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The constant causes of never-ending faddishness in the behavioral and social sciences

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  • Starbuck, William H.

Abstract

Summary The history of the behavioral and social sciences contains endless sequences of conceptual and methodological fads. Disappointed with the results of their current concepts and methods, researchers pursue new topics or approaches in the hope that they will bring better results. In time, however, the new fads too disappoint. The wide spread and persistence of disappointment evidence the influence of common and fundamental misbeliefs about scientific methodology. This article points to the detrimental effects of four specific misbeliefs: that research lends itself to mass production, that mechanistic descriptions adequately portray behavioral and social processes, that generalizations ought to be broad, and that statistical methods provide useful insights even if researchers misuse them. Detrimental ideas such as these can survive scrutiny and evaluation because researchers cannot agree about what effective research looks like. Lacking reliable indicators of research effectiveness, researchers both flit capriciously from one idea to another and adhere stubbornly to unproductive ideas.

Suggested Citation

  • Starbuck, William H., 2009. "The constant causes of never-ending faddishness in the behavioral and social sciences," Scandinavian Journal of Management, Elsevier, vol. 25(1), pages 108-116, March.
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:scaman:v:25:y:2009:i:1:p:108-116
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Pawel Sobkowicz, 2015. "Innovation Suppression and Clique Evolution in Peer-Review-Based, Competitive Research Funding Systems: An Agent-Based Model," Journal of Artificial Societies and Social Simulation, Journal of Artificial Societies and Social Simulation, vol. 18(2), pages 1-13.
    2. Lund, Rebecca, 2012. "Publishing to become an “ideal academic”: An Institutional Ethnography and a Feminist Critique," Scandinavian Journal of Management, Elsevier, vol. 28(3), pages 218-228.
    3. Guénin, Henri & Gendron, Yves & Morales, Jérémy, 2024. "The diktat of concision: When accounting for words shrinks academic knowledge," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 99(C).
    4. Slavica Manic, 2016. "Economics Imperialism: SWOT Analysis," Asian Economic and Financial Review, Asian Economic and Social Society, vol. 6(3), pages 151-161.
    5. Tienari, Janne, 2012. "Academia as financial markets? Metaphoric reflections and possible responses," Scandinavian Journal of Management, Elsevier, vol. 28(3), pages 250-256.
    6. Meglio, Olimpia & Risberg, Annette, 2011. "The (mis)measurement of M&A performance—A systematic narrative literature review," Scandinavian Journal of Management, Elsevier, vol. 27(4), pages 418-433.
    7. Humphrey, Christopher & Gendron, Yves, 2015. "What is going on? The sustainability of accounting academia," CRITICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ACCOUNTING, Elsevier, vol. 26(C), pages 47-66.
    8. Damien Besancenot & Habib Dogguy, 2011. "Paradigm Shift," Working Papers halshs-00590527, HAL.
    9. Katja Rost & Bruno S. Frey, 2011. "Quantitative and Qualitative Rankings of Scholars," Schmalenbach Business Review (sbr), LMU Munich School of Management, vol. 63(1), pages 63-91, January.
    10. Olimpia Meglio, 2020. "Towards More Sustainable M&A Deals: Scholars as Change Agents," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(22), pages 1-11, November.
    11. Slavica Manic, 2016. "Economics Imperialism: SWOT Analysis," Asian Economic and Financial Review, Asian Economic and Social Society, vol. 6(3), pages 151-161, March.

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