This document provides a reading list and overview of six themes for studying management theory: 1) defining theory, 2) comparing theory to paradigms, 3) the interplay of theory and method, 4) justifying theories, 5) publishing theory papers, and 6) debates about theory and paradigms. It includes over 50 references on theory development and recommends course outlines and notes from various business schools on publishing theory. The goal is to help readers understand different aspects of theory and develop their own theoretical contributions.

1. Study Notes of Management Theory:
themes and reading list for serious theory studies
©2010 by Professor Yender McLEE, Aug 24 ©2012 updated Jun 26.
*Theme 1: Knowledge! Knowledge! Knowledge in knowledge economy!
Theory! Theory! Theory!
What is theory in etymology, terminology and academia? 望文牽拖 versus 字源邏
輯學; History timeline of theory story for theoria of [science and] theology
(4*ory); Invisible Network of Knowledge [Production*] (INK model); model 2
of …describe first and explain what? The art and science of cause and effect
(Pearl); invisible college; invisible hands; visible hand;
theism/atheism/thesis; Theoria/theosis in theology and apotheosis; Ph.D. versus DBA
from Th.D.; theory in Latin, English or Mandarin? i.e. mano a mano versus esprit
de corps; de facto versus de juris; gnosis=knowledge of God or gods or saints;
sagacity of 7 knowledge levels; How to heal himself (Allen Lee on PhD in IS)
See more Theory-on-Sale DM and A holder@YouTube named as
theory-Q+q-research
http://www.youtube.com/my_playlists?p=AD9DAD1A8B51DF35 ;
YouTube search on “theory” “Ph.D.” theory as fashion brandname; a band; PhD as a
band; as a comic. See more on study notes on the plurk, you can search by
INK4tw and theory.
http://www.plurk.com/psearch#q=INK4tw+theory
*Theme 2: Is theory change equal to paradigm(s) shift (Kuhn)?
Theory in action or in network? Science in action; organization in action; knowledge
in action or network?
Quotations of Theory of Knowledge online Yahoo! INK group.
World view 1 of scientists or scholars ([epistemology], ontology, methodology and
axiology)===> world view 2 (…)
*Theme 3: Interplay of theory and method? Co-evolution of theoria versus praxis
Academica (Cicero, BC 80) in Latin and English; IB scholarship and ranking
(Harzing, ); Rasing stars (Starbuck); theory, praxeology, teleology and
methodology, axiology;
*Theme 4: How to prove or justify a theory? Citation as effortful voting (Omegax4
papers)?
ProvenModels.org 60+ or AIS theory 100+; justification by faith or citation process;
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2. vote by hand/feet/dollar/citation; other names between proof and justification;
falsification (q) versus verification (Q); certification; research rationale and big
versus trivia research questions;
*Theme 5: What and How to publish a theory paper with some propositions?
Research rationale; theoretical research questions; theoretical contributions;
AMR editor-Kilduff (2006);
Chapter of [Critical] Literature Review of (Easterby-Smith et al., 2008) Management
Research; Schopenfauer (1813) fourhold roots of sufficient reason; Goethe’s
Faust; Kant’s [first] critical philosophy [theory] of pure reason; Comte positivist
and Kuhn’s paradigm shift. 現代四德兩孔: 歌德; 康德; 孔德與孔恩 (浮士德;
路德); 古代四德兩羅
*Theme 6: theory or paradigm debates; dialog, discussion and discourse (4*d)
Mintzberg (1978ASQ) against vs. Morgan (1978ASQ) pro; Pfeffer (1993AMR)
paradigm vs. Van Maanen (1995OrgSci) Style as theory; Savvy and style’ writing
style or writing style
*K1: What is a SSCI-SCI-AHCI journal? How to download for datamining into
knowledge©? Data structure of the database; What are major benefits of
INK-SSCI-SCI model?
Read so much LESS but know so much MORE (SaveonFood© More Card®);
*K2: Tag cloud [change] by Tag Crowd® of INK keywords over cloud academia
(4*cloud) as theory change (paradigm shift as cloud or mindset movement)
How to define, confine and refine to fine (polish and publish or perish) your major
field in a discipline lines by lines in a lap day by day?
*K3: Timeline from Top 100 seeing sociology, history then philosophy of science or
your intended major field. Carefully reading or scan reading? Read less know
More® card of SaveonFoods®..
*K4: How to write a literature overview then review paper after INK paper?
Critical review[/theory] of related literature; The chapter of management research
textbook (Easterby-Smith et al., 2008). YouTube holder of theory-Q+q-research
*K5: Publish or Perish® along with Google Scholar citation
Harzing.com and IB scholarship and 50 years (Adler and Harzing, AMLE2009);
*K6: How to write a theory paper with some propositions not hypotheses after INK
paper?
Reading List
 Professor Keith Rollag’s Stanford notes 300+ versus Professor Cavaratta’s
INSEAD summary 900+ …Toward a CJCU INK 101+ summary and idea for your
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3. specifically?
http://faculty.babson.edu/krollag/org_site/toc.html ; http://ot.cavarretta.com/index.htm
Course Outline 1: Publishing in strategy by Professor Anne Langley (McGill)
Course Outline 2: theory development and testing by Professor Carpenter (Wisconsin,
just passed)
[R1] Dery-R and Toulouse-JM (1996) Social Structuration of the Field of
Entrepreneurship: A Case Study, Canadian Journal of Administrative Sciences
13(4): 285-305.
*Alder-N and Harzing-W (2009) When Knowledge Wins: Transcending the Sense and
Nonsense of Academic Rankings, Academy of Management Learning and
Education 8(1): 72-95.
*Dess and Peng (2010) In search of scholarship, Academy of Management Learning
and Education 9(2): 282-298.
[R2] Pfeffer-J (1993) Barriers to the Advance of Organization Science: Paradigm as
Dependent Variable, Academy of Management Review 18(4): 599-620.
*Lewis-MW and Grimes-AJ (1999) Metatriangulation: Building Theory from
Multiple Paradigms, Academy of Management Review 24(4): 672-690.
*Van Maanen-J (1995) Style as Theory, Organization Science 6(1): 133-143.
*Pfeffer-J (1995) Mortality, Reproducibility and the Persistence of Styles of Theory,
Organization Science 6(6): 681-686.
[R3] Sutton-RI and Staw-BM (1995) What Theory is not. Administrative Science
Quarterly 40(3): 371-384.
[R4] Weick-KE (1995) What Theory is not, Theorizing is. Administrative Science
Quarterly 40(3): 385-390.
*DiMaggio-PJ (1995) Comments on “What Theory is not.” Administrative Science
Quarterly 40(3): 391-397.
*Weick-KE (1989) Theory Construction as Disciplined Imagination, Academy of
Management Review 14(4): 516-531.
[R5] Whetten-DA (1989) What Constitute a Theoretical Contribution? Academy of
Management Review 14(4): 490-495.
* Eisenhardt-KM (1989) Building Theory from Case Study Research. Academy of
Management Review 14(4): 532-550.
*[R6] Eisenhardt-KM and Graebner-M (2007) Theory Building from Cases:
Opportunities and Challenges, Academy of Management Journal 50(1): 25-32.
*Kilduff-M (2006) Editor’s Comments: Publishing Theory. Academy of Management
Review 32(1): 252-255.
*[R7] Kilduff-M (2007) Celebrating Thirty Years of Theory Publishing in AMR:
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4. Award-Winning Articles from the First Two Decades Revisited, Academy of
Management Review 32(2): 332-333.
A1: Etemad and Lee (2003) The knowledge network of international entrepreneurship:
Theory and evidence, Small Business Economics 23(1): 5-23.
*Ma, Liang, Yu and Lee (2012) Most cited business ethics publications: mapping the
intellectual structure of business ethics studies in 2001–2008, Business Ethics: An
European Review 21(3): 286-297.
*Ma and Lee (2008) Patent application and technological collaboration in inventive
activities: 1980–2005, Technovation 28(6): 376-390.
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