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The human nature of management consulting: judgment and expertise

Author

Listed:
  • Andrew Watson

    (Northeastern University, Boston, USA)

  • Terence Rodgers

    (University of Massachusetts, Amherst, USA)

  • David Dudek

    (University of Massachusetts, Amherst, USA)

Abstract

Management consulting is a significant and growing feature of the society of organizations in which we live. We develop an account of 'behavioral management consulting' by applying behavioral decision theory (BDT) to consulting. We apply in particular the representativeness heuristic, confirmatory bias, and the fundamental attribution error. We then scrutinize this account of management consulting in two ways: first, in the light of extant research applying BDT to other fields of expertise, such as accounting; and second, in the light of evolutionary psychology, which has recently cast a skeptical eye on some aspects of BDT. We conclude that the BDT-based account of consulting survives this scrutiny sufficiently to warrant a program of empirical research, and identify priorities for such a program. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Suggested Citation

  • Andrew Watson & Terence Rodgers & David Dudek, 1999. "The human nature of management consulting: judgment and expertise," Managerial and Decision Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 19(7-8), pages 495-503.
    • Handle: RePEc:wly:mgtdec:v:19:y:1999:i:7-8:p:495-503
    DOI: 10.1002/(SICI)1099-1468(199811/12)19:7/8<495::AID-MDE902>3.0.CO;2-3
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Shanteau, James & Stewart, Thomas R., 1992. "Why study expert decision making? Some historical perspectives and comments," Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, Elsevier, vol. 53(2), pages 95-106, November.
    2. Mcdaniel, Ls, 1990. "The Effects Of Time Pressure And Audit Program Structure On Audit Performance," Journal of Accounting Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(2), pages 267-285.
    3. Hogarth, Robin M., 1993. "Accounting for decisions and decisions for accounting," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 18(5), pages 407-424, July.
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