The purpose of this special topic forum is to call for research on the topic of minds and institutions. I briefly discuss three specific research opportunities: (1) bounded rationality versus mind, (2) many minds and the interfaces of institutions, (3) the affordances of institutions and...

In this essay we respond to Jepperson and Meyer’s [2011] critique of “action theories” and methodological individualism in sociology. We highlight fundamental problems with their argument, notably their misconception of methodological individualism(s) and the belief that this explanatory...

Institutions and the incentives they create can be designed or redesigned to produce desired outcomes. But design does not work if social and economic dynamics are “creative.” If it is impossible to know in advance how an institution will change behavior and incentives — and what interests...

Valve Corporation represents an intriguing case study of flat structure and self organization (Puranam & Håkonsson, 2015; Valve, 2012). The structures and practices of Valve of course are not new. But the company provides an interesting experiment and illustration that powerfully highlights how...

In response to Pelikan, Witt, Foster, and Colander, we reiterate our main contributions: (1) our more careful demonstration of why ‘mechanistic’ models have limited application, (2) our account of novelty as a system-level phenomenon, and (3) our identification of ‘novelty...

In this article we challenge the notion of the efficiency of factor markets and provide an alternative. We specifically identify both the environment- and actor-related origins of heterogeneity in markets. We first discuss how environments have an exaptive nature, where new uses and...

In this paper we develop the outlines of a theory for the firm—a theory that guides a firm’s path to value creation, in response to the critique by von Hippel and von Krogh [von Hippel E, von Krogh G (2016) Identifying viable "need–solution pairs": Problem solving without problem...

How can organizations put dynamic capabilities into practice? We focus on the power of organizational design, showing how managers can harness new organizational forms to build a capacity for sensing, shaping and seizing opportunities. Fast-moving environments favor open organization and...

For decades, the literatures on firm capabilities and organizational economics have been at odds with each other, specifically relative to explaining organizational boundaries and heterogeneity. We briefly trace the history of the relationship between the capabilities literature and...

This article introduces the Special Issue and discusses the microfoundations of routines and capabilities, including why a microfoundations view is needed and how it may inform work on organizational and competitive heterogeneity. Building on extant research, we identify three primary categories...