Theoretical background and sources

Trist & Bamforth 1951 — socio-technical systems

Trist, E. L. & Bamforth, K. W. (1951). Some Social and Psychological Consequences of the Longwall Method of Coal-Getting. Human Relations, 4(1), 3–38. https://doi.org/10.1177/001872675100400101

Burns & Stalker 1961 — mechanistic and organic organizations

Burns, T. & Stalker, G. M. (1961). The Management of Innovation. Tavistock Publications, London. xxii+269pp.

Drucker 1999 — knowledge-worker productivity

Drucker, P. F. (1999). Knowledge-Worker Productivity: The Biggest Challenge. California Management Review, 41(2), 79–94. https://doi.org/10.2307/41165987

Plato, Phaedrus 274c–275b — concern about writing — a classical analogy

Plato. Phaedrus, 274c–275b (Stephanus pagination).

Simon 1971 — a wealth of information, a poverty of attention

Simon, H. A. (1971). Designing Organizations for an Information-Rich World. In M. Greenberger (Ed.), Computers, Communications, and the Public Interest. Johns Hopkins Press, Baltimore.

Bainbridge 1983 — ironies of automation

Bainbridge, L. (1983). Ironies of Automation. Automatica, 19(6), 775–779. https://doi.org/10.1016/0005-1098(83)90046-8

Parasuraman & Riley 1997 — use, misuse, disuse, abuse

Parasuraman, R. & Riley, V. (1997). Humans and Automation: Use, Misuse, Disuse, Abuse. Human Factors, 39(2), 230–253. https://doi.org/10.1518/001872097778543886

Risko & Gilbert 2016 — cognitive offloading

Risko, E. F. & Gilbert, S. J. (2016). Cognitive Offloading. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 20(9), 676–688. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2016.07.002

Brynjolfsson, Li & Raymond 2025 — uneven effects of AI by task and skill

Brynjolfsson, E., Li, D. & Raymond, L. R. (2025). Generative AI at Work. Quarterly Journal of Economics, 140(2), 889–942. https://doi.org/10.1093/qje/qjae044

Dell’Acqua et al. 2025 — uneven effects of AI by task and skill

Dell’Acqua, F. et al. (2025). Navigating the Jagged Technological Frontier: Field Experimental Evidence of the Effects of AI on Knowledge Worker Productivity and Quality. Organization Science. https://doi.org/10.1287/orsc.2025.21838

Chandler 1962 — structure follows strategy

Chandler, A. D. Jr. (1962). Strategy and Structure: Chapters in the History of the Industrial Enterprise. MIT Press, Cambridge, MA. 463pp.

Conway 1968 — organization and product structure

Conway, M. E. (1968). How Do Committees Invent? Datamation, 14, 28–31 (April 1968).

Lawrence & Lorsch 1967 — differentiation and integration

Lawrence, P. R. & Lorsch, J. W. (1967). Differentiation and Integration in Complex Organizations. Administrative Science Quarterly, 12(1), 1–47. https://doi.org/10.2307/2391211

Thompson 1967 — interdependence and coordination

Thompson, J. D. (1967). Organizations in Action: Social Science Bases of Administrative Theory. McGraw-Hill, New York.

Galbraith 1973 — organization design as information processing

Galbraith, J. R. (1973). Designing Complex Organizations. Addison-Wesley, Reading, MA.

Mintzberg 1979 — configurations

Mintzberg, H. (1979). The Structuring of Organizations: A Synthesis of the Research. Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, NJ. 512pp.

Hackman & Oldham 1976 — job design and motivation

Hackman, J. R. & Oldham, G. R. (1976). Motivation through the Design of Work: Test of a Theory. Organizational Behavior and Human Performance, 16(2), 250–279. https://doi.org/10.1016/0030-5073(76)90016-7

MacCormack, Baldwin & Rusnak 2012 — evidence for the mirroring hypothesis

MacCormack, A., Baldwin, C. Y. & Rusnak, J. (2012). Exploring the Duality between Product and Organizational Architectures: A Test of the Mirroring Hypothesis. Research Policy, 41(8), 1309–1324. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.respol.2012.04.011

DiMaggio & Powell 1983 — imitation under uncertainty

DiMaggio, P. J. & Powell, W. W. (1983). The Iron Cage Revisited: Institutional Isomorphism and Collective Rationality in Organizational Fields. American Sociological Review, 48(2), 147–160. https://doi.org/10.2307/2095101

Abrahamson 1991 — management fashion

Abrahamson, E. (1991). Managerial Fads and Fashions: The Diffusion and Rejection of Innovations. Academy of Management Review, 16(3), 586–612. https://doi.org/10.2307/258919

Argyris 1977 — double-loop learning

Argyris, C. (1977). Double Loop Learning in Organizations. Harvard Business Review, 55(5) [Sep–Oct 1977], 115–125.

Senge 1990 — systems thinking

Senge, P. M. (1990). The Fifth Discipline: The Art and Practice of the Learning Organization. Doubleday/Currency, New York.

Kolb 1984 — experiential learning

Kolb, D. A. (1984). Experiential Learning: Experience as the Source of Learning and Development. Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, NJ. 256pp.

Wood, Bruner & Ross 1976 — scaffolding

Wood, D., Bruner, J. S. & Ross, G. (1976). The Role of Tutoring in Problem Solving. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 17(2), 89–100. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-7610.1976.tb00381.x

Baldwin & Ford 1988 — transfer of training

Baldwin, T. T. & Ford, J. K. (1988). Transfer of Training: A Review and Directions for Future Research. Personnel Psychology, 41(1), 63–105. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-6570.1988.tb00632.x

Arthur et al. 2003 — meta-analysis of training effectiveness

Arthur, W. Jr., Bennett, W. Jr., Edens, P. S. & Bell, S. T. (2003). Effectiveness of Training in Organizations: A Meta-Analysis of Design and Evaluation Features. Journal of Applied Psychology, 88(2), 234–245. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.88.2.234

Salas et al. 2012 — the science of training

Salas, E., Tannenbaum, S. I., Kraiger, K. & Smith-Jentsch, K. A. (2012). The Science of Training and Development in Organizations: What Matters in Practice. Psychological Science in the Public Interest, 13(2), 74–101. https://doi.org/10.1177/1529100612436661

Theeboom et al. 2014 — meta-analysis of coaching

Theeboom, T., Beersma, B. & van Vianen, A. E. M. (2014). Does Coaching Work? A Meta-Analysis on the Effects of Coaching on Individual Level Outcomes in an Organizational Context. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 9(1), 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2013.837499

Jones et al. 2016 — meta-analysis of coaching

Jones, R. J., Woods, S. A. & Guillaume, Y. R. F. (2016). The Effectiveness of Workplace Coaching: A Meta-Analysis of Learning and Performance Outcomes from Coaching. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 89(2), 249–277. https://doi.org/10.1111/joop.12119

Schein 1969 — process consultation

Schein, E. H. (1969). Process Consultation: Its Role in Organization Development. Addison-Wesley, Reading, MA.

Becker 1964 — human capital

Becker, G. S. (1964). Human Capital: A Theoretical and Empirical Analysis, with Special Reference to Education. University of Chicago Press, Chicago.

Herzberg 1968 — motivators and hygiene factors

Herzberg, F. (1968). One More Time: How Do You Motivate Employees? Harvard Business Review, 46(1).

Eisenberger et al. 1986 — perceived organizational support

Eisenberger, R., Huntington, R., Hutchison, S. & Sowa, D. (1986). Perceived Organizational Support. Journal of Applied Psychology, 71(3), 500–507. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-9010.71.3.500

Ryan & Deci 2000 — self-determination theory

Ryan, R. M. & Deci, E. L. (2000). Self-Determination Theory and the Facilitation of Intrinsic Motivation, Social Development, and Well-Being. American Psychologist, 55(1), 68–78. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.55.1.68

Edmondson 1999 — psychological safety

Edmondson, A. C. (1999). Psychological Safety and Learning Behavior in Work Teams. Administrative Science Quarterly, 44(2), 350–383. https://doi.org/10.2307/2666999

Spence 1973 — signaling — as an analogy

Spence, A. M. (1973). Job Market Signaling. Quarterly Journal of Economics, 87(3), 355–374. https://doi.org/10.2307/1882010