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AbstractEmpirical research as well as numerous cases studying managers across diverse disciplines, cultures, and industries reveal consistent patterns of counter‐productive decision‐making. In this regard, decision‐makers appear to exhibit an unmistakable tendency to 'over‐intervene' in the systems (companies, organizations, cities, communities, etc.) they are responsible for. This suggests an inadequate appreciation and understanding of the dynamics underlying decision‐making, generating unwarranted and excessive fluctuations and instability in organizations. Numerous studies have observed such phenomena in simulated and experimental settings. Research results, as well as in‐depth case studies highlight a number of assumptions and mental models commonly held by decision‐makers and managers with adverse effect on organizational dynamics and performance. This paper reports on extensive empirical research and findings elicited from subjects interacting with realistic simulation models of organizations (microworlds) to investigate the relationship between scale of intervention and performance. The results show that while large‐scale interventions appear to be effective in the start‐up phase of systems (e.g. new products, markets, companies) they are generally counter‐productive in mature systems operating at steady state. The results support findings from organizational case studies, notably, the extensive study of 'Good to Great' firms. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Creativity is highly valued in all areas of life, and it must be supported in the academic environment for the future prosperity of all organizations. This is the primary source of creativity for practice. The research presented is based on answering the following questions: Are an organization's members willing to increase their motivation if the organization's motivational efforts improve? What elements in decision-making are used to support the creativity and motivation of the organization's members? The paper proposes a novel taxonomy of decision-making factors influencing organizations' sustainable creativity based on linking the findings from the authors' surveys. Its application will lead to an improvement in the organizations' processes, especially in the process of education and knowledge generation. The sociological inquiry was used as the main data collection method. Other methods applied included content analysis, practical cases analysis, and comparison. Methods of mathematical-statistical analysis and deductive-inductive approach were used in the evaluation. This resulted in the confirmation of the impact of creative decision-making approaches by employees and managers on sustainable motivation and creativity in the organization. The taxonomy of decision-making factors for the support of sustainable creativity reflects the results of this original research combined with the findings summarized in the discussion.

Behavioral development economics promotes the nudge theory as a mechanism to incorporate people's cognitive biases, steering their behavior in the desired direction through coercive state intervention. Cognitive biases become a reason to doubt the efficiency of decision-making psychology in the free market process. A fundamental assumption of this approach is that political decision-makers know the people's means and ends in ways that protect them from cognitive biases. This article reviews and discusses the nudge theory, based on the boost theory developed by the Austrian School of Economics. The boost theory consists of a comparative institutional perspective to provide the empowerment people need to realize their errors and correct them "on the fly" to cultivate economic development. It is argued that the nudge theory overlooks the cognitive biases of political decision-makers, neglects the comparative perspective of the institutional environment in the face of such biases, and does not consider how construction of on-the-fly judgments works. After reviewing the principles of the nudge theory, its main criticisms from the boost theory are discussed, forming novel conclusions about and research avenues on behavioral development economics, according to the steering or empowering quality of the institutional environment.

The Type Indeterminacy model is a theoretical framework that uses some elements of quantum formalism to model the constructive preference perspective suggested by Kahneman and Tversky. In a dynamic decision context type indeterminacy induces a game with multiple selves associated with a state transition process. We define a Markov perfect equilibrium among the selves with individual identity (preferences) as the state variable. The approach allows to characterize generic personality types and derive some comparative static results.

The Type Indeterminacy model is a theoretical framework that uses some elements of quantum formalism to model the constructive preference perspective suggested by Kahneman and Tversky. In a dynamic decision context type indeterminacy induces a game with multiple selves associated with a state transition process. We define a Markov perfect equilibrium among the selves with individual identity (preferences) as the state variable. The approach allows to characterize generic personality types and derive some comparative static results.

The Type Indeterminacy model is a theoretical framework that uses some elements of quantum formalism to model the constructive preference perspective suggested by Kahneman and Tversky. In a dynamic decision context type indeterminacy induces a game with multiple selves associated with a state transition process. We define a Markov perfect equilibrium among the selves with individual identity (preferences) as the state variable. The approach allows to characterize generic personality types and derive some comparative static results.

The Type Indeterminacy model is a theoretical framework that uses some elements of quantum formalism to model the constructive preference perspective suggested by Kahneman and Tversky. In a dynamic decision context type indeterminacy induces a game with multiple selves associated with a state transition process. We define a Markov perfect equilibrium among the selves with individual identity (preferences) as the state variable. The approach allows to characterize generic personality types and derive some comparative static results.

The Type Indeterminacy model is a theoretical framework that uses some elements of quantum formalism to model the constructive preference perspective suggested by Kahneman and Tversky. In a dynamic decision context type indeterminacy induces a game with multiple selves associated with a state transition process. We define a Markov perfect equilibrium among the selves with individual identity (preferences) as the state variable. The approach allows to characterize generic personality types and derive some comparative static results.

Currently, there is a large body of research examining Out-of-School Time (OST) programs, the goals of these programs, and their reported impact on the youth they serve. However, there is little evidence of research on how organizations determine which goals best fit the needs of the communities they serve. Concurrently, studies of how organizations put these goals into action are virtually non-existent in the literature. This study examines how organizations in Massachusetts receiving federal 21st Century Community Learning Center funding make decisions about Out-of-School Time programming. Although the federal grant requirements and the Massachusetts Department of Education impose some uniformity on these programs, they still vary considerably in their design and the target audiences they serve. Through an online survey, document review and semi-structured interviews, the research identified several themes about the decision making used in these organizations. Cohen, March & Olson's Garbage Can Model of Organizational Choice was used as a framework to better understand the data and to organize the discussion. A stakeholder analysis was also used to evaluate the influence of participants on the decision making within the Out-of-School Time programs. The research identified a loose connection between the decisions made about the types of activities selected and the prescriptive goals of the 21st Century Community Learning Centers programs. There were several factors that contributed to this loose connection, including the influence of stakeholders, the learning outcomes identified by the assessment tools, and the evaluation of programs by the state. The research also leads to several recommendations about the evaluation of these programs in Massachusetts, including a review of the assessment tools designed by the state and a study of whether the mission shift evidenced in these communities is a tacit decision made by the Department of Education and grant recipients. Further research on the alignment of federal and state programming goals is also recommended.

The authors explore whether the federal courts act as countermajoritarian institutions by investigating the influence of public mood on decision making in the U.S. Courts of Appeals from 1961 to 2002. The results indicate that public opinion affects courts of appeals decision making indirectly through judicial replacements and institutional constrains from Congress, but the authors fail to uncover evidence that courts of appeals judges respond directly to changes in public opinion. They conclude that, absent membership turnover in the circuit or in Congress, the courts of appeals are not responsive to the will of the public.

The appendix, p. 125-127, contains speeches by the author, 1847-1868, etc. ; First published in 1860 under title: The central gold region. The grain, pastoral, and gold regions of North America. ; Mode of access: Internet.