Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

How Leadership Characteristics Affect Organizational Decline and Downsizing

  • Published:
Journal of Business Ethics Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

While studies have investigated the moral issue associated with downsizing, little research attention has been directed to leaders’ behaviors that result in organizational decline and eventually lead them to make a downsizing decision. This study tests a sequence-based model to assess (1) the impact of leaders’ risk-aversion and self-centeredness on organizational decline and downsizing and (2) the impact of organizational and industry decline on organizational downsizing. We address a gap in the decline literature that has only implicitly alluded to leadership characteristics as forerunners of decline. Data collected from 85 firms indicate that both leadership risk-aversion and self-centeredness are significantly related to organizational decline. This results in intensified organizational downsizing. However, industry decline affects downsizing more significantly.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Abrahamson, E. (1991). Managerial Fads and Fashions: The Diffusion and Rejection of Innovations. Academy of Management Review, 16, 586–612

    Google Scholar 

  • Abrahamson, E. and L. Rosenkopf: 1990, ‘When do Bandwagon Diffusions Roll? How far do They Go? And When do They Roll Backwards: A Computer Simulation’, Academy of Management Best Paper Proceedings, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA, pp. 155–159

  • Agócs, C. (1997). Institutionalized Resistance to Organizational Change: Denial, Inaction and Repression. Journal of Business Ethics, 16, 917–931

    Google Scholar 

  • Anderson, N. (1998). The People Make the Paradigm. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 19, 323–328

    Google Scholar 

  • Barker V. L., I. M. Duhaime. (1997). Strategic Change in the Turnaround Process: Theory and Empirical Evidence. Strategic Management Journal, 18, 13–38

    Google Scholar 

  • Barker V. L., M. A. Mone. (1993). Retrenchment: Cause of Turnaround or Consequence of Decline. Strategic Management Journal, 15, 395–405

    Google Scholar 

  • Barker V. L., P. W. Patterson. (1996). Top Management Team Tenure and Top Manager Causal Attributions at Declining Firms Attempting Turnarounds. Group and Organization Management, 21, 304–337

    Google Scholar 

  • Baron J. N., M. T. Hannan. (2002). Organizational Blueprints for Success in High-Tech Start-Ups. California Management Review, 44, 8–36

    Google Scholar 

  • Barron R. M., D. A. Kenny. (1986). The Moderator–Mediator Variable Distinction in Social Psychological Research: Conceptual, Strategic, and Statistical Considerations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 51, 1173–1182

    Google Scholar 

  • Bass B. M. (1985). Leadership and Performance Beyond Expectations. Free Press: New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Bateman T. B., C. P. Zeithaml. (1989). The Psychological Context of Strategic Decisions. Strategic Management Journal, 10, 587–592

    Google Scholar 

  • Baum J. A. C., T. L. Amburgey. (2005). Organizational Ecology. In Baum, J. A. C. (Ed), Companion to Organizations (pp. 304–326). Blackwell: Somerset, UK

    Google Scholar 

  • Blackwell D. W., M. W. Marr, M. F. Spivey. (1990). Plant Closing Decisions and the Market Value of the Firm. Journal of Financial Economics, 26, 277–288

    Google Scholar 

  • Bliese P. D., C. A. Castro. (2000). Role Clarity, Work Overload and Organizational Support: Multilevel Evidence of the Importance of Support. Work and Stress, 14, 65–73

    Google Scholar 

  • Boeker, W. (1997). Strategic Change: The Influence of Managerial Characteristics and Organizational Growth. Academy of Management Journal, 40, 152–170

    Google Scholar 

  • Boin A., P. 't Hart, e. Stern and B. Sundelius. (2005). The Politics of Crisis Management: Public Leadership Under Pressure. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge

    Google Scholar 

  • Bovey W. H., A. Hede. (2001). Resistance to Organisational Change: The Role of Defense Mechanisms. Journal of Managerial Psychology, 16, 534–548

    Google Scholar 

  • Bowman C., V. Ambrosini. (1997). Using Single Respondents in Strategy Research. British Journal of Management, 8, 119–131

    Google Scholar 

  • Bridges W. (1992). Managing Transitions: Making the Most of Change. Reading, MA: Addison Wesley

    Google Scholar 

  • Brittain J. W., J. H. Freeman. (1980). Organizational Proliferation a Density Dependent Selection. In J. R. Kimberley, R. H. Miles (Eds), The Organization Life Cycle (pp. 291–338). Jossey-Bass: San Francisco

    Google Scholar 

  • Brockner, J. (1992). The Escalation of Commitment to a Failing Course of Action: Toward Theoretical Progress. Academy of Management Review, 17, 39–61

    Google Scholar 

  • Brown, A. D. 1997. Narcissism, Identity, and Legitimacy. Academy of Management Review, 22, 643–686

    Google Scholar 

  • Budros, A. (1999). A Conceptual Framework for Analyzing why Organizations Downsize. Organization Science, 10, 69–82

    Google Scholar 

  • Budros, A. (2004). Causes of Early and Later Organizational Adoption: The Case of Corporate Downsizing. Sociological Inquiry, 74, 355–380

    Google Scholar 

  • Cameron, K. S. (1994). Strategies for Successful Organizational Downsizing. Human Resource Management, 33, 89–112

    Google Scholar 

  • Cameron K. S., M. U. Kim, D. A. Whetten. (1987). Organizational Effects of Decline and Turbulence. Administrative Science Quarterly, 32, 222–240

    Google Scholar 

  • Cameron K. S., R. L. Sutton, D. A. Whetten. (1988). Readings in Organizational Decline: Frameworks, Research and Prescriptions. Cambridge, MA: Ballinger Publishing Company

    Google Scholar 

  • Cameron K. S., R. Zammuto. (1983). Matching Managerial Strategies to Conditions of Decline. Human Resource Management, 22, 359–375

    Google Scholar 

  • Carmeli A., J. Schaubreock. (2006). Top Management Team Behavioral Integration, Decision Quality and Organizational Decline. The Leadership Quarterly, 17, 441–453

    Google Scholar 

  • Cascio, W.F., and P. Wynn. (2004). Managing a Downsizing Process. Human Resources Management, 43(4), 425–436

    Google Scholar 

  • Carpenter M. A., M. A. Geletkanycz, W. G. Sanders. (2004). Upper Echelons Research Revisited: Antecedents, Elements, and Consequences of Management Team Composition. Journal of Management, 30, 749–778

    Google Scholar 

  • Cascio, W. F. (1993). Downsizing: What do We Know? What have We Learned? Academy of Management Executive, 7, 95–104

    Google Scholar 

  • Cascio, W.F., and P. Wynn. (2004). Managing a Downsizing Process. Human Resource Management, 43(4), 425–436

    Google Scholar 

  • Cascio W. F., C. E. Young, J. R. Morris. (1997). Financial Consequences of Employment-Change Decisions in Major U.S. Corporations, Academy of Management Journal, 40, 1175–1189

    Google Scholar 

  • Castanias R. L., C. E. Helfat. (1991). Managerial Resources and Rents. Journal of Management, 17, 155–171

    Google Scholar 

  • Castanias R. P., C. E. Helfat. (2001). The Managerial Rents Model: Theory and Empirical Analysis. Journal of Management, 27, 661–678

    Google Scholar 

  • Castrogiovanni, G. J. 1991, Environmental Munificence: A Theoretical Assessment. Academy of Management Review, 16(3), 542–565

    Google Scholar 

  • Castrogiovanni, G. J. (2002). Organization Task Environments: Have They Changed Fundamentally Over Time?. Journal of Management, 28, 129–150

    Google Scholar 

  • Christensen, C. M. (1997). The Innovators Dilemma: When New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail. Boston: Harvard Business School Press

    Google Scholar 

  • Clarke, L. (1994). Essence of Change. London: Prentice Hall

    Google Scholar 

  • D’Aveni, R. A. (1989). The Aftermath of Organizational Decline: A Longitudinal Study of the Strategic and Managerial Characteristics of Declining Firms. Academy of Management Journal, 32(3), 577–605

    Google Scholar 

  • D’Aveni R. A., I. C. McMillan. (1990). Crisis and the Content of Managerial Communications: A Study of the Focus of Attention of Top Managers in Surviving and Failing Firms. Administrative Science Quarterly, 35, 634–657

    Google Scholar 

  • Denrell J., J. G. March. (2001). Adaptation as Information Restriction: The Hot Stove Effect. Organization Science, 12, 523–538

    Google Scholar 

  • Dent E. B., S. G. Goldberg. (1999). Challenging “Resistance to Change”. Journal Applied Behavioral Science, 35, 25–41

    Google Scholar 

  • Dess G. G., D. W. Beard. (1984). Dimensions of Organizational Task Environments. Administrative Science Quarterly, 29, 52–73

    Google Scholar 

  • DeWitt, R. L. (1993). The Structural Consequences of Downsizing. Organization Science 4, 31–39

    Google Scholar 

  • DeWitt, R. L. (1998). Firm, Industry, and Strategy Influences on Choice of Downsizing Approach. Strategic Management Journal, 19, 59–79

    Google Scholar 

  • Donaldson, L. (1995). American Anti-Management Theories of Organization: A Critique of Paradigm Proliferation. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press

    Google Scholar 

  • Dutton, J. E. (1993). Interpretations on Automatic: A Different View of Strategic Issue Diagnosis. Journal of Management Studies, 30, 339–357

    Google Scholar 

  • Eisenhardt, K. M. (1988). Agency- and Institutional-Theory Explanations: The Case of Retail Sales Compensation. Academy of Management Journal, 31, 488–511

    Google Scholar 

  • Eisenhardt, K. M. (1989). Agency Theory: An Assessment and Review. Academy of Management Review, 4, 57–74

    Google Scholar 

  • Esser, J. K. (1998). Alive and Well After 25 Years: A Review of Groupthink Research. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 73, 116–141

    Google Scholar 

  • Ferraro F., J. Pfeffer, R. I. Sutton. (2005). Economics Language and Assumptions: How Theories can Become Self-Fulfilling. Academy of Management Review, 30, 8–24

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ferrier W. J., K. G. Smith, C. M. Grimm. (1999). The Role of Competitive Action in Market Share Erosion and Industry Dethronement: A Study of Industry Leaders and Challengers. Academy of Management Journal, 42, 372–388

    Google Scholar 

  • Fine, R. (1986). Narcissism, the Self and Society. New York: Columbia University Press

    Google Scholar 

  • Finkelstein, S. (2003). Why Smart Executives Fail and what You can Learn from Their Mistakes. New York: Portfolio

    Google Scholar 

  • Finkelstein S., D. C. Hambrick. (1996). Strategic Leadership. New York: West Publishing

    Google Scholar 

  • Filatotchev I., T. Buck, V. Zhukov. (2000). Downsizing in Privatized Firms in Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus. Academy of Management Journal, 43, 286–304

    Google Scholar 

  • Filatotchev I., S. Toms. (2006). Corporate Governance and Financial Constraints on Strategic Turnarounds. Journal of Management Studies, 43, 407–433

    Google Scholar 

  • Ford, J. D. (1980). The Occurrence of Structural Hysteresis in Declining Organizations. Academy of Management Review, 5, 589–598

    Google Scholar 

  • Ford J. D., D. Baucus. (1987). Organizational Adaptation to Performance Downturns: An Interpretation-Based Perspective. Academy of Management Review, 12, 366–380

    Google Scholar 

  • Freeman S. J., K. S. Cameron. (1993). Organizational Downsizing: A Convergence and Reorientation Framework. Organization Science, 4, 10–29

    Google Scholar 

  • Goins, S. T.: 2000, ‘Institutional Influences in Competitive Fields: The Case of Layoffs’, Paper Presented at the Annual Academy of Management Meeting, Toronto

  • Greenhalgh, L. (1983). Organizational Decline. In S. B. Bachrach (Eds), Research in the Sociology of Organizations (pp. 231–276). Greenwich, CT: JAI Press

    Google Scholar 

  • Greening D. W., R. A. Johnson. 1996. Do Managers and Strategies Matter? A Study in Crisis. Journal of Management Studies, 33(1), 25–51

    Google Scholar 

  • Haines, S. G. (2000). The Systems Thinking Approach to Strategic Planning and Management. Delray Beach, FL: St. Lucie Press

    Google Scholar 

  • Hair J. F., P. E. Anderson, R. L. Tatham, W. C. Black. (1998). Multivariate Data Analysis. NJ: Prentice Hall

    Google Scholar 

  • Hambrick D. C., R. A. D’Aveni. (1988). Large Corporate Failures as Downward Spirals. Administrative Science Quarterly, 33, 1–23

    Google Scholar 

  • Hambrick D. C., P. A. Mason. 1984. Upper Echelons: The Organization as a Reflection of Its Top Managers. Academy of Management Review, 9(2), 193–206

    Google Scholar 

  • Harrigan, K. R. (1980). Strategy Formulation in Declining Industries. Academy of Management Review, 5, 599–604

    Google Scholar 

  • Harrigan, K. R. (1981). Deterrents to Divestiture. Academy of Management Journal, 24, 306–323

    Google Scholar 

  • Harrigan K. R., M. E. Porter. (1983). End-Game Strategies for Declining Industries. Harvard Business Review, 64, 111–120

    Google Scholar 

  • Hau-siu, C. I. (2004). The Impact of Institutional Context on Human Resource Management in Three Chinese Societies. Employee Relations, 26, 626–642

    Google Scholar 

  • Hedberg B. L. T., P. C. Nystrom, W. H. Starbuck. (1976). Camping on Seesaws: Prescriptions for a Self-Designing Organization. Administrative Science Quarterly, 21, 41–65

    Google Scholar 

  • Heirs B., P. Farrell. (1987). The Professional Decision Thinker. London: Sidgwick & Jackson

    Google Scholar 

  • Hopkins W. E., S. A. Hopkins. (1999). The Ethics of Downsizing: Perceptions of Rights and Responsibilities. Journal of Business Ethics, 18(2), 145–156

    Google Scholar 

  • Hoskisson R. E., R. A. Johnson, D. D. Moesel. (1994). Corporate Divestiture Intensity in Restructuring Firms: Effects of Governance, Strategy and Performance. Academy of Management Journal, 37, 1207–1251

    Google Scholar 

  • Irving, J. (1971). Group Think. Psychology Today, 5, 43–44

    Google Scholar 

  • Iverson R. D., J. A. Pullman. (2000). Determinants of Voluntary Turnover and Layoffs in an Environment of Repeated Downsizing Following a Merger: An Event History Analysis. Journal of Management, 26, 977–1003

    Google Scholar 

  • James, B. G. (1982). General Linear Model Procedures of SAS. USA: SAS Inc

    Google Scholar 

  • Janis, I. L. (1982). Victims of Groupthink. Boston: Houghton-Mifflin

    Google Scholar 

  • Janis, I. L. (1989). Crucial Decisions: Leadership in Policymaking and Crisis Management. New York: Free Press

    Google Scholar 

  • Jawahar I. M., G. L. McLaughlin. (2001). Toward a Descriptive Stakeholder Theory: An Organizational Life Cycle Approach. Academy of Management Review, 26(3), 397–414

    Google Scholar 

  • Jogaratnam G., E. C. Tse, M. D. Olsen. (1999). Strategic Posture, Environmental Munificence, and Performance: An Empirical Study of Independent Restaurants. Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Research, 23, 118–138

    Google Scholar 

  • Kang, J. and A. Shivdasani: 1995, ‘Corporate Restructuring During Performance Declines in Japan’, Journal of Financial Economics 46, 29–65

    Google Scholar 

  • Kenny D. A., D. Kashy, N. Bolger. (1998). Data Analysis in Social Psychology. In D. Gilbert, S. Fiske, G. Lindzey (Eds), Handbook of Social Psychology (pp. 233–265). New York: McGraw-Hill

    Google Scholar 

  • Kets de Vries M., D. Miller. (1984). The Neurotic Organization. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass

    Google Scholar 

  • Kiesler S., L. Sproull (1982). Managerial Responses to Changing Environments: Perspectives on Problem Sensing from Social Cognition. Administrative Science Quarterly, 27, 548–570

    Google Scholar 

  • King A. A., M. J. Lenox. (2000). Industry Self-Regulation Without Sanctions: The Chemical Industrys Responsible Care Program. Academy of Management Journal, 43, 698–716

    Google Scholar 

  • Kirby S. L., M. A. Davis. (1998). A Study of Escalating Commitment in Principal–Agent Relationships: Effects of Monitoring and Personal Responsibility. Journal of Applied Psychology, 83, 1–4

    Google Scholar 

  • Kisfalvi, V. (2000). The Threat of Failure. The Perils of Success and CEO Character: Sources of Strategic Persistence. Organization Studies, 21, 611–639

    Google Scholar 

  • Kitron, M. J. (1976). Adaptors and Innovators: A Description and Measure. Journal of Applied Psychology, 61, 622–629

    Google Scholar 

  • Kitron, M. J. (1984). Why New Initiatives get Blocked. Long Range Planning, 17, 137–143

    Google Scholar 

  • Kroll M. J., L. A. Toombs, P. Wright. (2000). Napoleons Tragic March Home from Moscow: Lessons in Hubris. Academy of Management Executive, 14, 117–128

    Google Scholar 

  • Lamb, R. B.: 1987, `Running American', Business: Top CEOs Rethink Their Major Decisions (Basic Books, New York)

  • Lamertz K., J. A. C. Baum. (1998). The Legitimacy of Organizational Downsizing in Canada: An Analysis of Explanatory Media Accounts. Canadian Journal of Administrative Sciences, 15, 93–107

    Google Scholar 

  • Laverty, K. J. (1996). Economic “Short-Termism”: The Debate, the Unresolved Issues, and the Implications for Management Practice and Research. Academy of Management Review, 21, 825–860

    Google Scholar 

  • Lindenberg, S. (2001). Social Rationality Versus Rational Egoism. New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum

    Google Scholar 

  • Lovallo D., D. Kahneman. (2003). Delusions of Success: How Optimism Undermines Executives Decisions. Harvard Business Review, 81, 56–63

    Google Scholar 

  • McKinley W., J. Zhao, K. G. Rust. (2000). A Sociocognitive Interpretation of Organizational Downsizing. Academy of Management Review, 25, 227–243

    Google Scholar 

  • Mento A. J., R. M. Jones, W. Dirndorfer. (2001). A Change Management Process: Grounded in Both Theory and Practice. Journal of Change Management, 2, 45–59

    Google Scholar 

  • Messinger, S. L. (1955). Organizational Transformation: A Case Study of a Declining Social Movement. American Sociological Review, 30, 3–10

    Google Scholar 

  • Meyer, A. D. (1988). Organizational Decline from the Organizational Perspective, In K. S. Cameron, R. I. Sutton, D. A. Whetten (Eds), Readings in Organizational Decline: Frameworks, Research and Prescriptions (pp. 411–416). Cambridge, MA: Ballinger

    Google Scholar 

  • Miller, D. (1994). What Happens After Success: The Perils of Excellence. Journal of Management Studies, 31, 325–358

    Google Scholar 

  • Miller, D. T. (1999). The Norm of Self-Interest. American Psychologist, 54, 1053–1060

    Google Scholar 

  • Mone M. A., W. McKinley, V. L. Barker. (1998). Organizational Decline and Innovation: A Contingency Framework. Academy of Management Review, 23, 115–131

    Google Scholar 

  • Neumann Y., E. Finaly-Neumann. (1994). Management Strategy, the CEOs Cognitive Style and Organizational Growth/Decline: A Framework for Understanding Enrolment Change in Private Colleges. Journal of Educational Administration, 32, 66–76

    Google Scholar 

  • Nixon R. D., M. A. Hitt, H. Lee, E. Jeong. (2004). Market Reaction to Announcements of Corporate Downsizing Actions and Implementation Strategies. Strategic Management Journal, 25, 1121–1129

    Google Scholar 

  • Nystrom P. C., W. H. Starbuck. (1984). To Avoid Organizational Crises, Unlearn. Organizational Dynamics, 12, 53–65

    Google Scholar 

  • Ocasio, W. (1995). The Enactment of Economic Adversity: A Reconciliation of Theories of Failure-Induced Change and Threat-Rigidity. Research in Organizational Behavior, 17, 287–331

    Google Scholar 

  • O’Neill H. M., R. W. Pouder, A. K. Buchholtz. (1998). Patterns in the Diffusion of Strategies Across Organizations: Insights from the Innovation Diffusion Literature. Academy of Management Review, 23, 98–114

    Google Scholar 

  • Oreg, S. (2003). Resistance to Change: Developing an Individual Differences Measure. Journal of Applied Psychology, 88, 680–693

    Google Scholar 

  • Peterson S. R., D. P. Owens, E. P. Tetlock, T. E. Fan, P. Martorana. (1998). Group Dynamics in Top Management Teams: Groupthink, Vigilance and Alternative Models of Organizational Failure and Success. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 73, 272–305

    Google Scholar 

  • Peterson R. S., D. B. Smith, P. V. Martorana, P. D. Owens. (2003). The Impact of Chief Executive Officer Personality on Top Management Team Dynamics: One Mechanism by Which Leadership Affects Organizational Performance. Journal of Applied Psychology, 88, 795–808

    Google Scholar 

  • Pearce J. A., K. D. Robbins. (1993). Toward Improved Theory and Research on Business Turnaround. Journal of Management, 19, 613–636

    Google Scholar 

  • Pearce J. A., K. D. Robbins. (1994). Retrenchment Remains the Foundation of Business Turnaround. Strategic Management Journal, 15, 407–417

    Google Scholar 

  • Pfeffer, J.: 1981, ‘Management as Symbolic Action: The Creation and Maintenance of Organizational Paradigms’, in B. M. Staw and L. L. Cummings (eds.), Research in Organizational Behavior, Vol. 3 (JAI Press, Greenwich, CT), pp. 1–52

  • Probst G., S. Raisch. (2005). Organizational Crisis: The Logic of Failure. Academy of Management Executive, 19, 90–105

    Google Scholar 

  • Ranft A. L., H. M. O’Neill. (2001). Board Composition and High-Flying Founders: Hints of Trouble to Come?. Academy of Management Executive, 15(1), 126–138

    Google Scholar 

  • Reger R. K., L. T. Gustafson, S. M. Demarie, J. V. Mullane. (1994). Reframing the Organization: Why Implementing Total Quality is Easier said than Done. Academy of Management Review, 19, 565–584

    Google Scholar 

  • Richardson, W. (1993). Why We Probably will not Save Mankind: A “Natural” Configuration of Crisis-Proneness. Disaster Prevention and Management, 2, 32–59

    Google Scholar 

  • Richardson, W. (1995). Paradox Management for Crisis Avoidance. Management Decision, 33, 5–18

    Google Scholar 

  • Richardson B., S. Nwankwo, S. Richardson. (1994). Understanding the Causes of Business Failure Crises: Generic Failure Types: Boiled Frogs, Drowned Frogs, Bullfrogs and Tadpoles. Management Decision, 32, 9–22

    Google Scholar 

  • Ruef, M. (1997). Assessing Organizational Fitness on a Dynamic Landscape: An Empirical Test of the Relative Inertia Thesis. Strategic Management Journal, 18, 837–853

    Google Scholar 

  • Rust K. G., W. McKinley. (2002). Managerial Ideologies as Rationalizers: How Managerial Ideologies Moderate the Relationship Between Change in Profitability and Downsizing. Journal of Behavioral and Applied Management, 3(2), 108–128

    Google Scholar 

  • Schlenker, B. R. (1980). Impression Management: The Self-Concept, Socials Identity and Interpersonal Relations. Monterey, CA: Brooks/Cole

    Google Scholar 

  • Schwenk, C. (1993). Management Tenure and Explanations for Success and Failure. Omega, 21, 449–456

    Google Scholar 

  • Shamir B., E. Zakay, E. Breinin, M. Popper. (1998). Correlates of Charismatic Leader Behavior in Military Units: Subordinates’ Attitudes, Unit Characteristics and Superiors’ Appraisal of Leader Performance. Academy of Management Journal, 41, 387–409

    Google Scholar 

  • Shaw B., F. R. Post. 1993 A Moral Basis for Corporate Philanthropy. Journal of Business Ethics, 12(10), 745–752

    Google Scholar 

  • Singh J. V., R. J. House, D. J. Tucker. (1986). Organizational Change and Organizational Mortality. Administrative Science Quarterly, 31, 587–611

    Google Scholar 

  • Slovic, P. (1972). Information Processing, Situation Specificity, and the Generality of Risk Taking Behavior. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 22, 128–134

    Google Scholar 

  • Smart C., I. Vertinsky. (1984). Strategy and Environment: A Study of Corporate Responses to Crisis. Strategic Management Journal, 5, 199–213

    Google Scholar 

  • Smith, D. (2006a). Beyond Contingency Planning: Towards a Model of Crisis Management. In: D. Smith, & D. Elliot (Eds.) Key Readings in Crisis Management: Systems and Structures for Prevention and Recovery (pp. 147–158). London: Routledge

    Google Scholar 

  • Smith, D. (2006b). Crisis Management-Practice in Search of a Paradigm. In D. Smith, & D. Elliott (Eds.), Key Readings in Crisis Management: Systems and Structures for Prevention and Recovery (pp. 1–15). London: Routledge

    Google Scholar 

  • Smith K. G., K. A. Smith, J. D. Olian, H. P. Sims, D. P. O’Bannon, J. A. Scully. (1994). Top Management Team Demography and Process: The Role of Social Integration and Communication. Administrative Science Quarterly, 39, 412–438

    Google Scholar 

  • Starbuck W. H., A. Greve, B. L. T. Hedberg. (1978). Responding to Crisis. Journal of Business Administration, 9, 111–137

    Google Scholar 

  • Stavrou E., G. Kassinis, A. Filotheou. (2007). Downsizing and Stakeholder Orientation Among the Fortune 500: Does Family Ownership Matter?. Journal of Business Ethics. 72(2), 149–162

    Google Scholar 

  • Staw B. M., L. E. Sanderlands, J. E. Dutton. (1981). Threat Rigidity in Organizational Behavior. Administrative Science Quarterly, 26, 501–524

    Google Scholar 

  • Suutari R. K. (1996). Business Strategy and Security Analysis: The Key to Long-Term Investment Profits. Chicago: Irwin Professional Publications

    Google Scholar 

  • Symon G. (2005). Exploring Resistance from a Rhetorical Perspective. Organization Studies 26, 1641–1663

    Google Scholar 

  • Thompson, J. L. (1998). Strategic Crisis Aversion: The Value of a ‘Style Audit’. The Learning Organization, 5, 36–48

    Google Scholar 

  • Van de Ven A.H., M. S. Poole. (1995). Explaining Development and Change in Organizations. Academy of Management Review, 20, 510–540

    Google Scholar 

  • Weick, K. E. (1988). Enacted Sensemaking in Crisis Situations. Journal of Management Studies, 25, 305–317

    Google Scholar 

  • Weick, K. E. (1995). Sensemaking in Organizations. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage

    Google Scholar 

  • Weitzel W., E. Jonsson. (1989). Decline in Organizations: A Literature Integration and Extension. Administrative Science Quarterly, 34, 91–109

    Google Scholar 

  • Whetten, D. A. (1980). Sources, Responses and Effects of Organizational Decline, In: J. R. Kimberly, & R. H. Miles (Eds.), The Organizational Life Cycles (pp. 342–374). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass

    Google Scholar 

  • Whetten, D. A. (1988). Sources, Responses and Effects of Organizational Decline, In: K. S. Cameron, R. L. Sutton, & D. A. Whetten (Eds.), Readings in Organizational Decline: Frameworks, Research and Prescriptions (pp. 151–174). Cambridge, MA: Ballinger

    Google Scholar 

  • Wilkinson A., K. Mellahi. 2005. Organizational Failure: Introduction to the Special Issue. Long Range Planning, 38(3), 233–238

    Google Scholar 

  • Williams A., S. Woodward, P. Dobson. (2002). Managing Change Successfully: Using Theory and Experience to Implement Change. London: Thomson

    Google Scholar 

  • Wiseman R. M., P. Bromiley. (1996). Toward a Model of Risk in Declining Organizations: An Empirical Examination of Risk, Performance and Decline. Organization Science, 7, 524–541

    Google Scholar 

  • Witteloostuijn, A. (1998). Bridging Behavioral and Economic Theories of Decline: Organizational Inertia, Strategic Competition, and Chronic Failure. Management Science, 44, 501–519

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zuckerman, M. (1979). Attribution of Success and Failure Revisited, or: The Motivational Bias is Alive and Well in Attribution Theory. Journal of Personality, 47, 245–287

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Graduate School of Business Administration, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan, Israel

    Abraham Carmeli

  2. Department of Economics and Management, The Open University of Israel, P. O. Box 808, 108 Ravutski Street, Raanana, 43107, Israel

    Zachary Sheaffer

Authors
  1. Abraham Carmeli
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Zachary Sheaffer
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Abraham Carmeli.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Carmeli, A., Sheaffer, Z. How Leadership Characteristics Affect Organizational Decline and Downsizing. J Bus Ethics 86, 363–378 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-008-9852-7

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-008-9852-7

Keywords

Search

Navigation