Firms face a choice in the organization of production. By concentrating production at one site, they can enjoy economies of scale. Or, by dispersing production across multiple facilities, firms can benefit from product-specific efficiencies and enhanced organizational learning. When choosing to...

Departing from research on expanding, high-technology industries, we study the impact of agglomeration in a declining, low-technology industry. The setting is U.S. footwear manufacturing between 1975 and 1991, when import competition rendered local support critical for survival. We examine how...

The behavioral theory of the firm and prospect theory predict that performance below an aspiration level increases risk taking, but researchers also propose that performance below an aspiration level decreases risk taking. These conflicting predictions primarily hinge on whether decision makers...

We integrate psychological theories of individual creativity with organizational theories of exploration versus exploitation to examine the relationship between past success and creativity over time. A key prediction derived from this theoretical integration is that successful people should be...

We apply the ecological concept of the organization's niche pioneered by John Freeman and Mike Hannan to the study of geographic communities. We define a community's market niche by the ties linking a community to the industries on which it depends for growth. We then hypothesize that the extent...