Inherently irrational? A computational model of escalation of commitment as Bayesian Updating

Start-Ups as Adaptable Stable Systems Based on Synchronous Business Models

Business models have been a popular topic in research and practice for more than twenty years. During this time, frameworks for formulating business models have been developed, such as the business model canvas. Moreover, different business model frameworks have been proposed for different sectors. Yet, these frameworks have the fundamental shortcoming of not addressing directly and persistently the primary objective of start-ups: to survive in changing environments. The aim of the action research reported in this paper is to overcome that fundamental shortcoming. This is an important topic because the majority of start-ups do not survive. In this paper, first principles for survival in changing environments are related to business models. In particular, action research to reframe start-ups as adaptable stable systems based on synchronous business models is reported. The paper provides three principal contributions. The contribution to business model theory building is to relate survival first principles revealed through natural science research to business models. Reference to first principles highlight that survival depends on maintaining both external adaptability and internal stability through synchronization with changing environments. The second contribution is to business model practice through describing a simple business modeling method that is based on the scientific first principles. The third contribution is to provide an example that bridges the rigor–relevance gap between scientific research and business practice.

Organizational Neuroscience of Industrial Adaptive Behavior

Organizational neuroscience is recognized in organizational behavior literature as offering an interpretive framework that can shed new light on existing organizational challenges. In this paper, findings from neuroscience studies concerned with adaptive behavior for ecological fitness are applied to explore industrial adaptive behavior. This is important because many companies are not able to manage dynamics between adaptability and stability. The reported analysis relates business-to-business signaling in competitive environments to three levels of inference. In accordance with neuroscience studies concerned with adaptive behavior, trade-offs between complexity and accuracy in business-to-business signaling and inference are explained. In addition, signaling and inference are related to risks and ambiguities in competitive industrial markets. Overall, the paper provides a comprehensive analysis of industrial adaptive behavior in terms of relevant neuroscience constructs. In doing so, the paper makes a contribution to the field of organizational neuroscience, and to research concerned with industrial adaptive behavior. The reported analysis is relevant to organizational adaptive behavior that involves combining human intelligence and artificial intelligence.

Synchronous Generative Development amidst Situated Entropy

The Sustainable Development Goals have been criticized for not providing sufficient balance between human well-being and environmental well-being. By contrast, joint agent-environment systems theory is focused on reciprocal synchronous generative development. The purpose of this paper is to extend this theory towards practical application in sustainable development projects. This purpose is fulfilled through three interrelated contributions. First, a practitioner description of the theory is provided. Then, the theory is extended through reference to research concerned with multilevel pragmatics, competing signals, commitment processes, technological mediation, and psychomotor functioning. In addition, the theory is related to human-driven biosocial-technical innovation through the example of digital twins for agroecological urban farming. Digital twins being digital models that mirror physical processes; that are connected to physical processes through, for example, sensors and actuators; and which carry out analyses of physical processes in order to improve their performance. Together, these contributions extend extant theory towards application for synchronous generative development that balances human well-being and environmental well-being. However, the practical examples in the paper indicate that counterproductive complexity can arise from situated entropy amidst biosocial-technical innovations: even when those innovations are compatible with synchronous generative development.

Process Accountability as a De-Escalation Technique

Abstract. Escalation of commitment occurs when a course of action is continued despite repeated drawbacks (e.g., maintaining an employment relationship despite severe performance problems). We analyze process accountability (PA) as a de-escalation technique that helps to discontinue a failing course of action and show how time moderates both the behavioral and cognitive processes involved: (1) Because sound decisions should be based on (hopefully unbiased) information search, which requires time to gather, the effect of PA on de-escalation increases over time. (2) Because continuing information search creates behavioral commitment, the debiasing effect of PA on information search diminishes over time. (3) Consistent with the tunnel vision notion, the effects of less biased information search on de-escalation decrease over time.