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9780199846740-0149

Introduction

Organizational adaptation is a ubiquitous concept in management and organization research. Discussed in many theories, sometimes under different labels, the notion of adaptation is related to organizations being congruent to the environments within which they operate. Research traditions including behavioral theory (see A Behavioral Theory of the Firm), contingency theory as explained in Differentiation and Integration in Complex Organizations, population ecology (see The Population Ecology of Organizations), institutional theory elaborated upon in both Institutionalized Organizations: Formal Structure as Myth and Ceremony and The Iron Cage Revisited: Institutional Isomorphism and Collective Rationality in Organizational Fields, resource dependence (see The External Control of Organizations: A Resource Dependence Perspective), and evolutionary economics (see An Evolutionary Theory of Economic Change) all address organizational adaptation—though they emphasize different mechanisms. Adaptation, regarded as the strategic choice that organizations make, is often contrasted with the notion of selection driven by the determinism imposed by environments (see Organizational Adaptation: Strategic Choice and Environmental Determinism). Adaptive organizations are those able to obtain congruence both within organizations, reflected as congruence in internal functions and strategies, and across organizations, reflected as congruence with the needs of the external environment. The form of adaptation is also particularly relevant. Organizational theory has viewed adaptation as a state, an ability, and as a process. States of adaptation discuss stability and adaptation at points in time. From states of adaptation, adaptive abilities determine the impetus of adaptation and the locus of adaptation within organizations. Finally, the adaptation processes describe the means by which organizations adapt the challenges they face in negotiating new positions within environments. Research has covered each of these areas and this bibliography is organized primarily around forms of adaptation to elaborate on the ways in which it has been viewed by organizational theory and strategy scholars. The variety of research traditions examining organizational adaptation have not always aligned, however. Each research tradition seeks to explain different outcomes, from survival to performance to change. Thus, across theoretical traditions, the adaptation construct has been measured in many different ways—and often not as congruence with the external environment. In fact, this represents one of the challenges that recent research has identified as holding back progression of the adaptation research agenda. As such, this bibliography concludes with a section on issues in adaptation research in order to assist researchers in pursuing research in this area.

Journals

Organizational adaptation is not discussed by any one particular journal, but is represented in the most prominent journals of management, strategy, and organizational theory. Current research continues to elaborate on organizational adaptation as a theoretical concept, notably in leading management journals such as Academy of Management Review, Administrative Science Quarterly, Organization Science, and Strategic Management Journal. Each of the aforementioned journals, with the exception of the Academy of Management Review also publish empirical studies on organizational adaptation. Scholars seeking to discover further empirical studies that evaluate organizational adaptation should also consult the Academy of Management Journal and Management Science as outlets for high-impact research. A strong lineage of organizational adaptation can also be traced to prominent journals in sociology. Although articles on organizational adaptation occur less frequently in the American Sociological Review and the American Journal of Sociology, some of the most influential articles have emanated from authorship in these journals historically.

Academy of Management Journal. 1958–.
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A flagship journal of management research, Academy of Management Journal is the primary outlet for empirical research published by the Academy of Management. Organizational adaptation has been reflected in this journal through a wide range of studies that leveraged processual approaches, mixed methods, and quantitative methods.
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Academy of Management Review. 1976–.
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Academy of Management Review is the primary outlet of theoretical research published by the Academy of Management. Research has been published in this journal to reflect conceptual models and theoretical mechanisms associated with organizational adaptation.
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Administrative Science Quarterly. 1956–.
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A flagship journal of management research that publishes research to advance management theory and report empirical studies on organizations.
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American Journal of Sociology. 1895–.
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A flagship journal of sociological research that includes studies of management and economic sociology. Studies on organizational adaptation are less frequent in this journal; however, historical roots of both institutional theory and population ecology emanate from sociological roots and were important theories that shaped the literature on organizational adaptation.
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American Sociological Review. 1936–.
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A flagship journal of sociological research published by the American Sociological Association. Research published in this journal focuses on advancing the understanding of social processes, which includes research on industrial and organizational sociology. Research on institutional theory that has influenced organizational adaptation has been reflected in this journal.
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Management Science. 1954–.
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A management journal that focuses on the practice of management and covers a broad range of management topics including strategy, decision-making, organizational theory, and entrepreneurship. Organizational adaptation has been well reflected in this journal through methodological advances that simulate the adaptive behavior of organizations.
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Organization Science. 1990–.
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A management journal that publishes theoretical and empirical research on a broad range of management topics including strategy, organizational behavior, and organizational theory. Research on organizational adaptation has been prominently featured in this journal and studied from a variety of perspectives that includes cognition and learning in the process of adaptation.
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Strategic Management Journal. 1980–2018.
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A management journal that publishes theoretical and empirical research focused on improving the theory and practice of management. This journal is designed to appeal more broadly to practicing managers and covers topics related to strategic decision-making, resource allocation, competitive advantage, and organizational capabilities. Research on organizational adaptation has been published to reflect the adaptive abilities or organizations and the competitive advantages and disadvantages associated with adaptation and inertia.
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Classical Treatments of Organizational Adaptation

In classical treatments, organizational adaptation has been conceived of as the point at which organizations converge with their environments and, as a result, scholars have examined the concept from either the organizational viewpoint or the environmental viewpoint. Prominent within the organizational view is the role of both decision-making and structure. As such, contingency theory proposed by Lawrence and Lorsch 1967 has sought to understand the optimal internal structures needed to operate within environments. Decision-making aspects of organizations also were prominent in explaining the adaptability of organizations. A Behavioral Theory of the Firm positions adaptation as part of the decision-making processes associated with learning by describing how managers attend to specific aspects of their environments to obtain feedback in achieving their goals. Alternatively, scholars studying organizational adaptation from the viewpoint of the environment emphasized the constraints that the environment imposed on adaptation. Most prominent and tenacious in considering the environmental constraints as primary causes are scholars of population ecology proposed by the authors of Hannan and Freeman 1977 (cited under Adaptation versus Selection), who view selection as the predominant operative force in industrial environments and adaptation as an overrated and misguided approach to organizational theory. The progression of the literature on organizational adaptation evolved to viewpoints that reflected the interrelation of adaptation and selection versus absoluteness in either perspective. Organizations seemingly had an ability to adapt; however, adaptation was constrained by various forces in the environment that included power over resources as argued by Pfeffer and Salancik 1978 (cited under Constraining Forces to Adaptation), operating within the confines of legitimacy defined as social acceptance as proposed by Meyer and Rowan 1977, and avoiding the core rigidities that emerge from success as described by Leonard-Barton 1992 (both cited under Constraining Forces to Adaptation).

Organizations and Environmental Fit

Adaptation is rooted in two fundamental notions—the degree to which organizations fit with their environments and the decisions that organizations make in order to achieve fit. Literature traditions in contingency theory and behavioral theory thus play a central role in adaptation research. Contingency theory, proposed by Lawrence and Lorsch 1967, outlines the foundations for adaptation as a state by describing the structural aspects of organizations that achieve optimal congruence. Behavioral aspects, conversely, have played a larger role in the foundations of adaptation as a process. The learning dimension introduced by A Behavioral Theory of the Firm provides a foundation whereby organizations determine environment fit or congruence through adaptive decision-making processes that rely on feedback from the environment. Receiving feedback in the process of achieving aspirational goals provides the basis of early mechanisms by which organizations adapt.

Cyert, Richard M., and James G. March. A Behavioral Theory of the Firm. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall. 1963.
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A Behavioral Theory of the Firm was highly influential in theorizing the nature of decision-making for organizations. Adaptation plays a particularly prominent role in learning, one of four relational concepts that emanate from both bounded rationality and satisficing in organizational decision-making. Within the concept of learning, adaptation of goals, adaptation of search, and adaptation of attention are specifically identified to describe the ways in which organizations manage uncertainty.
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Lawrence, Paul R., and Jay W. Lorsch. “Differentiation and Integration in Complex Organizations.” Administrative Science Quarterly 12.1 (1967): 1–47.
DOI: 10.2307/2391211 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
A seminal article in contingency theory describing the relationship between organizational structure and the environment within which organizations operate. Within the adaptation literature, contingency theory contributes a notion of congruence with the external environment as a critical element and identifies a notion of optimal fit as a means to maximizing performance.
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Adaptation versus Selection

Paralleling the debate in biological evolution started during the 19th century, as much as Lamarckism had been opposed to Darwinism, adaptation has been contrasted with selection as its antithesis in organizational studies, a subject examined in detail by Durand 2006. A significant contribution of biological models is related to the strength of environmental forces, which originally formed an antithesis to early theories on adaptation. Campbell 1965 introduced the notion of variation, selection, and retention models into social science, from which Hannan and Freeman 1977 elaborated specifically on selection in organizational environments. As the literature on adaptation and selection progressed, the strength of environmental determinism in the form of selection was relaxed as evolutionary theories of organizations emerged describing routines as a vehicle through which organizations could adjust to varying degrees of environmental changes. Nelson and Winter 1982 offered the most influential perspective of organizational routines by describing routines as endogenous factors that enabled organizations to adapt and avoid selection pressure imposed exogenously from the environment. Despite the emergence of routines, selection remained relevant as literature on industry evolution progressed and was linked to learning capabilities as Bruderer and Singh 1996 proposed. New perspectives emerged, notably from Durand 2001, which recognized that adaptation and selection were not independent of one another, and in fact interacted both within and across organizations. Research has continued to study the interrelationship between selection and adaptation with Levinthal and Marino 2015 proposing a model of adaptation and selection occurring at multiple levels in organizations.

Bruderer, Erhard, and Jitendra V. Singh. “Organizational Evolution, Learning, and Selection: A Genetic-Algorithm-Based Model.” Academy of Management Journal 39.5 (1996): 1322–1349.
DOI: 10.2307/257001 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This article argues for the interdependence between organizational learning and selection and proposes that organizational learning accelerates organizational evolution. Using computer simulation, the authors model the processes of variation, adaptation (through learning), and selection. As such, the authors are able to demonstrate that environmental selection influences learning capabilities and that learning capabilities influence selection processes.
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Campbell, Donald T. “Variation and Selective Retention in Socio-Cultural Evolution.” Social Change in Developing Areas: A Reinterpretation of Evolutionary Theory 19 (1965): 26–27.
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The seminal article on the variation, selection, and retention model in the context of social science. Rooted in the post–World War II Darwinian synthesis in biology, the model provides a testable means by which to consider both adaptation and selection within the context of a social environment.
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Durand, Rodolphe. “Firm Selection: An Integrative Perspective.” Organization Studies 22.3 (2001): 393–417.
DOI: 10.1177/0170840601223001 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This article integrates elements from population ecology, evolutionary economics, and the dynamic resource-based view in a comprehensive model describing the selection pressures that organizations face. The proposed model identifies the interrelationship between carrying capacity, inertia, dominant design, search routines, dynamic resources, and integrating capability as intersecting points of selection pressures.
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Durand, R. Organizational Evolution and Strategic Management. London: Sage, 2006.
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This book offers a set of solutions to understanding strategic management within the broader process of organizational evolution, while also proposing a model of organizational evolution and strategy that is distinct from biological models. The proposed model advocates a completely different view of evolution and adaptation than the traditional variation, selection, and retention models and offers a checklist appraisal grid to guide studies of organizational evolution.
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Hannan, Michael T., and John Freeman. “The Population Ecology of Organizations.” American Journal of Sociology 82.5 (1977): 929–964.
DOI: 10.1086/226424 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
In providing the primary antithesis to adaptation-based theories of organizational management, Hannan and Freeman argue that the “natural selection” of organizations governs the evolution of industries. Organizations are distinctively inert and the ability to adapt to any particular environment is exceedingly difficult. Resource munificence in the organization’s environment, not the decision-making ability of managers, is argued to be the primary factor that governs the survival of organizations.
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Levinthal, Daniel A., and Alessandro Marino. “Three Facets of Organizational Adaptation: Selection, Variety, and Plasticity.” Organization Science 26.3 (2015): 743–755.
DOI: 10.1287/orsc.2014.0956 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This article distinguishes between internal selection pressures that result from plasticity and the capacity of an organization to adapt behavior, thereby characterizing selection as a force operating at multiple levels. A computational model identifies the interplay between the plasticity of individuals and the adaptability, or maladaptability, of the organization as a whole.
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Nelson, Sidney, and Gary Winter. An Evolutionary Theory of Economic Change. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1982.
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This seminal book on evolutionary economics evolves from both A Behavioral Theory of the Firm (cited under Organizations and Environmental Fit) and Schumpeterian economic change models. Evolutionary economics focuses primarily on the routines that lead to organizational change. In this way, change occurs endogenously and the focus of the book is on change resulting from non-equilibrium states in the economy.
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Constraining Forces to Adaptation

The interaction between selective forces faced by organizations, both internally and externally, delineates the constraints faced by organizations as they adapt and implies the presence of limits on strategic decision-making. Constraining forces to adaptation outline the nature of these strategic limits that can reside either in the environment or within the organization. External forces that constrain adaptation can relate to insulating core activities for organizations as described by Thompson 1967, power over resources as Pfeffer and Salancik 1978 argued, or social forces that either legitimize or delegitimize organizations as they adapt, as Meyer and Rowan 1977 and DiMaggio and Powell 1983 posit. Constraining forces to adaptation need not reside exclusively in the environment; Leonard-Barton 1992 described how organizations can be victims of their own success and become susceptible to competency traps or, as Christensen and Bower 1996 elaborated further, organizations can be susceptible to disruptive innovation. In other words, relying too heavily on previously experienced success can lead to entrapment for leading firms and prevent them from adapting going forward. Haveman and Rao 1997 demonstrates the challenges associated with adapting from early organizational forms, albeit with an empirical study of the thrift industry that demonstrates the presence of both inertial selection forces and adaptation in firms. The challenges of inertia were further developed by Gilbert 2005 with a focus on internal mechanisms that contribute to inertia, thus allowing inertia to reside in lower levels of the organization.

Christensen, Clayton M., and Joseph L. Bower. “Customer Power, Strategic Investment, and the Failure of Leading Firms.” Strategic Management Journal (1996): 197–218.
DOI: 10.1002/(SICI)1097-0266(199603)17:3<197::AID-SMJ804>3.0.CO;2-U Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This article highlights the tension between catering to the demands of an organization’s existing customers and recognizing the demands of future customers. “Disruptive” innovation results from a change in trajectory of customer demands whereby new markets supplant existing markets. The technologies of leading incumbents are primarily shaped by their existing customers thereby leaving them vulnerable and potentially unable to adapt to the attacks of disruptive new entrants.
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DiMaggio, Paul J., and Walter W. Powell. “The Iron Cage Revisited: Institutional Isomorphism and Collective Rationality in Organizational Fields.” American Sociological Review 48.2 (1983): 147.
DOI: 10.2307/2095101 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This article expands upon the institutional forces that constrain adaptive behavior by specifically identifying three types of “isomorphism”: mimetic, normative, and coercive. These forces drive similarity across organizations operating within similar organizational fields by identifying legitimate “templates” of operation. Those templates provide the basis for adoption of elements coming from the external environment and question the prevalence of rational adaptation of the internal organizational structure.
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Gilbert, Clark G. “Unbundling the Structure of Inertia: Resource Versus Routine Rigidity.” Academy of Management Journal 48.5 (2005): 741–763.
DOI: 10.5465/amj.2005.18803920 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
In deepening the understanding of inertia within organizations, this article distinguishes between resource rigidity, a failure to change investment patterns, and routine rigidity, a failure to change the processes that use resources. The contribution of this paper is in identifying the interaction between resource and routine rigidity that deepen the understanding of constraining forces to adaptation.
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Haveman, Heather A., and Hayagreeva Rao. “Structuring a Theory of Moral Sentiments: Institutional and Organizational Coevolution in the Early Thrift Industry.” American Journal of Sociology 102.6 (1997): 1606–1651.
DOI: 10.1086/231128 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This study of the early thrift industry identifies a key relationship between selection and adaptation. The majority of early thrift operations could not be decoupled from the original organizational form; however, some organizations adapted as the industry evolved, particularly those thrifts that were larger in size. Evidence of adaptive behavior was therefore provided, ultimately arguing against overly deterministic views of selection in population ecology.
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Leonard-Barton, Dorothy. “Core Capabilities and Core Rigidities: A Paradox in Managing New Product Development.” Strategic Management Journal 13 (Summer 1992): 111–125.
DOI: 10.1002/smj.4250131009 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
Many of the constraining forces are theorized from the environment; however, this article identifies the constraining forces of a firm’s capabilities on adaptation. In a historical assessment of new product development projects, project managers faced a paradox: the capabilities that distinguish firms from their competitors can impose values within the organization that inhibit future change through innovation, thus becoming “core rigidities.”
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Meyer, John W., and Brian Rowan. “Institutionalized Organizations: Formal Structure as Myth and Ceremony.” American Journal of Sociology 83.2 (1977): 340–363.
DOI: 10.1086/226550 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This article recognizes that organizational structure governs the choices faced by organizational members. Structure provides legitimacy within broader institutional environments and legitimacy is needed for organizational survival more than economic performance. The primary activities of organizations can be decoupled from structure in order to allow for efficiency at the lower levels of task performance; however, broader adaptations to the organizational structure are constrained by the existence of legitimated structural forms.
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Pfeffer, Jeffrey, and Gerald R. Salancik. The External Control of Organizations: A Resource Dependence Perspective. New York: Harper & Row, 1978.
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This seminal book on resource dependence theory describes power relationships between organizations and their dependence on the resources external to the organization. Resources are the basis of power; therefore, control over resources by one organization or one of its stakeholders determines the degree to which other organizations can adapt.
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Thompson, James D. Organizations in Action: Social Science Bases of Administrative Theory. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1967.
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This influential book theorizes on relationships between organizations as rational systems, natural systems, and open systems. Organizations are described as open and natural systems that strive to be rational and, as such, seek to insulate their technical cores from external selection pressure in the environment. The importance of stability in the organization is emphasized, which recognizes a dependence between organizations and the environments within which they operate.
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Adaptation as a State

Organizational adaptation can take several forms. Early studies of adaptation examined adaptation as a state, or a final outcome. The line of reasoning in examining adaptation as a state emanates primarily from contingency theorists that sought optimal organizational structures to fit or align with the environments within which organizations were embedded. Optimal alignment was theorized as leading to optimal performance. As such, “adaptation as a state” quickly became associated with performance outcomes and superior competitive advantage. Nuances to competitive positioning also relate to the state of adaptation as firms could not only gain advantages from being well-adapted to their environments, but they also could benefit from being sufficiently differentiated from their competitors. Theories and empirical tests of the “optimal distinctiveness” hypothesis emerged as an alternative to the “optimal adaptation” view, perspectives notably put forth by Brewer 1991 and Deephouse 1999. At the same time, an increasing focus on performance measurement to capture the state of adaptation has introduced confusion with respect to the idea that adaptation is about congruence. Being sufficiently well adapted at one point in time did not ascertain long-term survival as organizational theorists began to recognize the dynamic nature of environments. Challenges in evolving from states of adaptation exposed the limitations of managers as evidenced through several simulation models that sought to understand the dynamism of adapting from a particular state. Until recently, outcomes of adaptation were the focus of research, rather than the conditions that led to these states of adaptation as demonstrated by Vergne and Depeyre 2016.

Adaptation Typologies and Outcomes

Early focuses on “adaptation as an outcome” discussed adaptation as the primary goal of strategic management, with Chakravarthy 1982 theorizing on the stability of states of adaptation. Influences from contingency theory and economic perspectives evolved this perspective to the study of competitive advantage, as Powell 1992 demonstrated that competitive advantages accrued to firms that were consistent internally. Brewer 1991 and Deephouse 1999 further elaborated on optimal competitive positioning associated with being well-adapted by identifying the need to be both socially legitimate and competitively differentiated. Scholarly interest in optimal distinctiveness evolved with Zhao, et al. 2017 theorizing on the role of stakeholder perceptions in determining optimal distinctiveness. As the literature on adaptation as a state progressed, the study of congruence with the external environment re-emerged with Vergne and Depeyre 2016 identifying distinct typologies of adaptive organizations, while also distinguishing firms that fail to adapt and firms that strategically decide not to adapt in the face of environmental change.

Brewer, Marilynn B. “Optimal Distinctiveness Theory: Its History and Development.” Handbook of Theories of Social Psychology 2 (1991): 81–98.
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Social psychology plays a substantial role in defining optimal states of adaptation. While typically studied at the individual level, optimal distinctiveness for organizations addresses both the needs to be socially accepted (or “legitimate”) in environments while also being differentiated from other organizations. This book chapter outlines the theory of optimal distinctiveness, its history, and the interrelationships between social desires for belonging and needs for differentiation and identification.
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Chakravarthy, B. S. “Adaptation: A Promising Metaphor for Strategic Management.” Academy of Management Review 7.1 (1982): 35–44.
DOI: 10.5465/AMR.1982.4285438 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This conceptual paper proposes a model that integrates “strategies of action” as those involving fit with the environment and “strategy of structure” involving the reconfiguration of firm resources for effective responses to new conditions. In doing so, a framework for adaptation is proposed that integrates adaptive abilities, adaptive processes, and adaptive states. States of adaptation are described as stable, unstable, or neutral.
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Deephouse, David L. “To Be Different, or To Be the Same? It’s a Question (and Theory) of Strategic Balance.” Strategic Management Journal 20.2 (1999): 147–166.
DOI: 10.1002/(SICI)1097-0266(199902)20:2<147::AID-SMJ11>3.0.CO;2-Q Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This empirical paper evaluates ideas of optimal distinctiveness by demonstrating that a balance between differentiation and conformity leads to the strongest performance outcomes. Firms with higher degrees of either conformity or differentiation do not perform as well as firms that are moderately differentiated. Demonstrating such a result emphasizes degrees of adaptive states within the contexts of environments, recommending that firms should seek positions that are as differentiated as legitimately possible.
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Powell, Thomas C. “Organizational Alignment as Competitive Advantage.” Strategic Management Journal 13.2 (1992): 119–134.
DOI: 10.1002/smj.4250130204 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
By developing arguments from the resource-based view of the firm, this empirical article distinguishes organizational alignment, an internal measure of congruence, with competitive advantage and addresses concerns that higher profits could merely be results of luck. Matching and deviation scores are used as a unique measure of fit to validate the hypothesis that adaptation as a state (selecting the most appropriate internal structure) results in superior competitive performance.
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Vergne, J. -P., and Colette Depeyre. “How Do Firms Adapt? A Fuzzy-Set Analysis of the Role of Cognition and Capabilities in U.S. Defense Firms Responses to 9/11.” Academy of Management Journal 59.5 (2016): 1653–1680.
DOI: 10.5465/amj.2013.1222 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
In a study of the US defense industry and responses to 9/11, this article integrates the cognition and capability literature streams to identify four equifinal paths leading to adaptation and one path leading to non-adaptation. Configurations of early attention, intense attention, asset reconfiguration scope, asset reconfiguration intensity, and resource dependence jointly, rather than independently, lead to the outcome of being well-adapted or haphazardly-adapted to the post-9/11 defense industry conditions.
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Zhao, Eric Yanfei, Greg Fisher, Michael Lounsbury, and Danny Miller. “Optimal Distinctiveness: Broadening the Interface between Institutional Theory and Strategic Management.” Strategic Management Journal 38.1 (2017): 93–113.
DOI: 10.1002/smj.2589 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This conceptual paper calls for a renewed research agenda on optimal distinctiveness that more clearly examines the mechanisms that firms can leverage in achieving optimal distinctiveness, including stakeholder engagement as a mediator of strategy to performance outcomes. By introducing stakeholder perceptions into theorizing, more contemporary views of institutional theory that incorporate environmental change can be leveraged in studying optimal distinctiveness.
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Evolving from States of Adaptation

The stability of well-adapted states has been theorized as a necessary but challenging proposition for organizations. Miner 1994 argued for the importance of maintaining flexibility within the organization to allow organizations to evolve more successfully with their environments; however, simulation models proposed by Levinthal and Posen 2007 have demonstrated challenges in selecting the appropriate routines for organizations that adapt. Jain and Kogut 2014 also modeled organizational memory as a means to achieving successful adaptation during periods of environmental shift; however, the challenges of myopic search highlight the long-term instability of adaptation. As such, evolving from states of adaptation has been widely viewed as important for organizations undergoing environmental shifts; however, organizations face several obstacles in the process of adaptation. Ruef 1997 empirically demonstrates the strength the selection processes faced by firms in a study of the hospital industry. Selection pressure presents a persistent threat to organizations seeking to evolve from states of adaptation.

Jain, Amit, and Bruce Kogut. “Memory and Organizational Evolvability in a Neutral Landscape.” Organization Science 25.2 (2014): 479–493.
DOI: 10.1287/orsc.2013.0841 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This conceptual study uses an NK simulation model to identify the role of organizational memory and neutrality as being complementary in organizational evolution. The results of the simulation find that memory allows organizations to acquire, retain, and retrieve prior experiences, while also allowing organizations to create more value in the future by improving the efficiency of search. In this way, organizational memory facilitates successful adaptation.
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Levinthal, Daniel, and Hart E. Posen. “Myopia of Selection: Does Organizational Adaptation Limit the Efficacy of Population Selection?” Administrative Science Quarterly 52.4 (2007): 586–620.
DOI: 10.2189/asqu.52.4.586 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This conceptual paper uses an NK simulation model to identify the efficacy of population-level selection processes and finds that selection processes are prone to errors where firms with potentially strong long-term performance are selected out in the short-term. Selective pressures that are error-prone result from a myopic focus on short-term performance and an inability to assess long-term performance.
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Miner, Anne S. “Seeking Adaptive Advantage: Evolutionary Theory and Managerial Action.” Evolutionary Dynamics of Organizations 76 (1994): 89.
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This book chapter discusses the manager’s role in promoting an adaptive advantage through two primary processes: adjusting the organization to evolutionary processes occurring at higher levels (including the environment) and influencing the evolutionary process of routines at lower levels. Continual variation, selection, and retention of internal routines occur in the organization and the manager’s role is to facilitate a balance between higher and lower level evolutionary processes.
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Ruef, Martin. “Assessing Organizational Fitness on a Dynamic Landscape: An Empirical Test of the Relative Inertia Thesis.” Strategic Management Journal 18.11 (1997): 837–853.
DOI: 10.1002/(SICI)1097-0266(199712)18:11<837::AID-SMJ917>3.0.CO;2-B Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This empirical paper on the California hospital industry addresses the role of inertia in impeding adaptation over a period of Schumpeterian shocks. Adaptation was found to be rare, particularly for specialized and larger hospitals. The nature of the shock or event being adapted to is therefore relevant in the ability of the organization to adapt, further supporting the interrelationship between adaptation and selection.
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Adaptation as Ability

The adaptive ability of organizations emanates from the various viewpoints of organizational theory that describe the source and strength of the impetus for adaptation. As such, adaptation as ability describes adaptation as reactive, proactive, or exaptive. Reactive adaptation results from organizations that face external pressure from the environment within which they operate. Organizations undergoing reactive adaptation effectively adopt templates that place them in more legitimate positions to sustain and survive in the longer-term. Conversely, organizations that are proactive have unique capabilities to sense or induce change in the environment and act accordingly. The proactive view of adaptation as ability emanates from the resource-based view of organizations that have uniquely valuable and rare capabilities that distinguish superior organizations from ordinary organizations. A third view of adaptation as ability describes the latent capabilities that reside within organizations. Capabilities that are developed for one purpose in a particular environment and ultimately deployed for another purpose in a subsequent environment describe processes of exaptation. Serendipity, therefore, emerges in capabilities that are exapted by organizations, providing an additional dimension that explains the relationship between adaptation and performance.

Adoption as Reactive Adaptation

The presence of institutional and economic pressures on organizations influences a particular mode of adaptation. In this section, the mode of adoption is discussed as a reactive form of adaptation. When organizations adopt, they are seen as responding to the pressures or impressions to which they are subjected from the environments in which they operate. As Oliver 1991 suggests, varying degrees of “strategic responses” are deployed depending on the nature of the institutional process at play. As such, the source of institutional pressures and the situations in which pressure is applied interacts with the interests of the organization in managing its own identity. Adoption typically emanates from two broad objectives of organizations: reducing uncertainty and impression management. Dutton and Dukerich 1991 specifically identifies the role of impression management in reactive adaptation. Contexts of market entry provide suitable means from which to view uncertainty reduction and the adoption of templates. Haveman 1993; Greenwood and Hinings 1996; Cliff, et al. 2006; and Wu and Salomon 2016 each analyze conformity to institutional pressures in different respects. Haveman 1993 identifies the types of templates mimicked in a market entry context. In elaborating on isomorphism further, Greenwood and Hinings 1996 and Cliff, et al. 2006 examine the predictors of mimicry through intraorganizational dynamics and heterogeneity in entrepreneurial experience, respectively. Wu and Salomon 2016 extends the literature further by identifying the utility of isomorphism in reducing institutional distance for international firms. Impression management also identifies the socio-evaluative element associated with the adoption of templates and the need to improve social perceptions of the organization. Durand and Vergne 2015 demonstrated that the impact of social evaluation is context specific. Firms in stigmatized industries were shown to adapt by disassociating with the primary category to which they were assigned in response to negative media attacks on peer firms.

Cliff, Jennifer E., P. Devereaux Jennings, and Royston Greenwood. “New to the Game and Questioning the Rules: The Experiences and Beliefs of Founders Who Start Imitative versus Innovative Firms.” Journal of Business Venturing 21.5 (2006): 633–663.
DOI: 10.1016/j.jbusvent.2005.02.010 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This paper seeks to answer why some entrepreneurs imitate existing routines while other entrepreneurs pursue innovative routines. Entrepreneurs with above-average experience in the core industry were more likely to imitate other firms while above average experience in the industry periphery led to more innovative routines. The experience of the entrepreneur therefore influenced the way in which the firm adapted.
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Durand, Rodolphe, and Jean-Philippe Vergne. “Asset Divestment as a Response to Media Attacks in Stigmatized Industries.” Strategic Management Journal 36.8 (2015): 1205–1223.
DOI: 10.1002/smj Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This article identifies the strategic responses of organizations to media attacks within the defense industry, a stigmatized industry. Defense contractors adapt in response to media attacks on peer organizations by divesting stigmatized business units in order to disassociate with the primary category to which they were assigned. In the case of stigmatized industries, such “category spanning” offers the benefits of reducing stigma and preserving organizations’ future prospects in their industry.
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Dutton, Jane E., and Janet M. Dukerich. “Keeping an Eye on the Mirror: Image and Identity in Organizational Adaptation.” Academy of Management Journal 34.3 (1991): 517–554.
DOI: 10.2307/256405 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
In applying an impression management approach to adaptation, this article emphasizes the role of identity in the actions taken by firms. In a case study of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey dealing with the issue of homelessness, the authors find that adaptation decisions are influenced by the ways in which the organization wants to be seen and evaluated within their environment.
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Greenwood, Roytson, and C. R. Hinings. “Understanding Radical Organizational Change: Bringing Together the Old and the New Institutionalism.” Academy of Management Review 21.4 (1996): 1022–1054.
DOI: 10.5465/AMR.1996.9704071862 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This paper proposes a wide-ranging integration of constructs related to organizational change from the perspective of institutional theory including the embeddedness of templates, the coupling of institutional fields, and the permeability of institutional fields. A unique contribution of the paper is the incorporation of intraorganizational dynamics in explaining organizational response to institutional pressure.
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Haveman, Heather A. “Follow the Leader: Mimetic Isomorphism and Entry Into New Markets.” Administrative Science Quarterly 38.4 (1993): 593.
DOI: 10.2307/2393338 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
In a study of the savings and loan associations, this paper identifies a mimetic form of reactive adaptation by distinguishing the type of template mimicked by entrants as they enter new markets. Large incumbents acted as role models for similarly sized new entrants; however, highly profitable incumbents acted as role models for all new entrants regardless of size.
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Oliver, Christine. “Strategic Responses to Institutional Processes.” Academy of Management Review 16.1 (1991): 145–179.
DOI: 10.5465/AMR.1991.4279002 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This article adds an agentic dimension to institutional processes by introducing the notion of strategic response across five dimensions that are contingent upon the degree of institutional pressure and the impact on the organization itself. Oliver describes the five types of strategic responses as acquiescence, compromise, avoidance, defiance, and manipulation.
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Wu, Zheying, and Robert Salomon. “Does Imitation Reduce the Liability of Foreignness? Linking Distance, Isomorphism, and Performance.” Strategic Management Journal 37.12 (2016): 2441–2462.
DOI: 10.1002/smj.2462 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This article studies the adoption of templates as a means to offset challenges associated with institutional distance. By leveraging strategies of imitation, firms are able to reduce a liability of foreignness as they expand internationally and adapt to local environmental conditions. The benefits of imitation subside as firms gain greater experience in local markets, implying the varying nature of adaptation strategies and emphasizing the difference between adaptation and performance.
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Resource Reconfiguration as Proactive Adaptation

Resources are central to the adaptation literature. Resources are either depicted as the reasons why organizations adapt, as reflected in the dynamic capabilities literature proposed by Teece, et al. 1997; Eisenhardt and Martin 2000; and Peteraf, et al. 2013; or as the components of organizations that adapt. A central idea underpinning the proactive ability for organizations to adapt is that resources are adaptable in their own right and adaptation can occur as a strategic choice with less imposition from environmental forces. Dierickx and Cool 1989 introduces the notion of asset accumulation as stocks and flows that determine the nimbleness of organizations adapting to changing environments. Relatedly, Tripsas 1997 uses a longitudinal approach to demonstrate the role of knowledge transmission as a capability that allows firms to adapt in the face of technological change. The role of innovation also emerges in proactive adaptation as demonstrated by Danneels 2002, who demonstrates greater success for innovations that are proximate to a firm’s core competencies. An aspect of proactive resource reconfiguration is also reflected in the research stream on resilience. Resilience, as outlined by van der Vegt, et al. 2015, depicts specific configurations of resources that insulate organizations from risky events or disruptions. The protective nature of resilience is a form of proactive adaptation that seeks to maintain stability as opposed to invoking change, as Ortiz-de-Mandojana and Bansal 2016 demonstrates in a study of organizations investing in corporate social responsibility. The proactive nature of adaptation therefore exhibits adaptation as an ability that affords firms either competitive advantages or protective positions.

Danneels, Erwin. “The Dynamics of Product Innovation and Firm Competences.” Strategic Management Journal 23.12 (2002): 1095–1121.
DOI: 10.1002/smj.275 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This article outlines the role of product innovation in firm renewal by simultaneously leveraging both a firm’s ability to exploit and explore. By arguing that new products are more successful when closer to the firm’s existing competencies, firms extend their existing resources and effectively engage in firm renewal. The act of innovation allows firms to build new competencies off of existing competencies as an effective means of adaptation.
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Dierickx, Ingemar, and Karel Cool. “Asset Stock Accumulation and the Sustainability of Competitive Advantage.” Management Science 35.12 (1989): 1504–1511.
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This article argues for the accumulation of assets as stocks versus flows. Stock accumulations cannot be adjusted instantaneously in the same way that flows can be adjusted, thereby yielding greater competitive benefits. Adaptive decisions on resources, therefore, need to consider the stickiness of stocks as competitive advantages versus the nimbleness of flows in fast-changing environments.
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Eisenhardt, Kathleen M., and Jeffrey A. Martin. “Dynamic Capabilities: What Are They?” Strategic Management Journal 21.10–11 (2000): 1105–1121.
DOI: 10.1002/1097-0266(200010/11)21:10/11<1105::AID-SMJ133>3.0.CO;2-E Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
An alternative view of dynamic capabilities more strongly rooted in evolutionary economics. The authors describe dynamic capabilities as the presence of habitual routines and best practices rather than the latent construct described by Teece, et al. 1997. The authors therefore view dynamic capabilities as observable, cumulative acts that distinguish organizations competitively over time.
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Ortiz-de-Mandojana, Natalia, and Pratima Bansal. “The Long-Term Benefits of Organizational Resilience through Sustainable Business Practices.” Strategic Management Journal 37.8 (2016): 1615–1631.
DOI: 10.1002/smj.2410 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This article offers an empirical test of resilience through long-term investments in corporate social responsibility. The investments in corporate social responsibility build the latent construct of resilience and firms doing so achieve higher long-term performance as a result.
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Peteraf, Margaret, Giada Di Stefano, and Gianmario Verona. “The Elephant in the Room of Dynamic Capabilities: Bringing Two Diverging Conversations Together.” Strategic Management Journal 34 (2013): 1389–1410.
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This article aims to advance the research agenda on dynamic capabilities by identifying the ontological differences between the view of dynamic capabilities as latent (see Teece, et al. 1997) and as observable routines (see Eisenhardt and Martin 2000). The authors propose an integration of dynamic capabilities perspectives by theorizing that both perspectives are contingent upon the velocity of the environment and the specificity of the routines that create sustainable competitive advantage.
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Teece, David J., Gary Pisano, and Amy Shuen. 1997. “Dynamic Capabilities and Strategic Management.” Strategic Management Journal 18.7 (1989): 509–533.
DOI: 10.1002/(SICI)1097-0266(199708)18:7<509::AID-SMJ882>3.0.CO;2-Z Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This seminal article on dynamic capabilities identifies endogenous strategic resources of firms that, if present, provide sustainable competitive advantage. Influenced by the resource-based view of firms, dynamic capabilities are those capabilities that sense, seize, and reconfigure the firm according to environmental needs and demands. The ability to adapt resources is unique to specific organizations and essential to sustainable competitive advantage.
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Tripsas, Mary. “Surviving Radical Technological Change through Dynamic Capability: Evidence from the Typesetter Industry.” Industrial and Corporate Change 6.2 (1997): 341–377.
DOI: 10.1093/icc/6.2.341 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
In a longitudinal study, this article identifies how Mergenthaler Linotype adapted to three separate major technological changes in the typesetter industry. External integrative capability, the ability to develop absorptive capacity and transmit knowledge internally, and geographically distributed sites were the key reasons found for Mergenthaler Linotypes’ ability to adapt.
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van der Vegt, G. S., P. Essens, M. Wahlstrom, and G. George. 2015. “Managing Risk and Resilience.” Academy of Management Journal 58.4 (2013): 971–980.
DOI: 10.5465/amj.2015.4004 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This letter from the editor focuses on managing risk and building resilience. In this article, resilience is defined not by an organization’s ability to adapt to a particular event, but by an organization’s ability to prepare itself to withstand external shocks. In this way, organizations can leverage resilience to effectively insulate themselves from disruptive forces occurring at the environmental level.
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Exaptation as Discontinuous Resource Adjustment

Exaptation alters the teleology of adaptation. In the context of exaptation, capabilities are developed for one purpose in a particular environment and then emerge as a solution for another purpose in subsequent environments. As such, Dew, et al. 2004 identifies that exaptation focuses on novelty and innovation. The novelty aspect relates to the importance of context and serendipity in the strategies of organizations rather than the resources that are either leveraged or adapted for a particular purpose. As an emerging literature stream that complements the adaptation literature, exaptation fills particular gaps that stem from cognitive approaches to adaptation by incorporating the situational factors that allow for luck. Cattani 2005 and Cattani 2006 introduce exaptation to the management literature by describing “preadaptation” of firms in the fiber optics industry. The concept of exaptation has been studied as both a latent variable by Marquis and Huang 2010 and as a directly measurable variable by Andriani and Cattani 2016 and Andriani, et al. 2017, highlighting an ontological debate in studying exaptation. Nonetheless, exaptation offers a distinct construct from adaptation that emphasizes some of the boundary conditions associated with strategic adaptation.

Andriani, Pierpaolo, Ayfer Ali, and Mariano Mastrogiorgio. “Measuring Exaptation and Its Impact on Innovation, Search, and Problem Solving.” Organization Science 28.2 (2017): 320–338.
DOI: 10.1287/orsc.2017.1116 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This empirical paper of the pharmaceutical industry contributes a measure of exaptation as the distance between entry use and emergent use. In this way, the article is the first to empirically capture exaptation while also making an explicit link to radical innovations. The use of exaptation in this study seeks to elaborate on the role of context and serendipity in innovation as opposed to superior cognition.
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Andriani, Pierpaolo, and Gino Cattani. “Exaptation as Source of Creativity, Innovation, and Diversity: Introduction to the Special Section.” Industrial and Corporate Change 25.1 (2016): 115–131.
DOI: 10.1093/icc/dtv053 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This conceptual paper describes exaptation in relation to management and proposes a model linking exaptation to novelty in innovation. In describing exaptation, concepts of exaptation as a capability, modular exaptation, and effectuation are leveraged in applying the biological concept to exaptation management research. Furthermore, the proposed model describes the transfer of technology to unrelated markets, the origin of ideas, and selection criteria in relating exaptation to novelty.
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Cattani, Gino. 2005. “Preadaptation, Firm Heterogeneity, and Technological Performance: A Study on the Evolution of Fiber Optics, 1970–1995.” Organization Science 16.6 (2016): 563–580.
DOI: 10.1287/orsc.1050.0145 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This paper develops the notion of preadaptation and identifies the benefits afforded to firms that leveraged prior experience in the evolution of fiber optics technology. Firms that were able to leverage prior experience that differed from its original intention achieved higher performance compared to firms that did not leverage or did not have prior experience.
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Cattani, Gino. “Technological Pre-Adaptation, Speciation, and Emergence of New Technologies: How Corning Invented and Developed Fiber Optics.” Industrial and Corporate Change 15.2 (2006): 285–318.
DOI: 10.1093/icc/dtj016 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This paper leverages a case study of Corning’s development of fiber optic technology to examine the role of historical knowledge in radical innovation for established firms. The study uncovers underlying processes in the evolution of fiber optics that resulted from the company’s long-standing expertise in specialty glass. As such, the Corning case identifies the benefits of technological preadaptation emanating from expertise that was ultimately used in an unanticipated manner.
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Dew, Nicholas, S. D. Sarasvathy, and S. Venkataraman. 2004. “The Economic Implications of Exaptation.” Journal of Evolutionary Economics 14.1 (2016): 69–84.
DOI: 10.1007/s00191-003-0180-x Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This conceptual article describes exaptation and its differences from adaptation while also emphasizing the importance of exaptation when examining the temporal ordering in the history of technology. The paper argues that technologies have infinite exaptive potential and that exaptation offers an opportunity to fill a gap in the literature with respect to entrepreneurship and new market creation.
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Marquis, Christopher, and Zhi Huang. “Acquisitions As Exaptation: The Legacy of Founding Institutions in the U.S. Commercial Banking Industry.” Academy of Management Journal 53.6 (2010): 1441–1473.
DOI: 10.5465/AMJ.2010.57318393 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
A seminal article on exaptation in management research, this article focuses on the US banking industry and describes capabilities developed at the founding of state-level banks that became beneficial during a subsequent period of banking deregulation. As such, varying propensities to engage in acquisitions were observed among banks as capabilities were exapted from the imprinting that occurred at the banks’ founding.
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Adaptation as a Process

Organizational adaptation as a process emanates primarily from the conceptual roots of A Behavioral Theory of the Firm (cited under Organizations and Environmental Fit) with respect to decision-making processes within organizations. The process through which organizations adapt was initially understood as a learning process where organizations seek feedback from the environment and adapt according to their goals. The accumulation of knowledge, therefore, plays a central role in the ability for organizations to successfully adapt. Threads of encoded knowledge are depicted in routines that support the development of capabilities needed to adapt. If organizational learning is a central component of the adaptation process, limitations imposed on organizational learning can therefore inhibit adaptation. The proximate search for solutions to organizational problems can lead to myopia and ultimately inhibit adaptation. Paradoxes in the learning process emerge as organizations are faced with the challenges of both exploiting existing business opportunities while also exploring new opportunities for growth. Resource constraints force organizations to choose between exploration and exploitation, which results in problematic adaptive processes. Adaptation as a process is also subject to the cognitive interpretations of managers. Representations of competitive groups, intrinsic limitations that constrain managerial attention, and performance relative to aspirations can all play substantial roles in the ability of organizations to initiate adaptive processes, regardless of whether the adaptive process is successful or not. The cognition of managers, therefore, may promote adaptation or leave managers blind to potential threats or opportunities.

Learning and Routines of Change

The notion of organizational learning emanates directly from A Behavioral Theory of the Firm (cited under Organizations and Environmental Fit) and informs the adaptation process through the concepts of search, attention, and aspirations. Much of the organizational learning literature evolved to focus on aspects of search, its related benefits, and its consequences on the adaptation process. Specifically, Cohen and Levinthal 1990 identify absorptive capacity as a learning process whereby organizations accumulate and encode knowledge for future application. Zahra and George 2002 elaborated on the concept of absorptive capacity by distinguishing between a firm’s potential and realized absorptive capacity. In this respect, a heavy focus has been placed on the ability for firms to realize or act upon absorbed knowledge. Eisenhardt and Tabrizi 1995 demonstrates the benefits of frequent feedback loops in accelerating adaptation. While learning was initially linked to encoding and retention, new challenges emerged as the learning literature evolved. In particular, Huber 1991 and Levinthal and March 1993 identified incorrect learning and myopic learning respectively as two phenomena that delineate a paradox facing organizations when it comes to deciding between exploration and exploitation. For instance, March 1991 identified that exploratory activities compete for scarce organizational resources with exploitative activities, limiting the long-term adaptive potential of organizations. Doz 1996 also identified the role that alliances play in the learning processes, emphasizing the mutual commitment needed for learning to influence a firm’s ability to adapt. Related to learning is the evolutionary nature of routines in promoting change. Routines allow organizations to build knowledge in specific ways to nurture capabilities as proposed by Zollo and Winter 2002. In this respect, routines are predictable behaviors learned over time that may distinguish the adaptive capability of some organizations versus others, which connects directly to the arguments of Nelson and Winter 1982 (cited under Adaptation versus Selection) and Feldman and Pentland 2003.

Cohen, W. M., and D. A. Levinthal. Absorptive Capacity: A New Perspective on Learning and Innovation. Administrative Science Quarterly 35.1 (1990): 128–152.
DOI: 10.2307/2393553 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
The seminal article on absorptive capacity identifies an organizational learning process whereby firms recognize, assimilate, and accumulate prior related knowledge in a path-dependent way. Absorptive capacity captures a critical component of a firm’s innovative capability and improves the adaptability of organizations by integrating external knowledge with future commercial use. As such, it is a beneficial part of the adaptation process.
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Doz, Yves L. “The Evolution of Cooperation in Strategic Alliances: Initial Conditions or Learning Processes?” Strategic Management Journal 17.S1 (1996): 55–83.
DOI: 10.1002/smj.4250171006 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This empirical paper studies three specific alliances and contributes to the literature on adaptation by identifying a negotiated element that exists among coalitions. Alliances evolve through learning processes that require a steadfast commitment to adaptation due to a mutual dependency between the parties. The mutual dependency also offers the opportunity for partners to resist adaptation, thus leading to inertia.
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Eisenhardt, Kathleen M., and Behnam N. Tabrizi. “Accelerating Adaptive Processes: Product Innovation in the Global Computer Industry.” Administrative Science Quarterly 40.1 (1995): 84.
DOI: 10.2307/2393701 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This empirical paper studies the temporal aspects of innovation in a dynamic environment and seeks to understand fast adaptation processes of product innovation. The paper finds that frequent iterations, powerful leaders, milestones, and multifunctional teams increase the speed at which product development took place. As a result, frequent feedback loops in adaptive learning processes play a role in the temporal compression of adaptive processes in organizations.
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Feldman, Martha S., and Brian T. Pentland. “Reconceptualizing Organizational Routines as a Source of Flexibility and Change.” Administrative Science Quarterly 48.1 (2003): 94.
DOI: 10.2307/3556620 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This article re-conceptualizes organizational routines as not only a source of inertia, but also as a source of change. Routines offer enactments of performances that can create understanding within organizations, which results in endogenous change. By drawing on the duality of structure and agency, the authors emphasize the agentic dimension of routines both as a source of effortful maintenance and as a key source of adaptation.
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Huber, George P. “Organizational Learning: The Contributing Processes and the Literatures.” Organization Science 2.1 (1991): 88–115.
DOI: 10.1287/orsc.2.1.88 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This conceptual paper studies organizational learning more broadly and elaborates on four constructs that relate to adaptive behavior: knowledge acquisition, information distribution, information interpretation, and organizational memory. Understudied gaps in the literature are identified including a notion of incorrect learning and unobserved learning that is not followed by actions, each of which explains the potential for organizations to either adapt or not in the face of change.
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Levinthal, Daniel A., and James G. March. “The Myopia of Learning.” Strategic Management Journal 14.S2 (1993): 95–112.
DOI: 10.1002/smj.4250141009 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This conceptual article proposes that challenges in experiential learning parallel challenges in rationality in that superior calculative and information-processing capabilities are needed to support effective learning. As such, organizations simplify learning processes and tend toward proximate search, termed myopia, which threatens adaptation in the case of exogenous environmental shifts. The process of simplifying learning is therefore posited as a threat to long-term survival as environmental fit weakens with exogenous perturbations.
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March, James G. “Exploration and Exploitation in Organizational Learning.” Organization Science 2.1 (1991): 71–87.
DOI: 10.1287/orsc.2.1.71 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This seminal paper on exploration and exploitation identifies the temporal and spatial challenges associated with feedback-based organizational learning. Organizations seek future opportunities by exploring, but must balance the need to gain efficiencies by exploiting existing opportunities. Over time, predictable exploitative processes are refined more rapidly than uncertain explorative processes, leading to a substitution effect where exploitation prevails. Organizations, therefore, become well-adapted to short-term needs, but vulnerable to long-term prospects.
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Zahra, S. A., and Gerard George. “Absorptive Capacity: A Review, Reconceptualization, and Extension.” Academy of Management Review 27.2 (2002): 185–203.
DOI: 10.5465/AMR.2002.6587995 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
In a reconceptualization of absorptive capacity, this article proposes a model that distinguishes between a firm’s potential and realized absorptive capacity, more directly linking absorptive capacity to adaptation through transformations and exploitations made in the organization. This reconceptualization implies that knowledge must not simply be absorbed, but it must be acted upon to be realized.
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Zollo, Maurizio, and Sidney G. Winter. “Deliberate Learning and the Evolution of Dynamic Capabilities.” Organization Science 13.3 (2002): 339–351.
DOI: 10.1287/orsc.13.3.339.2780 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This article identifies the routines that lead to the development of dynamic capabilities. Learning mechanisms are critical to the accumulation, articulation, and codification of knowledge, which ultimately leads to the development of dynamic capabilities on which an organization’s adaptive capability is built. The proposed model identifies the variation, selection, and retention of routines involved in the cyclical development of capabilities.
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Cognitive Models

Cognition refers to the mental models involved in decision-making for organizations and were first introduced by Porac, et al. 1989 in a study of the Scottish knitwear manufacturing industry. Mental processes are related to, but not the same as learning processes. Managerial attention and organizational aspirations have represented a large portion of the work on mental models in the adaptation literature. Managerial attention, as described by Ocasio 1997, emanates from both the bounded rationality of managers, in that all aspects of the environment cannot be attended to, and the situations in which decisions are made. Attention has been shown by Cho and Hambrick 2006 and Eggers and Kaplan 2009 to be an important predictor of organizational moves, which reflect attempts at adaptation. Attentional aspects can also result in inertia when threats to organizations are not sufficiently recognized. Cognition research also highlights aspirational aspects that trigger adaptive strategies of change. Reflected in a notion of satisficing by March and Simon (1958) (cited in the separate Oxford Bibliographies article in Management “Organizational Theory”) aspirations act as mental models that trigger action as Greve 1998 demonstrates in a study of the radio communications industry. Past success can also act as a barrier to action as well. Tripsas and Gavetti 2000 identifies how imprinting can falsely lead managers to believe that past successes can be transformed into future adaptive moves, which again triggers problematic inertia. In overcoming inertia, Gavetti and Levinthal 2000 demonstrates the benefits of shifting cognitive representations in promoting adaptation. Cognitive models, therefore, richly inform the degree to which organizations act in the face of changing environmental conditions.

Cho, Theresa S., and Donald C. Hambrick. “Attention as the Mediator Between Top Management Team Characteristics and Strategic Change: The Case of Airline Deregulation.” Organization Science 17.4 (2006): 453–469.
DOI: 10.1287/orsc.1060.0192 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
In a study of airlines and their response to deregulation, this article highlights the role of top management team characteristics and attention in determining the response of organizations to environmental change. The study emphasizes the critical role of attention as a cognitive mediator between structure and the decision to adapt in the face of exogenous environmental change.
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Eggers, J. P, and S. Kaplan. “Cognition and Renewal: Comparing CEO and Organizational Effects on Incumbent Adaptation to Technical Change.” Organization Science 20.2 (2009): 461–477.
DOI: 10.1287/Orsc.1080.0401 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This article finds evidence for managerial attention leading to new market entry in the lead up to the emergence of fiber-optic technology in the telecommunications industry. The authors contrast resource reconfiguration and managerial cognition in the explanation of incumbent adaptation efforts and find significant support for cognition as a powerful indicator of adaptation to technological change.
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Gavetti, Giovanni, and Daniel Levinthal. “Looking Forward and Looking Backward: Cognitive and Experiential Search.” Administrative Science Quarterly 45.1 (2000): 113.
DOI: 10.2307/2666981 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This conceptual paper leverages simulation to identify the impacts of cognition on subsequent representations of experiential learning. The results of the model indicate that search behavior is constrained by previous search behavior and that the ability to shift cognitive representations can promote adaptation; however, shifting cognitive representations can be offset by a loss of tacit knowledge that accumulates through experience.
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Greve, Henrich R. “Performance, Aspirations, and Risky Organizational Change.” Administrative Science Quarterly 43.1 (1998): 58.
DOI: 10.2307/2393591 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This article highlights the role of aspirations in driving risky organizational change. Emanating from arguments of behavioral theory, the paper studies the radio telecommunications industry and demonstrates that performance below aspiration, both competitively and historically, promotes risky change; thus, adaptation efforts are catalyzed by performance in relation to aspiration.
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Ocasio, William. “Towards an Attention Based View of the Firm.” Strategic Management Journal 18.S1 (1997): 187–206.
DOI: 10.1002/(SICI)1097-0266(199707)18:1+<187::AID-SMJ936>3.3.CO;2-B Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
Building on Herbert Simon’s research, this article proposes a theoretical model of attention. The attention-based view addresses not only the cognitive limitations of managers, through limited ability to attend to all issues facing firms, but the notion of situated attention, which embeds the attention of managers within a broader environment. The attention-based view provides the foundation for several studies of cognition and strategic change associated with the process of adaptation
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Porac, Joseph F., Howard Thomas, and Charles Baden‐Fuller. “Competitive Groups as Cognitive Communities: The Case of Scottish Knitwear Manufacturers.” Journal of Management Studies 26.4 (1989): 397–416.
DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-6486.1989.tb00736.x Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This study of the Scottish knitwear manufacturing industry is a seminal study that highlights the limitations of managerial cognition. Scottish knitwear manufacturers did not recognize threats outside of their immediate competitive group or the potential need to adapt in the face of international competition—highlighting the importance of cognition in the ability of organizations to recognize threats and recognize the appropriate environments within which they operate.
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Tripsas, Mary, and Giovanni Gavetti. “Capabilities, Cognition, and Inertia: Evidence from Digital Imaging.” Strategic Management Journal 21.10–11 (2000): 1147–1161.
DOI: 10.1002/1097-0266(200010/11)21:10/11<1147::AID-SMJ128>3.0.CO;2-R Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This empirical case study of the Polaroid Corporation and its efforts to adapt to the emergence of digital imaging highlights the importance of cognitive models in restricting adaptation. While Polaroid recognized the emergence of a new technology and invested heavily in new technical capabilities, the imprinted cognitive interpretations of managers inhibited the commercialization of digital products and thus restricted the firm’s ability to adapt to a changing environment.
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Negotiating with Environments in the Adaptation Process

Research on adaptation has examined both the external influences on adaptation and the internal mechanisms of the adaptation process; however, the interrelation between these forces is critically important in understanding adaptation. Tushman and Anderson 1986 broadly identifies that firm strategy interacts with environments suggesting both benefits and consequences associated with adaptation depending on the nature of both the firm and the exogenous discontinuity in the environment. As such, a negotiation between organizations and their environments necessarily takes place whereby firms simultaneously seek change internally and legitimation externally. Negotiating with environments can be captured in a number of different ways. A primary framework for understanding the negotiation process is reflected in Hrebiniak and Joyce 1985, an article that theorizes on the interaction between strategic choice and environmental determinism. Similarly, Zammuto 1988 offers an extension to the adaptation literature by identifying ecological constraints in the adaptation process, while Burgelman 1991 identifies the internal processes that improve adaptation. Simulation studies, such as those developed by Levinthal 1997 and Siggelkow and Levinthal 2003, have captured the complexity associated with the interactions between choice and determinism faced by organizations. Relatedly, research by Siggelkow 2002 also focused separately on the complexity associated with developing internally aligned structures, while Vergne and Durand 2011 theorizes on the role of path dependence in enabling or inhibiting routines of change in confronting environmental selection pressure. The nature of the environment also plays a critical role in adaptation processes. Haunschild and Miner 1997 demonstrates the role of uncertain environments on organizational templates while Ruef and Patterson 2009 provides evidence for achieving legitimacy during periods when social evaluations are in flux. Studies of organizational adaptation should take seriously the interactions that take place with respect to both internal congruence and external congruence to truly capture the adaptability of organizations.

Burgelman, Robert A. “Intraorganizational Ecology of Strategy Making and Organizational Adaptation: Theory and Field Research.” Organization Science 2.3 (1991): 239–262.
DOI: 10.1287/orsc.2.3.239 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This case study of the Intel Corporation introduces the notion of “intraorganizational ecology” to strategy, based on a variation-selection-retention model. The case-study provides insight into four internal processes that were used by Intel to better adapt to their environment: relative inertia, adjustment, reorientation, and strategic renewal.
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Haunschild, Pamela R., and Anne S. Miner. “Modes of Interorganizational Imitation: The Effects of Outcome Salience and Uncertainty.” Administrative Science Quarterly 42.3 (1997): 472.
DOI: 10.2307/2393735 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This empirical study of acquisitions in the United States from 1988 to 1993 describes three modes of imitation behavior among organizations: frequency-based, where firms mimic actions taken by a large volume of other firms; trait-based, where firms selectively mimic practices of a smaller set of firms; and outcome-based, where mimicry is based on the outcomes of other firm practices. The findings demonstrated the prevalence of frequency and trait-based imitation in uncertain environments.
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Hrebiniak, Lawrence G., and William F. Joyce. “Organizational Adaptation: Strategic Choice and Environmental Determinism.” Administrative Science Quarterly 30.3 (1985): 336.
DOI: 10.2307/2392666 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This conceptual paper brings together concepts of strategic choice and environmental determinism into a model that identifies four situations in which organizations have increased or decreased ability to negotiate. The four quadrants identify degrees of adaptation as either low, where selection pressure overwhelms; moderate, where adaptation occurs with constraints; high, where adaptation is able to contribute toward design; or random, where adaptation occurs by chance.
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Levinthal, Daniel A. “Adaptation on Rugged Landscapes.” Management Science 43.7 (1997): 934–950.
DOI: 10.1287/mnsc.43.7.934 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This conceptual paper is the seminal paper introducing NK simulation models into management research. It models the interaction between adaptation and selection. The results of the simulation identify challenges in adaptation for incumbent organizations faced with change that is more pronounced in the environment. Particularly, tightly coupled organizations have increased failure rates in changing environments compared to loosely coupled organizations that engage in adaptation on the basis of local search.
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Ruef, Martin, and Kelly Patterson. “Credit and Classification: The Impact of Industry Boundaries in Nineteenth-Century America.” Administrative Science Quarterly 54.3 (2009): 486–520.
DOI: 10.2189/asqu.2009.54.3.486 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
Negotiating with environments involves dealing with social evaluations. As such, this paper identifies challenges associated with boundary violations by hybrid organizations and offers an evolutionary approach to assessing hybridity in organizations. The study of Dun and Company identifies that category spanning need not always be problematic, particularly when social evaluations are in flux or when organizations avoid identities involving ambiguous components.
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Siggelkow, Nicolaj. “Evolution toward Fit.” Administrative Science Quarterly 47.1 (2002): 125.
DOI: 10.2307/3094893 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
In a case study of the Vanguard Group, this article identifies four processes of evolving core elements within a firm including patching, thickening, coasting, and trimming. The core elements are reinforced internally within an organization to ensure increased competitiveness externally.
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Siggelkow, Nicolaj, and Daniel A. Levinthal. “Temporarily Divide to Conquer: Centralized, Decentralized, and Reintegrated Organizational Approaches to Exploration and Adaptation.” Organization Science 14.6 (2003): 650–669.
DOI: 10.1287/orsc.14.6.650.24870 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This simulation-based paper addresses the role of appropriate structure in determining both congruence with a firm’s environment and long-term competitive performance. The paper examines three primary structures: centralized, decentralized, and temporarily decentralized (where organizations begin in a decentralized form and move to become centralized). Temporarily decentralized forms are found to have the strongest long-term performance, despite being costly in the short-term.
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Tushman, Michael L., and Philip Anderson. “Technological Discontinuities and Organizational Environments.” Administrative Science Quarterly 31.3 (1986): 439.
DOI: 10.2307/2392832 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This empirical paper on the minicomputer, cement, and airline industries more distinctly identifies the consequences of technological breakthroughs on incumbent firms. At a broad level, the findings demonstrate two types of equilibria: competence destroying discontinuities that are initiated by new entrants, challenging an incumbent’s ability to adapt, and competence enhancing discontinuities that are initiated by incumbents, strengthening adaptation.
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Vergne, Jean-Philippe, and Rodolphe Durand. “The Path of Most Persistence: An Evolutionary Perspective on Path Dependence and Dynamic Capabilities.” Organization Studies 32.3 (2011): 365–382.
DOI: 10.1177/0170840610397485 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This paper theorizes on the internal and external selection mechanisms that shape organizational trajectories. The focus is on the role of path dependence, seen as a potential property of organizational capabilities. Path dependent routines emerge in contingent manners and are self-reinforced over time. Internally, path dependence in dynamic capabilities may be beneficial (e.g., to sustain a competitive advantage) or problematic (e.g., potentially leading to inertia) depending upon external selection mechanisms.
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Zammuto, Raymond F. “Organizational Adaptation: Some Implications of Organizational Ecology for Strategic Choice.” Journal of Management Studies 25.2 (1988): 105–120.
DOI: 10.1111/j.1467–6486.1988.tb00026.x Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This conceptual article argues that strategic choice theorists can deepen their understanding of adaptation by accounting for the ecological constraints posited by proponents of environmental determinism. Incorporating ecological perspectives on changing environments extends the domain of strategic choice theorists, allowing for a greater understanding of successful strategic choices.
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Theoretical and Methodological Pitfalls to Understanding Adaptation

This section outlines the theoretical and methodological pitfalls associated with researching adaptation. Addressing the seven primary pitfalls in adaptation research provides a useful guide for scholars seeking to move the adaptation research agenda forward.

Issues in Adaptation Research

Adaptation has been studied from several perspectives with varying definitional components that constrain the research agenda from progression. Seven key challenges in studying adaptation have emerged in the study of adaptation (see Vergne and Depeyre 2016 for a full summary), broadly including clear delineations of the levels of analysis at which adaptation is being measured, notions that successful adaptation is pre-ordained as proposed by Durand 2006, and ambiguous measures of fit that persist in adaptation research. Lewin and Volberda 1999 also identified the coevolution between firms and their environments as a challenge in the adaptation research agenda. As such, care should be taken in studies of adaptation and should include specific measures of adaptation, as proposed by Vergne and Depeyre 2016, or the use of quasi-experimental design that distinguishes exogenous shock from endogenous firm decisions. A deeper understanding of the relationship between organizational change and adaptation is also recommended for future research. Arend and Bromiley 2009 identifies that the frequency of change needs to be considered in determining whether change is truly adaptive change. Furthermore, Easterby-Smith, et al. 2009 discusses the merits of observability and that firms may have the capacity to adapt without specifically exercising that capacity. The ability to test successful adaptation from unsuccessful adaptation is also critical to a deeper understanding of the antecedents and consequences of adaptation (see Tripsas and Gavetti 2000 for an example of unsuccessful adaptation). Finally, studies focused on endogenous strategies of adaptation, particularly those leveraging dynamic capabilities, need to consider tautological concerns in research design as proposed by Priem and Butler 2001 as well as the potential challenges in equating path dependence with competitive advantage addressed by Vergne and Durand 2011.

Arend, Richard J., and Philip Bromiley. “Assessing the Dynamic Capabilities View: Spare Change, Everyone?” Strategic Organization 7.1 (2009): 75–90.
DOI: 10.1177/1476127008100132 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This paper identifies the continuous change that takes place within organizations, particularly with respect to assets where frequent reconfigurations are conducted by the organization regularly. As such, not all change should be seen as adaptive change. Studies of adaptation should isolate asset reconfigurations or strategic responses that pertain specifically to moves related to adaptation.
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Durand, R. Organizational Evolution and Strategic Management. London: Sage, 2006.
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Studies of adaptation are prone to functional adaptation fallacies in that any particular adjustment undertaken by organizations is seen as beneficial. Through this assumption, failed attempts at adaptation are ignored and outcome variables, such as organizational change, are seen as overly optimistic. A thoughtful use of adaptation is proposed whereby scholars recognize the teleological component of adaptation, its observable characteristics (including failures), and its relation to congruence with the environment.
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Easterby-Smith, Mark, Marjorie A. Lyles, and Margaret A. Peteraf. “Dynamic Capabilities: Current Debates and Future Directions.” British Journal of Management 20.1 (2009): S1–8.
DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-8551.2008.00609.x Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This paper identifies a fundamental challenge in the study of adaptation in that only observable actions are attributed to adaptation. A firm may possess the capability to adapt, but may not exercise that capability. The observability of adaptation therefore needs to be specified in empirical studies as a boundary condition.
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Lewin, Arie Y., and Henk W. Volberda. “Prolegomena on Coevolution: A Framework for Research on Strategy and New Organizational Forms.” Organization Science 10.5 (1999): 519–534.
DOI: 10.1287/orsc.10.5.519 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This article identifies the co-evolutionary nature between firms and their environments. As such, causal relationships are circular in that firms have the potential to shape their environments endogenously. Causality across levels therefore needs to be considered carefully in empirical tests of adaptation in order to isolate either the organization as shaping the environment or the organization as adapting to an environment.
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Priem, R. L., and J. E. Butler. “Is the Resource-Based ‘View’ a Useful Perspective for Strategic Management Research?” Academy of Management Review 26.1 (2001): 22–40.
DOI: 10.5465/AMR.2001.4011928 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
The primary argument against the resource-based view is that ex-post performance cannot be specifically explained by ex-ante actions. Specifically, in relation to adaptation, a conflation between adaptation and performance renders any analysis of fit as unobservable, or worse, tautological. Well-adapted firms may or may not perform well and, conversely, maladapted firms may achieve strong performance due to luck.
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Tripsas, Mary, and Giovanni Gavetti. “Capabilities, Cognition, and Inertia: Evidence from Digital Imaging.” Strategic Management Journal 21.10–11 (2000): 1147–1161.
DOI: 10.1002/1097-0266(200010/11)21:10/11<1147::AID-SMJ128>3.0.CO;2-R Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
The framework proposed in this study of Polaroid’s failure to adapt to digital imaging technology describes only the aspect of failing to adapt without shedding light on the abilities to successfully adapt. As such, care should be taken in studies of adaptation to distinguish between organizations that successfully adapt versus those that do not.
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Vergne, J. -P., and Colette Depeyre. “How Do Firms Adapt? A Fuzzy-Set Analysis of the Role of Cognition and Capabilities in U.S. Defense Firms Responses to 9/11.” Academy of Management Journal 59.5 (2016): 1653–1680.
DOI: 10.5465/amj.2013.1222 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
Deliberate non-adaptation is a confounding factor in the study of adaptation research and aligns with teleological components of adaptation. By proposing a measure of adaptation distinct from organizational change and performance, this paper is able to study the conditions of both adaptation and non-adaptation while addressing concerns of functional adaptation fallacies.
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Vergne, Jean-Philippe, and Rodolphe Durand. “The Path of Most Persistence: An Evolutionary Perspective on Path Dependence and Dynamic Capabilities.” Organization Studies 32.3 (2011): 365–382.
DOI: 10.1177/0170840610397485 Save Citation »Export Citation » Share Citation »
This paper outlines challenges in the dynamic capabilities view and its reliance on path dependency. Leveraging path dependency as a building block to superior adaptive capabilities engenders paradoxes at the managerial level, by restricting the ability of managers to intervene when necessary; at the organizational level, by inhibiting the ability for the organizations to adapt to exogenous shocks; and at the industrial level, by failing to distinguish capabilities between firms.
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Organizational Adaptation
by
Andrew Sarta, Jean-Philippe Vergne, Rodolphe Durand
LAST REVIEWED: 03 August 2020
LAST MODIFIED: 25 September 2018
DOI: 10.1093/obo/9780199846740-0149

Introduction

Journals

Classical Treatments of Organizational Adaptation

Organizations and Environmental Fit

Adaptation versus Selection

Constraining Forces to Adaptation

Adaptation as a State

Adaptation Typologies and Outcomes

Evolving from States of Adaptation

Adaptation as Ability

Adoption as Reactive Adaptation

Resource Reconfiguration as Proactive Adaptation

Exaptation as Discontinuous Resource Adjustment

Adaptation as a Process

Learning and Routines of Change

Cognitive Models

Negotiating with Environments in the Adaptation Process

Theoretical and Methodological Pitfalls to Understanding Adaptation

Issues in Adaptation Research

Management

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In This Article Expand or collapse the "in this article" section Organizational Adaptation

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Organizational Adaptation byAndrew Sarta, Jean-Philippe Vergne, Rodolphe DurandLAST REVIEWED: 03 August 2020LAST MODIFIED: 25 September 2018DOI: 10.1093/obo/9780199846740-0149

Introduction

Journals

Classical Treatments of Organizational Adaptation

Organizations and Environmental Fit

Adaptation versus Selection

Constraining Forces to Adaptation

Adaptation as a State

Adaptation Typologies and Outcomes

Evolving from States of Adaptation

Adaptation as Ability

Adoption as Reactive Adaptation

Resource Reconfiguration as Proactive Adaptation

Exaptation as Discontinuous Resource Adjustment

Adaptation as a Process

Learning and Routines of Change

Cognitive Models

Negotiating with Environments in the Adaptation Process

Theoretical and Methodological Pitfalls to Understanding Adaptation

Issues in Adaptation Research

Management

Article

Related Articles Expand or collapse the "related articles" section about

Organizational Adaptation
by
Andrew Sarta, Jean-Philippe Vergne, Rodolphe Durand
LAST REVIEWED: 03 August 2020
LAST MODIFIED: 25 September 2018
DOI: 10.1093/obo/9780199846740-0149