Interorganizational Decision Making

As organizations have grown in scale and scope of activities, so have social pressures on every aspect of organizational activity from personnel policies to waste disposal practices. This volume is a rare example of a multidisciplinary approach to an important theoretical problem--the proper means of interorganizational decision making in light of these new pressures. This complex subject is here attacked by nineteen prominent behavioral scientists from a variety of disciplines.

The study of interorganizational decision-making is aimed at moving game situations from conditions of conflict or mixed conflict-cooperation to conditions of pure cooperation. It seeks means of facilitating the coordination of decisions whenever interdependencies exist between the decision units. The book discusses variables, which may affect decision making, including awareness of individual and collective payoffs, choice of an organizational structure, response of boundary personnel, and the decision technology that exists to guide the decision makers.

The book contains studies on all interorganizational decision making situations, including individual and joint decisions, those at the interface of government and business, and decision making at the international level. Contributions are balanced between quantitative building approaches and practical empirical applications, suggesting avenues for both theoretical and practical work in this new field. The book will be of profound interest to all behavioral and management scientists.

Roger Chisholm