Transdisciplinary Approach to a Theory of Performance in Organizations

Abstract

This paper argues that attempts to build a theory of performance in organizations have largely been confined to individual disciplines of psychology, sociology, economics and organization theory. The paper highlights the inadequacies of the agency model of performance from organizational economics. The paper suggests that an integrated model of performance can be built by combining ideas from agency theory in economics and organization theory. The paper presents the first step towards such a model. It is shown that organizational activities can be classified as ‘operational’ or ‘facilitative’ based on the notion of interdependence. Implications of this model are discussed.