We propose a theory to manage the uneasy relation between strategic choice, chance, and determinism (or inevitability). To do so, we locate arguments in intellectual history that have a clear bearing on this relation. We introduce and defend four conjectures that outline the relationship between...

The paper dives into the controversies that make markets, exploring the processes at play behind the renewal of competitive landscape. The analysis of such processes is complex for several reasons: because they happen in environments riddled with ambiguities, because they involve temporal...

Experience suggests that strategy entails some interplay of choice, chance, and determinism as causal elements. Specifically, strategy is predicated on causality, or the principle that strategic choices have causes as well as consequences. Yet our discipline lacks a fundamental theory of...

We investigate how labor and investment demand at the firm level (gross as well as net and replacement investment separately) differs in French, German and U.S. manufacturing, and has changed since the 1974–75 crisis. We use three consistent panel data samples of large firms for 1970–79, and...

This article investigates firms’ banking and pooling behaviors in the context of the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS) during Phase I (2005-2007). It provides an overview of the questions raised at the firm-level by the introduction and implementation of the EU trading system in terms of...

In the Rothschild and Stiglitz model, assuming differences in risk aversions may lead to unusual equilibrium configurations like multiple equilibria, equilibrium positive profits, or random contracts. We characterize the various types of equilibria and give results on the determinants of the...

The end of the Multifiber Agreement in January 2005 had a negative impact on the Tunisian apparel industry, but the effects were weaker than expected. Using a dynamic general equilibrium model, the article provides a prospective assessment of the impact on Tunisia of the phase out of the MFA and...