Wirtschaft. If you have any questions about the object, please contact the data provider.
Object type
- Artikel
Associated
- Wenzel, Matthias
- Springer
Time of origin
- 2015
Other Objects (12)
Path Constitution Analysis: A Methodology for Understanding Path Dependence and Path Creation
Path dependence, corporate governance and complementarity
Path dependence, network externalities and standardization
Path Dependence, Corporate Governance and Complementarity
Path - Dependence and European Fisheries Management
Combining Marketing Theory and Path Dependence : Measuring and Breaking the Consumption Path
Funeral
Editorial: Path dependence and novelties in Russian innovation
Itself with it
History repeats itself
Path dependence in technologies and organizations: A concise guide
Ghana's Debt Crisis and the Political Economy of Financial Dependence in Africa : History Repeating Itself?
Path Constitution Analysis: A Methodology for Understanding Path Dependence and Path Creation
Path dependence, corporate governance and complementarity
Path dependence, network externalities and standardization
Path Dependence, Corporate Governance and Complementarity
Path - Dependence and European Fisheries Management
Combining Marketing Theory and Path Dependence : Measuring and Breaking the Consumption Path
Funeral
Editorial: Path dependence and novelties in Russian innovation
Itself with it
History repeats itself
Path dependence in technologies and organizations: A concise guide
Ghana's Debt Crisis and the Political Economy of Financial Dependence in Africa : History Repeating Itself?
Path Constitution Analysis: A Methodology for Understanding Path Dependence and Path Creation
Path dependence, corporate governance and complementarity
Path dependence, network externalities and standardization
Path Dependence, Corporate Governance and Complementarity
Path - Dependence and European Fisheries Management
Combining Marketing Theory and Path Dependence : Measuring and Breaking the Consumption Path
Funeral
Editorial: Path dependence and novelties in Russian innovation
Itself with it
History repeats itself
Path dependence in technologies and organizations: A concise guide