Trends in Theory Building and Theory Testing: A Five-Decade Study of the "Academy

of Management Journal"
Author(s): Jason A. Colquitt and Cindy P. Zapata-Phelan
Source: The Academy of Management Journal , Dec., 2007, Vol. 50, No. 6 (Dec., 2007), pp.
1281-1303
Published by: Academy of Management

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? Academy of Management Journal
2007, Vol. 50, No. 6, 1281-1303.

TRENDS IN THEORY BUILDING AND THEORY TESTING: A

FIVE-DECADE STUDY OF THE ACADEMY OF
MANAGEMENT JOURNAL
JASON A. COLQUITT
CINDY P. ZAPATA-PHELAN
University of Florida

We introduce a taxonomy that reflects the theoretical contribution of empirical articles

along two dimensions: theory building and theory testing. We used that taxonomy to
track trends in the theoretical contributions offered by articles over the past five
decades. Results based on data from a sample of 74 issues of the Academy of Man
agement Journal reveal upward trends in theory building and testing over time. In
addition, the levels of theory building and testing within articles are significant
predictors of citation rates. In particular, articles rated moderate to high on both
dimensions enjoyed the highest levels of citations.

It is difficult to overstate the importance of the "an account of a social process, with emphasis on
ory to the scientific endeavor. Theory allows scien empirical tests of the plausibility of the narrative as
tists to understand and predict outcomes of inter well as careful attention to the scope conditions of
est, even if only probabilistically (Cook & the account" (1995: 391). From this perspective, a
Campbell, 1979; Kerlinger & Lee, 2000). Theory theory is evaluated primarily by the richness of its
also allows scientists to describe and explain a account, the degree to which it provides a close fit
process or sequence of events (DiMaggio, 1995; to empirical data, and the degree to which it results
Mohr, 1982). Bacharach (1989) suggested that the in novel insights (Eisenhardt, 1989b).
ory prevents scholars from being dazzled by the Although the discussion above reveals multiple
complexity of the empirical world by providing a definitions of "theory," even less agreement exists
linguistic tool for organizing it (see also Dubin, regarding the meaning of a "theoretical contribu
1976; Hall & Lindzey, 1957). In Brief and Duk tion." Many of the top journals in the management
erich's (1991) terms, theory acts as an educational field demand that empirical articles make a contri
device that can raise consciousness about a specific bution to management theory (Rynes, 2005; Sutton
set of concepts. Finally, Kerlinger and Lee (2000: & Staw, 1995; Zedeck, 2003). However, many of the
11) went so far as to describe theory as the basic best-regarded theories in management originated in
aim of science.
(and were initially tested in) books, book chapters,
Many scholars define theory in terms of relation or theory outlets such as the Academy of Manage
ships between independent and dependent vari ment Review. Although a variety of factors could
ables. For example, Campbell defined theory as "a explain that trend, one likely reason is that empir
collection of assertions, both verbal and symbolic, ical articles lack the space needed to fully describe
that identifies what variables are important and for the elements of a theory (Barley, 2006). Given that
what reasons, specifies how they are interrelated limitation, what exactly does it mean for an empir
and why, and identifies the conditions under ical article to make a theoretical contribution?
which they should be related or not related" (1990: The purpose of our study was threefold. First, we
65). From this perspective, a theory is evaluated created a taxonomy that can be used to capture
primarily by its ability to explain variance in a many of the facets of an empirical article's theoret
criterion of interest (Bacharach, 1989). Other schol
ical contribution. That taxonomy includes two di
ars have defined theory in terms of narratives and mensions: the extent to which an article builds new
accounts. For example, DiMaggio defined theory as
theory and the extent to which an article tests ex
isting theory. Second, we used that taxonomy to
examine trends in theoretical contributions over
We would like to thank Sara Rynes, John Hollenbeck,
Bradley Kirkman, Chet Miller, Debra Shapiro, and Amy time, to see if the contributions offered by contem
Hillman for their helpful comments on a draft of this porary management articles differ from the contri
work. We would also like to thank Jamie Bigayer for her butions offered by management articles from de
assistance in the gathering of articles. cades past. Third, we examined whether an
1281
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 1282 Academy of Management Journal December

article's position on our taxonomy is predictive of with observations that the authors use to generate
the article's impact on the literature, as judged us theory through inductive reasoning (Chalmers,
ing citation rates. 1999). Inductive studies can come in a number of
The Academy of Management Journal was an forms. For example, theory building from cases in
ideal venue for examining such issues, for four volves using empirical evidence from one or more
primary reasons. First, the five-decade life span of cases to create theoretical constructs and proposi
the journal (from 1958 to 2007) provides an ex tions (Eisenhardt, 1989b; Eisenhardt & Graebner,
tended time frame for examining trends in theory 2007). Grounded theory involves an iterative pro
testing and theory building. Second, AMJ is a "big cess of collecting and analyzing data in order to
tent" journal that publishes articles relevant to all build a theory about how actors interpret their
divisions of the Academy of Management, and it daily realities (Glaser & Strauss, 1967; Locke, 2002;
publishes approximately equal numbers of micro Suddaby, 2006). Ethnography involves gaining
and macro articles (Biehl, Kim, & Wade, 2006; first-hand experience with a research setting in or
Schminke & Mitchell, 2003; Wiseman & Skilton, der to build a theory that describes the views of
1999). Third, AMJ is one of the most influential those under study (Atkinson, Coffey, Delamont,
journals in management, per recent studies of jour Lofland, & Lofland, 2002). Regardless of the spe
nal citations (Podsakoff, MacKenzie, Bachrach, & cific methods used, inductive empirical articles
Podsakoff, 2005). Fourth, AMJ has emphasized is typically conclude with a set of propositions that
sues of theoretical contribution throughout its ex summarize the resulting theory.
istence, with its editors frequently using the "Infor Of course, hypothetico-deductive empirical arti
mation for Contributors" and "From the Editors" cles can also build theory, though typically in a
sections to describe their expectations for theory different fashion. Early tests of a theory are typi
(e.g., Beyer, 1985; Eden, 2004; Tsui, 1999). cally concentrated on establishing the validity of
the theory's core propositions. In subsequent tests,
THE THEORETICAL CONTRIBUTION OF researchers begin exploring the mediators that ex
EMPIRICAL ARTICLES plain those core relationships or the moderators
that reflect the theory's boundary conditions. Even
One way that empirical articles can make theo tually, in yet further tests they begin expanding the
retical contributions is to test theory. The authors theory by incorporating antecedents or conse
of empirical articles that follow the hypothetico quences that were not part of the original formula
deductive model use theory to formulate hypothe tion. Weick (1995) described how empirical articles
ses before testing those hypotheses with observa can provide "interim struggles" that can help inch
tions (Hempel, 1966; Popper, 1965). Platt (1964: 46) scholars forward toward stronger theories. In this
described the importance of theory testing in quot way, the findings, hypotheses, and diagrams found
ing the noted biologist W. A. H. Rushton, who in a given empirical article might not comprise true
wrote, "A theory which cannot be mortally endan theory (Sutton & Staw, 1995), but they may move
gered cannot be alive." Indeed, one could argue the theorizing in a literature toward maturity
that theory testing is particularly important in man (Weick, 1995). Over time, a stream of such studies
agement because some of the most intuitive theo can provide the inputs for more comprehensive
ries introduced in the literature wind up being un theorizing. For example, the first full explication of
supported by empirical research. Building on an goal setting theory was based on 22 years of empir
earlier review (Miner, 1984), Miner (2003) rated the ical studies (Locke & Latham, 2004).
estimated scientific validity of 73 theories found in Figure 1 introduces a taxonomy that combines
the management literature. A set of organizational the dual components of an empirical article's the
behavior and strategic management scholars rated oretical contribution: theory building and theory
the perceived importance of the theories to the testing. As the arc in the figure shows, we suggest
management literature, with the author rating the that an empirical article can offer a strong theoret
estimated scientific validity of each theory. Of the ical contribution by being strong in theory build
73 theories identified in the review, only 25 were ing, strong in theory testing, or strong in both. We
rated as high in scientific validity. Such results also suggest that the two components can be used
illustrate the importance of theory testing, as such to classify empirical articles into five discrete cat
testing can temper enthusiasm for appealing but egories, which we refer to as reporters, testers, qual
invalid models. ifiers, builders, and expanders. Builders, testers,
Another way that empirical articles make a the and expanders tend to be higher in their theoretical
oretical contribution is by building theory. Empir contribution, whereas reporters and qualifiers tend
ical articles that follow the inductive model begin to be lower in their theoretical contribution.

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 2007 Colquitt and Zapata-Phelan 1283

FIGURE 1
A Taxonomy of Theoretical Contributions for Empirical Articles
Introduces
a New Construct
(or Significantly 5
Reconceptualizes
an Existing One)
Expanders
Examines
a Previously
Unexplored
Relationship
or Process

Introduces a
New Mediator High theoretical
contribution
Building New or Moderator
of an Existing Low theoretical
Theory contribution
Relationship
or Process

Examines
Effects That
Have Been
the Subject
of Prior
Theorizing

Attempts to
Replicate
Previously
Demonstrated
Effects
1 2 5
Is Inductive Grounds Grounds Grounds Grounds
or Grounds Predictions Predictions Predictions Predictions
Predictions with References with Existing with Existing with Existing
with Logical to Past Conceptual Models, Theory
Speculation Findings Arguments Diagrams,
or Figures
Testing Existing Theory

Before describing our taxonomy in more detail, it from the actual findings presented. These sorts of
is important to note two of its limitations. First, as issues are clearly critical to the quality of an arti
with any taxonomy, ours can be accused of collaps cle's theoretical contribution and are likely to be
ing meaningful distinctions in the interest of parsi significant predictors of scholarly impact. Unfortu
mony. After all, taxonomies?like theories?are at nately, coding such issues requires an in-depth
tempts to eliminate some of the complexity found content expertise that is lacking in a journalwide
in the real world (Bacharach, 1989). Our intention review of this type.
was not to capture every nuance of theory building
and theory testing, but rather to create a tool that
could be used to chart trends in theoretical contri Theory Building
butions over time. Second, Figure 1 only captures The vertical axis of Figure 1 describes levels of
what empirical articles are intended to do?it does theory building. Our conceptualization of theory
not capture how well they actually do it. One could building captures the degree to which an empirical
conceive of a third axis that captures how interest article clarifies or supplements existing theory or
ing a new construct is, how much a new relation introduces relationships and constructs that serve
ship adds to a literature, how rigorously a theory is as the foundations for new theory. Many of the
tested, or the degree to which the mere writing of a arguments used to describe the degrees of theory
paper makes a contribution in and of itself, apart building on the vertical axis were inspired by

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 1284 Academy of Management Journal December

Whetten's (1989) discussion of what constitutes a be manifested. Such articles represent a moderate
theoretical contribution. Although Whetten (1989) level of theory building because they do clarify or
was focusing specifically on the qualities of a supplement existing theory. However, Whetten
strong AMR submission, many of his arguments are (1989) suggested that adding one or two variables to
also applicable to theory building in empirical an existing model may not fundamentally alter the
articles. core logic of an existing theory.
The first two points on our theory building axis The next two points on our axis represent high
represent relatively low levels of theory building. levels of theory building. Articles that examine a
Replications are attempts to cross-validate the find previously unexplored relationship or process can
ings of earlier empirical studies. Lykken (1968) dis serve as the foundation for brand new theory. In
tinguished between operational replication, in describing AMR submissions that make strong the
which a researcher attempts to duplicate all the oretical contributions, Whetten (1989) noted that
details of another published study's methods, and editors ask, What's new??specifically gauging the
constructive replication, in which a researcher de degree to which a submission changes current
liberately avoids imitation of the earlier study's thinking. The more a manuscript represents a rad
methods to create a more stringent test of the rep ical departure from the extant literature, the more
licability of the findings (see also Eden, 2002; the field is impacted by the ideas presented within
Tsang & Kwan, 1999). Constructive replications are it. Research suggests that this emphasis on novelty
clearly vital for establishing the external validity of extends to reviews of empirical articles. For exam
a study's findings (Cook & Campbell, 1979; Hen ple, Beyer, Chanove, and Fox's (1995) analysis of
drick, 1991; Rosenthal, 1991) and key to the accu AMJ review process decisions between 1984 and
mulation of scientific knowledge (Amir & Sharon, 1987 revealed that articles were more likely to be
1991). However, they offer neither new concepts accepted by reviewers and editors when the au
nor original relationships (Tsang & Kwan, 1999). thors claimed that their content was novel.
The next point on our theory building axis rep Articles that introduce a completely new con
resents studies that examine effects that have been struct (or significantly reconceptualize an existing
the subject of prior theorizing but not of prior em one) have the potential to be even more novel. The
pirical study. Like replications, these studies do introduction of a new construct creates a radical
not add to the ideas present in existing theory, nor departure from existing work by generating a num
do they introduce new relationships or constructs. ber of new research directions that can shape future
However, they do open important new avenues for thinking. New constructs also represent an original
theory-driven research. As Whetten (1989) argued, and unique contribution on the part of authors, as
a theoretical model is most useful for guiding re opposed to new relationships between concepts
search when the relationships it describes have not already described, though not necessarily linked,
yet been tested. Unfortunately, many of the theories in past research. Of course, a critical issue with
that are built are never formally tested. Kacmar and such studies is whether the construct in question is
Whitfield (2000) reviewed articles that cited 70 really new or whether it represents "old wine in
AMJ and AMR articles. The results indicated that new bottles" (Spell, 2001). As in other areas of
the 70 articles had been cited over 1,500 times but science, there is an ebb and flow to the life cycle of
that the theoretical propositions they offered had areas of inquiry in management, with previously
rarely been tested in the reviewed work. Indeed, dormant ideas being recycled and repackaged as
only 9 percent of the AMR articles that were cited new ones.
in a given paper were actually tested in that paper.
These results reveal the importance of conducting
Theory Testing
an initial test of a previously built theory, so that
the theory is more likely to become the focus of The horizontal axis of Figure 1 describes levels
future research. theory testing. Our conceptualization of theory tes
The third point on our theory building axis rep ing captures the degree to which existing theory
resents a moderate level of theory building?arti applied in an empirical study as a means of groun
cles that introduce a new substantive mediator or ing a specific set of a priori hypotheses. Many of t
moderator of an existing relationship or process. In arguments used to describe the degrees of theo
Whetten's (1989) terms, these articles involve add testing on the horizontal axis were inspired by S
ing a new "what" (i.e., a construct or variable) to an ton and Staw's (1995) discussion of "what theory
existing theory in order to describe "how" a rela not." Specifically, the intermediate points on th
tionship or process unfolds or "where," "when," or axis represent circumstances in which an arti
"for whom" that relationship or process is likely to uses something other than theory to ground hy

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 2007 Colquitt and Zapata-Phelan 1285

potheses. Although these "theory substitutes" fall 1995). A reader is able to understand the justifica
short of supplying all the ingredients described in tion for a prediction while connecting that justifi
Campbell's (1990) definition, they can be arrayed cation to the existing literature.
on a continuum ranging from "furthest from the The next two points on our axis represent high
ory" to "closest to theory" (Weick, 1995). levels of theory testing. Empirical articles in which
The first two points on our theory-testing axis predictions are grounded with existing models, di
represent low levels of theory testing. Empirical agrams, and figures come very close to testing ac
articles that follow the inductive model do not in tual theory (Weick, 1995). Sutton and Staw (1995)
clude a priori hypotheses as a starting point, in noted that diagrams or figures can explicitly delin
stead emphasizing the creation of propositions that eate the causal connections among a set of vari
can be tested in future studies. Such articles may ables, though the logical nuances behind the boxes
draw on existing theory to trigger research ques and arrows is often lacking. Still, models, diagrams,
tions or guide the categorizing of observations (Gla and figures provide the symbolic representation of
ser & Strauss, 1967; Locke, 2002; Suddaby, 2006), theory that Campbell (1990) described, and they
as Weick observed when noting that his theorizing often explicitly indicate the critical mediators and
on wildland firefighting was done "with a head full moderators that govern particular relationships or
of theories" (2007: 16). However, the data that are processes.
gathered are not used to explicitly test those theo Finally, the furthest point on our axis represents
ries (Eisenhardt, 1989b; Glaser & Strauss, 1967; articles that ground predictions with existing the
Locke, 2002; Suddaby, 2006). Empirical articles ory. In Sutton and Staw's (1995) terms, true theory
that follow the hypothetico-deductive model may goes beyond models and diagrams by delving into
also be low in theory testing when they advance a the underlying processes that explain relation
priori hypotheses that are rooted only in logical ships, touching on neighboring concepts or broader
speculation. Theory testing may be absent from social phenomena, and describing convincing and
such articles simply because no existing theory is logically interconnected arguments. Although Sut
relevant to the relationships of interest?giving the ton and Staw (1995) focused on the degree to which
articles somewhat of an exploratory character. an empirical article contained such discussion
The second point on our theory-testing axis rep within its pages, we emphasized the degree to
resents empirical articles in which predictions are which such discussion could be found in existing
grounded with reference to past findings. Unlike descriptions of a theory. Those existing descrip
the articles described in our preceding paragraph, tions may be found in prior empirical articles, the
these articles rely on the extant literature to ground oretical articles, or books and book chapters that
a priori hypotheses. However, that grounding con provide the space needed to fully explicate a theory
sists solely of lists of references to past findings, (Barley, 2006). For example, an author who uses
without explication of all the causal logic that population ecology to ground the predictions set
might explain those findings. In Sutton and Staw's forth in an article can find some elements of the
words, "References are sometimes used like a theory described in seminal journal articles (Han
smoke screen to hide the absence of theory" (1995: nan & Freeman, 1977) and will find deeper and
373). A paragraph reciting the findings of past stud more comprehensive treatments provided in books
ies can convince the reader that the same sort of (Carroll & Hannan, 2000; Hannan & Freeman,
relationships should be observed in the current 1989).
article, though an understanding of why those re
lationships might exist would still be lacking (Sut
ton & Staw, 1995). Five Discrete Article Types
Articles in which predictions are grounded in If we consider the theory-building and theory
past conceptual arguments offer a moderate level of testing axes of our taxonomy simultaneously, five
theory testing. Here authors attempt to explain why distinct types of articles are evident (see Figure 1).
a given relationship or process should exist by de We define reporters as empirical articles that pos
scribing the logic supplied by scholars in past re sess relatively low levels of both theory building
search. However, those conceptual arguments have and theory testing. For example, Martinson and
not been developed or refined enough to constitute Wilkening (1984) conducted an examination of ru
true theory, nor do they paint a comprehensive ral-urban differences in job satisfaction, attempting
picture of the phenomenon of interest. Neverthe to replicate research that failed to uncover a signif
less, describing some of the causal logic behind a icant effect for that background variable. Their
given prediction supplies a critical ingredient that study served as a constructive replication of past
references to past findings do not (Sutton & Staw, research, and their three hypotheses were

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 1286 Academy of Management Journal December

grounded in references to the findings of the 12 For example, Butterfield, Trevino, and Ball (1996)
prior studies on the topic. Similarly, Cochran and noted that, despite the vast literature on punish
Wood (1984) reexamined the relationship between ment, scholars had neglected to examine what
corporate social responsibility and financial perfor managers actually thought and felt about punishing
mance using statistical tools and methods that were their employees. Using a series of interviews, the
more advanced than those used in prior studies. authors identified a number of concepts that
Their study therefore represented a constructive helped capture how managers viewed punishment.
replication that was based largely in references to Builders may also include hypothetico-deductive
the conflicting findings of past research. studies that examine a relationship that has not
Testers are defined as empirical articles that con been the subject of prior theorizing or empirical
tain high levels of theory testing but low levels of research. For example, Oldham (1975) conducted
theory building. An exemplar of this category is the first study linking supervisor characteristics
Lee, Mitchell, Wise, and Fireman's (1996) test of (e.g., attractiveness, power, trustworthiness) to sub
the unfolding model of voluntary turnover, a model ordinate acceptance of assigned goals. Because the
that was introduced in AMR two years earlier (Lee relationship had not been explored previously, he
& Mitchell, 1994). Lee et al. (1996) operationalized grounded his predictions by extrapolating from
the processes described in the unfolding model to studies linking supervisor characteristics to subor
conduct its first direct test. Another representative dinate performance.
example of the tester category is Stroh, Brett, Bau Finally, expanders are articles that are relatively
mann, and Reilly's (1996) investigation of the ef high in both theory building and theory testing.
fects of agency-theory-based variables on the com Like builders, expanders focus on constructs, rela
pensation of middle managers. The authors noted tionships, or processes that have not been the sub
that agency theory, which is focused on responses ject of prior theorizing, but they conduct that ex
to risk on the part of an organization's principals amination while testing some existing theory. In so
and agents (Eisenhardt, 1989a; Jensen & Meckling, doing, they expand a given literature by taking it in
1976), had rarely been tested with middle managers a new and different direction. For example, Bate
as the sample. They therefore drew on the theory's man and Organ (1983) introduced the citizenship
propositions to derive hypotheses about the pro behavior construct in a reexamination of the "sat
portion of an employee's compensation that was isfaction causes performance" hypothesis. Drawing
variable. on social exchange theory (Blau, 1964) to ground
Qualifiers are defined as empirical articles that their hypotheses, the authors showed that several
contain moderate levels of both theory testing and facets of job satisfaction were significantly corre
theory building. Such articles qualify previously lated with their measure of citizenship behavior.
established relationships or processes using con Similarly, Klassen and Whybark (1999) introduced
ceptual arguments rooted in the extant literature. a new construct, environmental technology portfo
An exemplar of this category is Skarlicki, Folger, lio, to reflect a firm's observable pattern of invest
and Tesluk's (1999) examination of personality as a ment used to improve its environmental perfor
moderator of the relationship between organization mance. Drawing on the resource-based view
al justice and counterproductive behaviors. The au (Barney, 1991) to justify their predictions, the au
thors showed that the justice-counterproductive thors showed that the composition of furniture
behavior link could be qualified by negative affec manufacturing plants' environmental technology
tivity and agreeableness and supported those find portfolios was significantly related to the plants'
ings using conceptual arguments from the person performance.
ality literature. Another article falling into the
qualifier category is Nohria and Gulati (1996); these THEORETICAL CONTRIBUTION:
authors further examined the relationship between TRENDS AND IMPACT
slack resources and organizational innovation. Re
sponding to the conflicting findings of past re Having described a tool for capturing the theoret
search, they showed that the slack-innovation rela ical contribution made by empirical articles, we
tionship was actually curvilinear, with innovation now focus our attention on how that contribution
being hindered by either too little slack or too much might evolve over time and how it might shape the
slack. scholarly impact of an article. Turning first to
We define builders as articles that are relatively trends over time, we asked, How have the theoret
high in theory building but relatively low in theory ical contributions offered by AMJ articles changed
testing. Builders include inductive studies that fo over the past five decades? Some predictions can be
cus on new constructs, relationships, or processes. derived from the literatures on scientific paradigms

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 2007 Colquitt and Zapata-Phelan 1287

and schools of thought (e.g., Cole, 1983; Glick, lack of consensus on paradigms. However, the past
Miller, & Cardinal, 2007; Kuhn, 1963; Lodahl & few decades have seemed to bring an increased
Gordon, 1972; McKinley, Mone, & Moon, 1999; focus on a smaller set of theories in the micro and
Pfeffer, 1993). Scholars in this area have noted that macro domains, including the theories judged by
scientific disciplines vary in their levels of para Miner (2003) to be highest in scientific validity.
digm development, as reflected in the degree of For example, concepts and models rooted in goal
agreement about research questions, theory, and setting theory (Locke, 1968), expectancy theory
methodology in a given discipline (Lodahl & Gor (Vroom, 1964), job characteristics theory (Hackman
don, 1972). Disciplines in which consensus exists & Oldham, 1976), social exchange theory (Blau,
enjoy a number of potential benefits, including 1964), and social learning theory (Bandura, 1977)
more efficient communication among scholars and can be found in many different areas of organiza
decreased barriers to collaboration (Pfeffer, 1993). tional behavior. Similarly, research driven by
Both communication and collaboration are critical agency theory (Jensen & Meckling, 1976), resource
ingredients for testing a theory, as such efforts re dependence theory (Pfeffer & Salancik, 1978), the
quire learning about existing theory and framing resource-based view (Barney, 1991), population
tests within the larger stream of work on that ecology (Hannan & Freeman, 1977), and institu
theory. tional theory (DiMaggio & Powell, 1983) can be
Disciplines with consensus on paradigms are found in many areas of organization theory and
also more likely to allow editorial teams to empha strategic management. As research efforts on these
size conceptual and methodological rigor over au theories have progressed, they seem to have created
thor characteristics when judging journal submis more agreement on the theoretical paradigms that
sions (Pfeffer, 1993). That emphasis on rigor are represented in the pages of top management
suggests that such disciplines will generate higher journals. At the same time, methodological trends,
expectations regarding the theory present in empir such as the increased use of structural equation
ical articles. Indeed, Cole (1983) suggested that modeling (e.g., Henley, Shook, & Peterson, 2006;
consensus on paradigms results in an increased James, Mulaik, & Brett, 2006), seem to have brought
level of theory testing in a literature, and an in more consistency in the approaches used to test
creased rate of obsolescence as new theories re those theories. As a result, our first prediction was
place flawed predecessors. Popper emphasized the that theory-testing levels would exhibit an upward
importance of such obsolescence in writing: "It is trend over the past five decades, a trend partially
not the accumulation of observations which I have symptomatic of increasing agreement about key
in mind when I speak of the growth of scientific theories and appropriate methods.
knowledge, but the repeated overthrow of scientific What does that theory testing trend suggest about
theories and their replacement by better or more levels of theory building over time? Kuhn's (1963)
satisfactory ones" (1965: 215). DiMaggio (1995) classic term "essential tension" describes how the
echoed such sentiments in noting that the primary convergent thinking created by theoretical consen
contribution of a particular theory may be serving sus actually fosters, rather than inhibits, the "diver
as a place holder until it inspires a more valid or gent thinking" needed for path-breaking research.
useful one. In Kuhn's (1963) terms, shared para Specifically, Kuhn (1963) argued that scholars need
digms provide the context for "convergent think to be well versed in a current way of thinking
ing." Such thinking is demonstrated when scien before they can recognize the gaps in scientific
tists conduct incremental research that tests and understanding that trigger the building of new the
extends existing theory. ories. Similarly, McKinley et al. (1999) described
The arguments described above suggest that lev how scientific schools of thought are established
els of theory testing should increase as manage and maintained by a mix of continuity, reflecting
ment research attains strong consensus in its theo theory testing, and novelty, reflecting new con
retical paradigms. Although scholars acknowledge structs, relationships, and research directions. Con
that management has much more dissensus in par tinuity is needed for scholars to understand how to
adigms than the hard sciences (Glick et al., 2007; work within a given school of thought, whereas
Pfeffer, 1993), partially because management is in novelty is needed to attract attention to and interest
terdisciplinary in nature (Rousseau, 2007), the crit in the school. Taken together, these arguments sug
ical question for our purposes concerns whether gest that theory building will also rise as the para
that fragmentation has decreased over the past five digms in the management literature become more
decades. Clearly the fact that Miner's (2003) review mature.
of scientific validity included 73 theories repre The literatures on scientific paradigms and
senting the management domain reveals a certain schools also describe the importance of theory test

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 1288 Academy of Managemen t Jo urnal December

ing and theory building to the scholarly impact of shift in theory-building or theory-testing levels to
journal articles. McKinley et al. (1999) drew on changes in these journal artifacts. Still, we present
human information processing arguments to de this analysis in a descriptive and historical fashion
scribe when information is more likely to be salient in an attempt to provide some context for the trends
and memorable to scholars. Specifically, they sug observed in our data.
gested that novel information separates a given ar
ticle from the multitude of articles competing for a
METHODS
scholar's attention. That suggestion echoes Davis's
(1971) emphasis on generating theories that are not Data and Sample
just "true" but "interesting." McKinley et al. (1999)
further emphasized that an article must also in The data for our study were taken from AMJ
clude a bridge to a scholar's existing knowledge to articles published between 1963 and 2007. AMfs
be included in the "to be read" pile (see also Davis, first issue was actually published in April 1958 (for
1971). Creating that bridge supplies the communi historical reviews, see Adams and Davis [1986];
cation efficiency and decreased barriers to collabo Kirkman and Law [2005]; Mowday [1997];
ration that can make a given article impactful to a Schminke and Mitchell [2003]). However, the first
stream of research (Pfeffer, 1993). We therefore ex five volumes of the journal contained few empirical
pect that the theory building and theory testing articles, with many issues instead including essays,
associated with a given empirical article will be reviews, and discussions of management education
positively associated with its scholarly impact, as issues. We therefore began our review in 1963, so
judged by citation rates. that our coding of theory building and theory test
To summarize, in our study we used the taxon ing would be based on a larger set of articles. Our
omy shown in Figure 1 to examine three specific coding covered all issues of every third volume of
questions: (1) How has the level of theory build the journal. As each AMJ editor serves a three-year
ing in empirical articles changed over time? (2) term, our coding therefore included issues from
How has the level of theory testing in empirical every editorial term, beginning with Dalton McFar
articles changed over time? and (3) What are the land (1961-63) and ending with Sara Rynes (2005
implications of those trends for the scholarly im 07). We included the first five issues of 2007 in our
pact of empirical articles? As noted at the outset, review to be as current as possible. In all, the sam
AMJ is an appropriate outlet for examining such ple included 16 volumes, 75 issues, and 770 arti
questions because it has long emphasized theo cles [AMJ volumes included four issues until 1991,
retical contribution. In fact, one could argue that moved to five in 1992, then began including six
AMJ possesses an "organizational culture" that issues in 1993). Of those 770 articles, 667 were
gives special priority to theoretical concerns. empirical articles that could be coded on theory
Schein (1985) described an organization's culture building and testing. The remaining 103 articles
as existing simultaneously at three levels: as- ? were methods pieces, introductions to special re
sumptions (i.e., taken-for-granted beliefs), values search forums, and conceptual articles written be
fore the launch of AMR in 1976.
(i.e., principles or standards with intrinsic
worth), and artifacts (i.e., visible and tangible
manifestations of those assumptions and values). Procedures
Journals, like organizations, can have cultures
that impact the kinds of manuscripts that are sub We used the theory-building and theory-testing
mitted to them, how those manuscripts are written axes shown in Figure 1 to code the articles. Both
and framed, and how editors and reviewers receive axes were conceptualized as "nearly interval"
and critique them. A secondary focus of our study scales (Schwab, 2005), with the anchor descrip
was therefore to examine how trends in theory tions in the figure used to reduce ambiguity, as in a
building and theory testing within AMJ corre behaviorally anchored rating scale (Smith & Ken
sponded to changes in the artifacts that might rep dall, 1963). The first step in data collection in
resent the journal's culture. The most salient tangi volved ensuring that the scales in Figure 1 would
ble manifestations of AMfs values likely include its allow us to code the AMJ articles in a reliable
"Information for Contributors," which instructs au manner. To check reliability, both authors coded
thors on how to prepare journal submissions, and articles from the 1983 volume?a volume that was
its "From the Editors," which provides a forum for not included in our review. This volume included
editors to speak directly to the journal's readership 50 empirical articles. We checked interrater reli
(Beyer, 1987; Vance, 1967). Given the limitations of ability using the ICC(l) form of the intraclass cor
our data, we were unable to directly attribute any relation (James, 1982; Shrout & Fleiss, 1979). The

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 2007 Colquitt and Zapata-Phelan 1289

magnitude of the ICC(l) can be interpreted as the potheses and describe others as based on past find
reliability associated with a single assessment of an ings. In such cases, in coding we averaged ratings
article's building or testing rating, with high values on the multiple components while giving more
being around .30 (Bliese, 2000). The ICC(l) for our weight to the ones that were more central to a focal
theory building rating was .51, and the ICC(l) for article. As a result, we allowed our coding to in
our theory testing rating was .59. Having estab clude half-points in addition to integers (1.5, 2.5,
lished adequate reliability, the first author coded 3.5, 4.5).
half of each issue included in our review, and the For analyses involving the five discrete catego
second author coded the other half of those ries in Figure 1, we used the following computa
same issues. tions: Reporters were articles that received a rating
We coded using paper copies of all articles so of 1 or 2 on theory building and a 1 or 2 on theory
that notes could be recorded. When coding theory testing. Testers were articles that received a 1 or 2
building, we noted when new or reconceptualized on theory building and a 4 or 5 on theory testing.
constructs were being introduced. This was most Articles that received from 2.5 to 3.5 on theory
often evident when a sentence introduced and de building and from 2.5 to 3.5 on theory testing were
fined a new term but lacked citations to past arti categorized as qualifiers. Articles that received a 4
cles. Citing existing and still-relevant definitions of or 5 on theory building and a 1 or 2 on theory
a concept in the management literature, even if testing were categorized as builders. Finally, ex
these definitions were only in a second-tier journal panders were articles that received a 4 or 5 on
article or a book chapter, typically prevented an theory building and a 4 or 5 on theory testing.
article from being coded as introducing a new con We also printed all of AMfs "From the Editors"
struct. Two other points should be noted about our sections (originally called "Editorial Comments")
coding of theory building. First, in coding an article and "Information for Contributors" sections (origi
as forwarding a new moderator of an existing rela nally called "Suggestions to Authors"). We noted
tionship or process, we used a broad definition of cases in which these sections articulated the jour
moderation, including identifying curvilinear ef nal's policy on theoretical contributions. Some of
fects or exploring variations in effects over time. the cases concerned a change or adjustment to the
Second, if a mediator or moderator of an existing policy, whereas others were efforts to clarify or
effect had been the subject of prior research, that deepen potential authors' understanding of the ex
article was coded as an attempt to replicate previ isting policy. Appendix A summarizes the most
ously examined findings. significant changes in AMfs "Information for Con
When coding theory testing, we noted when a par tributors" over the past five decades. The Appendix
ticular model or theory was being applied to ground includes the editor who originally crafted each
predictions. Two points should be noted about our statement, the years in which the statement was in
coding of theory testing. First, we focused our coding effect, and an excerpt relevant to the issue of mak
primarily on the sections used to ground an article's ing a theoretical contribution.
a priori hypotheses. This focus was meant to ensure Finally, we assessed the impact of empirical arti
that an author was using a given theory in a substan cles using citation counts from the Institute for Sci
tive fashion rather than merely including some cita entific Information's (ISI) Social Sciences Citation In
tions to theory in the opening of his or her paper. dex (SSCI). The SSCI provides citation counts for
Second, articles that followed an inductive model articles published in thousands of journals since
and lacked explicit a priori hypotheses were rated as 1954. It therefore includes data on all AMJ volumes.
low on theory testing. As noted earlier, in writing Citation counts are a commonly used metric for as
such articles authors may have drawn on existing sessing the impact, quality, and scientific merit of
theory to guide their research, but the data that were journal articles and have been used to gauge the rel
gathered were not used to explicitly test those theo ative prominence of scholarly journals (Podsakoff et
ries (Eisenhardt, 1989b; Glaser & Strauss, 1967; al., 2005; Tahai & Meyer, 1999) and the effects of
Locke, 2002; Suddaby, 2006). article, author, and journal-based variables on article
In many cases, empirical articles actually repre influence (Judge, Cable, Colbert, & Rynes, 2007).
sented blends of different theory-building and the
ory-testing components. For example, an article
might describe an examination of a previously un RESULTS
explored relationship as a relatively minor facet of
Descriptive Statistics
a study while focusing more attention on replicat
ing previously examined effects. Alternatively, an Table 1 presents the means, standard deviations,
article might present some theory-grounded hy and zero-order correlations among our theory

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 1290 Academy of Management Journal December

TABLE 1 coded year and theory building and theory testing

Descriptive Statistics and Zero-Order suggest that more recent articles included higher
Correlations11 levels of the two facets. We explore those trends
Variable Mean s.d. 1 2 3 more fully below.

1. Theory building 2.52 1.13

Trends in Theory Building and Theory Testing
2. Theory testing 3.10 1.19 .15*
over Time
3. Citations 31.45 40.70 .00 .09*
4. Year 26.92 11.33 .51* .41* -.06
Figure 2 presents the trends in theory-building
a n = 667 empirical articles. Year ranges and theory-testing
from 0 for 1968 to levels
44from 1963 to 2007. It
for 2007. should be noted that the 1963 and 1966 averages
* p < .05 are based on only 3 and 5 empirical articles, respec
tively. The 1969 and 1972 averages are based on 17
building and theory-testing numbers, along with and 16 studies, with the remaining 12 coded years
article citations and coded years (ranging from 0 for averaging 52 studies. As expected, the trend moves
1963 to 44 for 2007). The theory-building mean was upward for theory building after an initial decline
2.52 (s.d. = 1.13), indicating that the typical article during the first few editorial terms. A one-way
published in AMJ during our five-decade span ei analysis of variance (ANOVA) revealed a signifi
ther examined effects that had been the subject of cant effect of publication year on theory-building
prior theorizing or introduced a new mediator or levels (F[15, 666] = 18.83, p < .001). Figure 2 also
moderator of an existing relationship or process. illustrates a fairly steady upward trend for theory
The theory-testing mean was 3.10 (s.d. = 1.19), testing. A one-way ANOVA showed that the theory
indicating that in the typical article past conceptual testing trend was also statistically significant (F[15,
arguments were utilized as a means of grounding 666] = 9.98, p < .001).
hypotheses. Table 1 also reveals a weak positive Another way of examining these trends is to ex
correlation between theory building and theory plore the relative frequencies of the reporter, qual
testing [r = .15), suggesting that levels of the two ifier, builder, tester, and expander categories over
facets of a theoretical contribution are largely inde time. Figure 3 summarizes these category trends.
pendent. The strong positive correlations between The graph reveals a decline in the frequency of

FIGURE 2
Trends in Theory Building and Testing from 1963 to 2007
4.00 -i

3.50 -

3.00

2.50
Mean
Rating
2.00

1.50 -
-Theory building
1.00 - -Theory testing

0.50 -

0.00 -1-1 ?-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1

1963 1966 1969 1972 1975 1978
Publication Year

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 2007 Colquitt and Zapata-Phelan 1291

FIGURE 3
Trends in Article Types from 1963 to 2007
1.00
Expanders
Testers
.90 ^
Builders
.80 Qualifiers
Reporters
.70-)

.60
Percentage in
Category -50"
.40

.30

.20

.10

.00
1963 1966 1969 1972 1975 1978 1981 1984 1987 1990 1993 1996 1999 2002 2005 2007
Publication Year

reporters over time, with those articles filling ing levels. During the 1960s, the diversity in arti
around 70 percent of early volumes in the 1970s cles likely made it difficult for the journal to de
and early 1980s before declining to a handful in the velop an identity, as many types of articles were
1990s and none in the 2000s. A chi-square test included that are not part of contemporary volumes
showed that this trend was statistically significant (e.g., essays, conceptual articles, management edu
[X2[df = 15, 17 = 667] = 166.86, p < .001). A cation pieces). Vance provided one of the first ex
significant increase in qualifiers was observed: plicit articulations of the journal's "big .tent" phi
only a handful of these were published in the late losophy, noting in a "From the Editors" that "as
1970s and 1980s before they rose to 40 percent of a space permits, we will try to include the researched
the typical volume in the late 1990s and 2000s endeavors of classicists and iconoclasts, quantifiers
[X2idf= 15,17 = 667] = 45.32, p< .001). The figure and verbalizers, eclectics and functionalists, empir
also reveals an increase in expanders from the late icists and conceptualists, behaviorists and noncon
1990s to the 2000s, with their representation reach formists" (1967: 7). Although no explicit mention
ing a peak of 30-40 percent of a typical volume in was made of theory, that profile clearly allowed for
the 2000s [x2[df = 15, n = 667] = 56.45, p < .001). several different mixes of theory building and the
In contrast, there was no significant change in the ory testing. The "Information for Contributors"
representation of either builders [x*[df = 15, n = statements authored by Dauten in 1958 and Scott in
667] = 18.63, n.s.) or testers [x2[df= 15, n = 667] = 1970 did explicitly mention theory, though they
19.63, n.s.) over time. Builders hovered around a included no details on what constituted a theoret
mean of 6 percent of a volume, with no detectable ical contribution (see the Appendix).
trend taking place. Testers oscillated around a The first significant evolution in the "Informa
mean of 14 percent of a volume, though they tion for Contributors" occurred during Miner's
seemed to be declining from the mid 1990s into the term, and the version of the statement Miner au
2000s. thored stayed in effect from 1973 to 1984. The
Our analyses of AMfs "Information for Contrib updated statement now explicitly referenced the
utors" and "From the Editors" showed that changes testing of theoretical propositions, while noting
in the journal's communication about theory that exploratory research and replications were still
seemed to coincide with shifts in building and test welcome. Two other historical points about Min

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 1292 Academy of Management Journal December

er's term seem relevant. First, the "research note" 2005. Although the bolded theoretical contribution
category was introduced in 1973 and would con statement remained, the potential avenues for mak
tinue to exist until 2005. As might be expected, ing that contribution were expanded to include
given the description of research notes in the "In theory building using inductive or qualitative
formation for Contributors" in the Appendix, those methods, the first empirical test of an existing the
articles tended to have lower levels of theory build ory, meta-analysis with theoretical implications,
ing. Specifically, the 193 research notes in our data and constructive replications that clarified the
averaged a 2.19 for theory building as compared to boundaries of a theory. This more multifaceted
an average of 2.65 for the 474 articles (f[665] = 4.82, conceptualization of theoretical contribution ech
p < .001). No significant differences were found for oed earlier critiques noting that AMJ had empha
theory testing, however, with 3.01 for research sized novelty and originality at the cost of tests of
notes as compared to 3.14 for articles (?[665] = existing theory (Eden, 2004). It also coincided with
1.34, n.s.). Second, Miner's term led into the launch editorial board member perceptions that the jour
of AMR, a companion outlet for theory building nal should loosen the theory requirement while
articles. Taken together, these events may have striving to publish more interesting and innovative
contributed to the high levels of reporters and research (Rynes, 2005). Comparisons of 2007 and
testers observed in the 1970s and 1980s. 2005 indicate that these changes have been associ
The next major evolution in the "Information for ated with rises in both theory building and theory
Contributors" occurred during Beyer's term, and testing, along with peak levels of expander articles.
the statement she wrote stayed in effect from 1985
to 1996. For the first time, the statement explicitly
Theory Building, Theory Testing, and
referred to both theory building and theory testing,
Article Impact
using words such as "develops" and "tests." In her
inaugural "From the Editors" essay, Beyer (1985) Table 2 presents the results of regression analy
noted hearing criticisms that AMJ was "dull" and ses in which we assessed the relationship between
"uninteresting," and she promised to consider in theory building, theory testing, and article cita
terest to readership as a criterion for accepting tions. Our analyses revealed an inverted U-shaped
manuscripts. Elsewhere she described a lack of relationship between coded year and citations,
convincing theoretical grounding as a major reason with articles in the 1950s and 1960s garnering few
for manuscripts being rejected, noting, "Even stud citations and articles in the late 1990s and 2000s
ies that do not intend to advance theory must be also receiving few citations. We therefore con
placed within some body of theory to make them trolled for squared and cubic versions of coded year
scientifically meaningful" (Beyer, 1987: 624). Such in the first step of our regressions, in which those
sentiments coincided with a sharp decline in the variables explain 24 percent of the variance in ci
number of reporters and a general increase in the tations. The effects of theory testing and theory
ory-building and theory-testing levels. building are modeled in step 2, where those ratings
The transition from Tsui's term to Northcraft's explain an incremental 1 percent of the variance.
term brought a now familiar element to AMfs "In The unstandardized regression coefficients reveal
formation for Contributors ": the statement that ar that a one-unit increase in theory building or theory
ticles must make a strong theoretical contribution.
The revised statement, in effect from 1999 to 2004, TABLE 2
also departed from previous volumes in two other
Theory Building, Theory Testing, and
respects: Research notes were now expected to
Article Impact3
make theoretical contributions (albeit smaller in
scope), and replications and incremental research Citations
were more explicitly discouraged. In addition to
this shift, no fewer than six "From the Editors" Regression Step and Variable R2 AR2 b
essays under Tsui's, Northcraft's, and Lee's terms
1. Year .24* .24* 0.24
were used to flesh out the theory requirement in
Year squared 0.20*
more detail (Bergh, 2003; Eden, 2002, 2004; Lee, Year cubed -0.01*
2001; Northcraft, 2000; Rynes, 2002; Schminke,
2004; Tsui, 1999). This emphasis corresponded 2. Theory building .25* .01* 3.72*
Theory testing 3.34*
with increases in theory building and the first clear
rise in articles in the expander category. a n = 667 empirical articles. Year ranges from 0 for 1968 to 44
The last major revision to the "Information for for 2007.
Contributors" occurred early in Rynes's term, in * p < .05

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 2007 Colquitt and Zapata-Phelan 1293

testing ratings was associated with approximately theory testing in management research, as repre
3.5 more citations per empirical article. Note that sented by the 16 volumes of AMJ included in our
the articles in our database averaged 31.45 citations review. The level of theory building in 2007 was
(s.d. = 40.70), making an increment of 3.5 citations more than one and a half standard deviations
significant from a practical perspective. We ex higher than its lowest level (in 1975), and the level
plored the effects of a theory testing by theory of theory testing was almost two standard devia
building product term, but that analysis revealed tions higher than its lowest level (in 1963). These
no significant interaction effect. trends have impacted the kinds of articles that find
Another way of examining these trends was to their way into the management literature. For ex
explore the citations associated with the reporter, ample, the reporters that were so common in the
qualifier, builder, tester, and expander categories. 1970s and 1980s have become largely extinct in the
To test these relationships, we selected only the pages of AMJ, replaced by articles that make a more
articles that we had coded into those five catego significant theoretical contribution.
ries, omitting articles that earned low-moderate, In particular, reporters have been replaced by
moderate-low, moderate-high, or high-moderate articles that blend theory building and theory test
classifications on the theory-building and -testing ing. These include qualifiers, which have moderate
axes in Figure 1. Limiting our analyses to the five levels of both, and expanders, which have high
named categories resulted in a sample of 392 em levels of both. Our citation analyses revealed that
pirical articles. qualifiers and expanders are the two most impact
Table 3 shows the results of our regression anal ful kinds of articles published in AMJ, garnering an
yses. The three coded year terms explained 26 per average of 23 more citations than reporters. Such
cent of the variance in citations. The four dummy articles enjoy additive combinations of the typical
codes representing article categories explained an citation advantages associated with increased the
additional 3 percent, with reporters as the referent ory building and testing: 3-4 additional citations,
group. The unstandardized regression coefficient in our data. We suspect that the building-testing
for testers shows that articles in that category gar balance explains that impact, as it represents a bal
nered 16 more citations on average than reporters, ance between novelty and continuity. As McKinley
with builders receiving 13 more citations on aver et al. (1999) described, novelty?in the form of a
age. The citation advantage for qualifiers and ex new construct or relationship or a new mediator or
panders was larger, with articles in those categories moderator?attracts attention to a given article.
receiving an average of 23 more citations than Continuity, in turn, provides a bridge to scholars'
reporters. current understanding, increasing the likelihood
that an article will be read.
DISCUSSION Of course, expanders and qualifiers were not the
only types of articles that were significantly more
What stands out most from the results of our impactful than reporters. Testers enjoyed around
study is the increase in both theory building and 16 more citations on average than reporters and
likely benefited from continuity with established
literatures and paradigms (McKinley et al., 1999).
TABLE 3 However, the level at which testers are published
Five Article Types and Article Impacta has not changed significantly over the past five
Citations
decades in AMJ, and it even seems to have de
creased in recent years. Is that problematic, given
Regression Step and Variable R2 AR2 b the critical role that early tests play in the estab
lishment of a new theory, and the importance of a
1. Year .26* .26* -1.21 series of constructive replications to the accumula
Year squared 0.29* tion of knowledge (Amir & Sharon, 1991; Hendrick,
Year cubed -0.01*
1991; Rosenthal, 1991; Tsang & Kwan, 1999)? To
explore that question, we examined M/s relative
2. Qualifiers .29* .03* 23.30*
Builders 12.64+ presence in the literatures of 12 major micro theo
Testers 15.89* ries and 7 major macro theories. Tables 4 and 5
Expanders 22.16* present these results. We drew the theories from a
combination of sources, including Miner's (2003)
a 12 = 392 empirical articles. Year ranges fr
review,
for 2007; b's are judged thewith
list of theoretical areas that AMJ pro
reporters as t
+ p< .10 vides for authors to utilize during the online sub
* p < .05 mission process, and the theories represented in

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 1294 Academy of Management Journal December

TABLE 4
Citations to Micro Theories in AMJ Articles0

Organizational
Rehavior
Academy of Journal of and Human
Management Applied Personnel Decision
Micro Theories Journal Psychology Psychology Processes

1. Job characteristics theory (Hackman .0172(32/1,858) .0300(89/2,966) .0086(34/3,932) .0087(15/1,729)

& Oldham, 1976)
2. Expectancy theory (Vroom, 1964) .0064 (16/2,490) .0122 (52/4,259) .0016 ( 8/4,927) .0188 (40/2,124)
3. Equity theory (Adams, 1963) .0057 (14/2,464) .0072 (30/4,185) .0020 (11/4,903) .0099 (36/2,124)
4. Goal setting theory (Locke, 1968) .0089 (21/2,369) .0195 (76/3,907) .0021 (10/4,699) .0129 (27/2,089)
5. Social exchange theory (Blau, 1964) .0104 (26/2,490) .0099 (42/4,259) .0014 ( 7/4,927) .0075 (16/2,124)
6. Social identity theory (Tajfel & .0113(19/1,679) .0073(19/2,620) .0011 ( 4/3,577) .0157(24/1,529)
Turner, 1979)
7. Social learning theory (Bandura, .0083 (15/1,798) .0137 (39/2,847) .0031 (12/3,888) .0073 (12/1,651)
1977)
8. Cognitive evaluation theory (Deci, .0033 ( 7/2,135) .0048(17/3,531) .0000(0/4,304) .0092(18/1,961)
1972)
9. Path goal theory (House, 1971) .0146 (32/2,192) .0058 (21/3,630) .0027 (12/4,504) .0140 (28/1,998)
10. Transformational leadership (Burns, .0075(13/1,741) .0099(27/2,719) .0011(4/3,734) .0019 ( 3/1,585)
1978)
11. Prospect theory (Kahneman & .0054 ( 9/1,679) .0015 ( 4/2,620) .0000 ( 0/3,577) .0366(56/1,529)
Tversky, 1979)
12. Social information processing theory .0190 (33/1,741) .0162 (44/2,719) .0080 (30/3,734) .0145 (23/1,585)
(Salancik & Pfeffer, 1978)

a Numbers in boldface indicate the journal with the highest levels of testing for a given theory. Words in boldface indicate the exact
keywords used in the search.

TABLE 5
Citations to Macro Theories in AMJ Articles3

Academy of Administrative Strategic

Management Science Management Organization
Macro Theories Journal Quarterly Journal Studies

1. Agency theory (Jensen & .0258 (48/1,858) .0087 (17/1,945) .0415 ( 63/1,518) .0222 (15/676)
Meckling, 1976)
2. Resource dependence .0057 (10/1,741) .0067 (12/1,798) .0059 ( 9/1,518) .0148 (10/676)
theory (Pfeffer & Salancik,
1978)
3. Transaction cost .0088 (17/1,942) .0030 ( 6/2,025) .0389 ( 59/1,518) .0547 (37/676)
economics (Williamson,
1975)
4. Resource-based view .0292 (30/1,027) .0011 ( 1/935) .1537 (164/1,067) .0429 (29/676)
(Barney, 1991)
5. Population ecology .0061 (11/1,798) .0070 (13/1,864) .0033 ( 5/1,518) .0089 ( 6/676)
(Hannan & Freeman, 1977)
6. Institutional theory .0181 (26/1,439) .0134 (20/1,494) .0147 ( 21/1,428) .0488 (33/676)
(DiMaggio & Powell, 1983)
7. Contingency theory .0083 (20/2,407) .0018 ( 5/2,740) .0138 ( 21/1,518) .0178 (12/676)
(Lawrence & Lorsch, 1967)
8. Upper echelons theory .0508 (70/1,378) .0174 (25/1,436) .0642 ( 88/1,370) .0296 (20/676)
(Hambrick & Mason, 1984)

a Numbers in boldface indicate the journal with the highest levels of testing for a given theory. Words in boldface indicate the exact
keywords used in the search.

the 16 volumes that we coded. Although our list is To examine AMfs relative presence in these lit
certainly not exhaustive, the theories represent eratures, we searched ISFs database using the
many of the major schools of thought in the micro bolded keywords in the tables, restricting the out
and macro areas of management. put to AMJ, three top micro journals [Journal of

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 2007 Colquitt and Zapata-Phelan 1295

Applied Psychology, Personnel Psychology, and Or tunek, Rynes, & Ireland, 2006; Rynes, 2005). For
ganizational Rehavior and Human Decision Pro example, in 2005 the journal added "interesting
cesses), and three top macro journals [Administra ness, innovativeness, and novelty" as an explicit
tive Science Quarterly, Strategic Management rating category on its reviewer rating form (Rynes,
Journal, and Organization Science). If the name of a 2005), an action with a great deal of cultural
theory was a viable search term, we used that name; significance.
otherwise the author string for the article introduc One potential concern raised by an increased
ing the theory was used (note that ISFs database number of builders and expanders is construct pro
does not include books or book chapters, so those liferation?an already fragmented literature becom
sources cannot be used as search terms). The table ing even more so through the addition of new con
presents the total number of "hits" in the database structs (Barley, 2006; Pfeffer, 1993). A related
for a search term in each journal, relative to the concern is construct redundancy, whereby "new"
total number of articles that had appeared in the constructs actually represent older concepts with
journal since the first publication of the theory. For new labels (Spell, 2001). Given the increase in ex
example, a search for "agency theory" yielded 48 panders over time, we wondered whether the new
hits in AMJ, out of 1,858 articles appearing in the constructs introduced in AMJ are vulnerable to
journal from 1976 on. such criticisms or whether they have truly ex
Although the differences between journals are panded theoretical areas in meaningful ways. To
sometimes minor, the results reveal that AMJ tends explore this issue, we included the new and recon
to have the second most visible presence in micro ceptualized constructs uncovered in our review in
theory literatures, typically trailing JAP and some Table 6 and supplemented that list with an inspec
times ORHDP. With respect to macro theories, AMJ tion of the other volumes of the journal. Although
tends to have either the second or third most visible Table 6 may not offer an exhaustive list, we believe
presence; the journal leaders vary considerably it does reflect the vast majority of constructs intro
across the theories. Of the 20 theories included in duced in AMJ.
the tables, AMJ has the most visible presence for The table includes many cases in which an ex
only three (social exchange theory, path goal the isting concept was reconceptualized or redefined
ory, and social information processing). Of course, in the interest of guiding future research (e.g.,
these results are largely dictated by AMfs "big tent" Finkelstein, 1992; McAllister, 1995; Rindova, Wil
status, as it strives to maintain a balance of micro liamson, Petkova, & Sever, 2005; Washington &
and macro articles (Schminke & Mitchell, 2003) Zajac, 2005). The table also includes cases in which
while appealing to the membership of multiple a more specific version of a broader construct was
Academy of Management divisions (Wiseman & introduced (e.g., Pierce, Gardner, Cummings, &
Skilton, 1999). However, it may also be that the Dunham 1989; Tierney & Farmer, 2002). Two note
journal's culture, as represented in its "Information worthy trends are evident in the table. First, some
for Contributors" and "From the Editors," has dis of the constructs have been very impactful to the
couraged the submission or acceptance of articles management literature, most notably citizenship
in the tester category. It may be that Rynes's revi behavior (Bateman & Organ, 1983), affect- and cog
sion of the "Information for Contributors," which nition-based trust (McAllister, 1995), employee de
encourages the submission of first empirical tests of viance (Robinson & Bennett, 1995), and relational
a theory (Rynes, 2005; see also Eden, 2004), could demography (Tsui & O'Reilly, 1989). However,
ultimately increase the presence of testers. This other constructs have had less impact, as judged
does not appear to have occurred as of 2007, using citations, and appear somewhat similar to
however. existing constructs in the management literature.
Like testers, builders have remained a steady For example, Kahn's (1990) personal engagement is
presence over the past five decades, though appear similar to a number of constructs, including job
ing recently at a lower mean level. They also enjoy involvement, intrinsic motivation, and organiza
a citation advantage relative to reporters, garnering tional commitment. Frese, Kring, Soose, and Zem
13 more citations on average. A number of calls for pel's (1996) personal initiative is similar to many
more qualitative submissions to AMJ seem to have existing forms of organizational citizenship behav
increased the number of builders in the journal ior, as is Morrison and Phelps's (1999) taking
(Lee, 2001; Rynes, 2005; Suddaby, 2006), to the charge construct. Finally, Duffy, Ganster, and
point where they outpaced testers in the last three Pagon's (2002) social undermining is similar to
volumes we coded. The increase in builders may many aspects of employee deviance (Robinson &
also reflect the increased attention focused on pub Bennett, 1995). Second, the rate of new and recon
lishing interesting research (Barley, 2006; Bar ceptualized constructs being introduced appears to

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 1296 Academy of Management Journal December

TABLE 6
New Constructs Introduced in AMJ Articles
Construct Definition Citations

Competitive tension (Chen, Su, & Tsai, 2007) The strain between a focal firm and a given rival that is 0
likely to result in the firm taking action against the rival.

Cutthroat cooperation (Johnson, Hollenbeck, The type of cooperation seen among past competitors, as 0
Humphrey, Ilgen, Jundt, & Meyer, 2006) opposed to the type of cooperation seen among those who
have always cooperated.

Expertness diversity (Van der Vegt, Bunderson, 8 Differences in the level of expertise (i.e., "expertness") of 0
Oosterhoff, 2006) team members.

Organizational reputation (Rindova, Williamson, The degree to which stakeholders evaluate an organization 0
Petkova, & Sever, 2005) positively on an attribute (perceived quality) and the
degree to which an organization receives recognition in its
field (prominence).

Servant leadership (Schneider, Ehrhart, Mayer, Saltz, & Leadership that communicates a commitment to high levels 0
Miles-Jolly, 2005) of service quality.

Organizational status (Washington & Zajac, 2005) A socially constructed, intersubjectively agreed-upon and 2
accepted ordering or ranking of individuals, groups, organ
izations, or activities in a social system.

Technological dynamism (Wu, Levitas, & Priem, 2005) The rate of change in and the unpredictability of new 0
technologies.

Transient slack (George, 2005) Excess resources available after resource demands for 2
operations have been met.

Creative self-efficacy (Tierney & Farmer, 2002) The belief that one has the ability to produce creative 15
outcomes.

Cultural competitiveness (Huit, Ketchen, & Nichols, The degree to which supply chains are predisposed to detect 16
2002) and fill gaps between what the market desires and what is
currently offered.

Intergenerational reciprocity (Wade-Benzoni, 2002) Passing on benefits (or burdens) to future generations as a 2
matter of retaliation for the good (or bad) received from
past generations.

Relational job learning (Lankau & Scandura, 2002) Increased understanding about the interdependence or 18
connectedness of one's job to others.

Social undermining (Duffy, Ganster, & Pagon, 2002) Behaviors intended to hinder, over time, the ability to 24
establish and maintain positive interpersonal
relationships, work-related success, and favorable
reputation.

Symbolic isomorphism (Glynn & Abzug, 2002) The resemblance of an organization's symbolic attributes to 13
those of others within its institutional field.

Job embeddedness (Mitchell, Holtom, Lee, The extent to which people have links to other people, the 40
Sablynski, & Erez, 2001) extent to which their jobs and communities fit with their
lives, and the ease with which links can be broken.

Ecological embeddedness (Whiteman & Cooper, 2000) The extent to which a manager is rooted in the land. 9

Environmental technological portfolio (Klassen & An observable pattern of investment designed to improve a 42
Whybark, 1999) firm's environmental performance.

Taking charge (Morrison & Phelps, 1999) Voluntary and constructive efforts to effect organizationally 44
functional change with respect to how work is executed.

Personal initiative (Frese, Kring, Soose, & Zempel, A behavior syndrome resulting in an individual's taking an 70
1996) active and self-starting approach to work and going
beyond what is formally required in a given job.

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 2007 Colquitt and Zapata-Phelan 1297

TABLE 6
(Continued)
Construct Definition Citations

Affect- and cognition-based trust (McAllister, Trust grounded in reciprocated interpersonal care and 278
1995) concern (affect-based) and individual beliefs about peer
reliability and dependability (cognition-based).

Change schema (Lau & Woodman, 1995) A mental map representing the knowledge structures of 27
change attributes and relationships among different
change events.

Employee deviance (Robinson & Bennett, 1995) Voluntary behavior that violates significant organizational 133
norms and in so doing threatens the well-being of an
organization.

Archetypes (Greenwood & Hinings, 1993) A set of structures and systems that reflects a single 81
interpretive scheme.

Top manager power (Finkelstein, 1992) The capacity of individual actors to exert their will as a 137
function of structures, ownership, expertise, and
prestige.

Personal engagement (Kahn, 1990) The harnessing of organization members' selves to their 75
work roles such that people employ and express
themselves physically, cognitively, and emotionally
during role performances.

Task revision (Staw & Boettger, 1990) Taking action to correct a faulty procedure, inaccurate job 55
description, or dysfunctional role expectation.

Organization-based self-esteem (Pierce, Garder, The degree to which organizational members believe that 99
Cummings, & Dunham, 1989) they can satisfy their needs by participating in roles
within the context of an organization.

Relational demography (Tsui & O'Reilly, 1989) The comparative demographic characteristics of members 302
of dyads or work groups who are in a position to engage
in regular interactions.

Citizenship behavior (Bateman & Organ, 1983) Those gestures (often taken for granted) that lubricate the 226
social machinery of the organization but that do not
directly inhere in the usual notion of task performance.

Alienation (Korman, Wittig-Berman, & Lang, Seeing a discrepancy between one's everyday behavior 45
1981) and one's self-image (personal alienation) and seeing the
self as separated from others (social alienation).

be increasing in recent years, which is partially thors intended to do in their studies. Certainly
symptomatic of the increase in expanders in thesome articles ground predictions in better theory
2000s. If interestingness, innovativeness, and nov than others, and some articles examine new con
elty continue to be emphasized in management re structs and relationships that are more important
search, then it will be critical to ensure that new(and less redundant) than others. Indeed, we sus
and reconceptualized constructs actually add valuepect that, if such "quality of execution" could be
to the literature (Pfeffer, 1993; Spell, 2001). reliably coded, it would explain more variance in
article citations than our theory-building and theo
Limitations ry-testing categorizations. Our taxonomy also ne
glects the quality of authors' explication. Sutton
Our article has some limitations that should be and Staw (1995) argued that authors should de
noted. First, we reiterate our earlier points aboutscribe exactly why a theory predicts what it does so
the taxonomy in Figure 1. Not only does it collapsereaders do not need to consult other sources on the
potentially meaningful distinctions in the interesttheory. Some authors clearly have a talent for writ
of parsimony, but also, it captures only what au ing that elevates the contributions of their articles

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 1298 Academy of Management Journal December

beyond their particular objectives. That writing, Atkinson, P. A., Coffey, A. J., Delamont, S., Lofland, J., &
which is often most evident in Discussion sections, Lofland, L. H. 2002. Handbook of ethnography.
may create contributions not reflected in Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
our coding. Bacharach, S. B. 1989. Organizational theories: Some
Three other limitations of this study lay outside criteria for evaluation. Academy of Management
our taxonomy. First, our coding was limited to Review, 14: 496-515.
every third volume of AMJ. It remains an empirical Bandura, A. 1977. Social learning theory. Englewood
question whether the trends observed in our data Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
would hold with all volumes coded. Second, it may
Barley, S. R. 2006. When I write my masterpiece:
be that the trends observed in our data would have
Thoughts on what makes a paper interesting. Acad
differed if other top management journals had been emy of Management Journal, 49: 16-20.
coded. As noted previously, journals develop their
Barney, J. 1991. Firm resources and the theory of com
own particular cultures, which may alter the levels
petitive advantage. Journal of Management, 17: 99
(and impact) of theory testing and building over 120.
time. Third, we utilized citation rates as a means of
capturing the impact of empirical articles. A key Bartunek, J. M., Rynes, S. L., & Ireland, R. D. 2006. What
makes management research interesting, and why
limitation of citation counts is that they weigh each
does it matter? Academy of Management Journal,
citation equally, regardless of the importance of the 49: 9-15.
cited article to the citing manuscript (Kacmar &
Whitfield, 2000). Citation counts are also driven by Bateman, T. S., & Organ, D. W. 1983. Job satisfaction and
a number of factors that were not captured in our the good soldier: The relationship between affect
study, including specific methodological and arti and employee "citizenship." Academy of Manage
ment Journal, 26: 587-595.
cle characteristics (Judge et al., 2007).
Bergh, D. 2003. Thinking strategically about contribu
tion. Academy of Management Journal, 46: 135
Conclusion 136.

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APPENDIX
The Evolution of Expectations about Theoretical Contribution in AMJPs "Information for Contributors"

Editor Crafting the

Statement Years in Effect Relevant Quotations about Theory Expectations

Paul M. Dauten 1958-69 The Academy is founded to foster the search for truth and the general advancement of
learning through free discussion and research in the field of management. The interest of
the Academy lies in the theory and practice of management, both administrative and
operative.
William G. Scott 1970-72 The interest of the Academy of Management lies in management theory, research, teaching,
and practice. To foster these interests, the Journal's objectives are: (1) the development
of management research and theory that will help achieve the economic and social
objectives of industrial societies; (2) the advancement of understanding about
administrative leadership and behavior through research within the environment of such
societies; (3) the enlargement of scholarly communication and cooperation among
colleagues engaged in management research and theory.

John B. Miner 1973-84 The Journal publishes original research of an empirical nature either in the form of articles
or as research notes. Although studies which serve to test either theoretical propositions
or hypotheses derived from practice are of particular interest, exploratory work and
survey research findings are also included. . . . For consideration in the Research Notes
category, articles should not exceed ten double spaced typewritten pages in length,
including tables. Replications, survey reports, and studies which fail to obtain significant
results that might have been expected on other grounds are especially appropriate.

Janice M. Beyer 1985-96 In its articles, the Journal seeks to publish reports of research that develops, tests, or
advances management theory and practice. All types of empirical methods-quantitative,
qualitative, or combinations-are acceptable. . . . Atheoretical exploratory or survey
research, methodological studies, replications or extensions of past research, and
commentaries with new empirical content are also of interest for publication as research
notes if they make an important contribution to knowledge relevant to management.

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 2007 Colquitt and Zapata-Phelan 1303

APPENDIX
(Continued)

Editor Crafting the

Statement Years In Effect Exemplary Quotations about Theory Expectations

Anne S. Tsui and 1999-2004 All articles published in the Journal must make a strong theoretical contribution.
Gregory B. Submissions should reflect a clear understanding of the position of the contribution in
Northcraft the related organization and management literatures. Methodological articles are
welcome to the extent that they contain an accompanying theoretical contribution. All
articles published in the Journal must be clearly relevant to management theory and
practice. The best submissions are those that identify both a compelling practical
management issue and a strong theoretical framework for addressing it. . .. Manuscripts
that offer an original theoretical and empirical contribution, but one that is small in
scope, may be published as research notes. . . . Replications of previously published
work and very incremental research rarely offer enough of a contribution to warrant
publication. Authors should strive to be original, insightful, and theoretically bold;
demonstration of a significant "value-added" advance to the field's understanding of an
issue or topic is critical to acceptance for publication.

Sara L. Rynes 2005-07 The mission of the Academy of Management Journal is to publish empirical research that
tests, extends, or builds management theory and contributes to management practice. All
empirical methods?including, but not limited to, qualitative, quantitative, field,
laboratory, meta-analytic, and combination methods?are welcome. To be published in
AMJ, a manuscript must make strong empirical and theoretical contributions and
highlight the significance of those contributions to the management field. Thus,
preference is given to submissions that test, extend, or build strong theoretical
frameworks while empirically examining issues with high importance for management
theory and practice. . . . Authors should strive to produce original, insightful, interesting,
important, and theoretically bold research. Demonstration of a significant "value-added"
contribution to the field's understanding of an issue or topic is crucial to acceptance for
publication.. . . All articles published in the Academy of Management Journal must also
make strong theoretical contributions. Meaningful new implications or insights for
theory must be present in all AMJ articles, although such insights may be developed in a
variety of ways (e.g., falsification of conventional understanding, theory building through
inductive or qualitative research, first empirical testing of a theory, meta-analysis with
theoretical implications, constructive replication that clarifies the boundaries or range of
a theory). Submissions should clearly communication the nature of their theoretical
contribution in relation to the existing management and organizational literatures.
Methodological articles are welcome, but they must contain accompanying theoretical
and empirical contributions.

A.

Cindy P. Zapata-P
Jason A. Colquitt [[email protected]) is
University of Florida's Warrington
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interests include organizational just
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