This paper examines the nature of genuine uncertainty and rule-following behaviour and suggests some implications for the theory of the firm. The firm is seen here as emerging as a means to manage some of the experienced uncertainty. The nature of the firm is perceived as an evolving institution creating predictability both inside the firm and in the market. But because of the spontaneous nature of life-world, social processes remain open-ended. This subjectivist perspective cannot assign any particular premeditated purpose to the spontaneous order which emerges through the market process. The process is not kaleidic but nor is it considered to be moving toward increasing efficiency either. Rules and institutions provide predictability to the extent that novelties can be introduced to the process. Discoveries do not, however, only introduce new outcomes in the market process, they also change the rules of the game.
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Paper provided by DRUID, Copenhagen Business School, Department of Industrial Economics and Strategy/Aalborg University, Department of Business Studies in its series DRUID Working Papers with number
98-17.
Find related papers by JEL classification: D81 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Criteria for Decision-Making under Risk and Uncertainty D21 - Microeconomics - - Production and Organizations - - - Firm Behavior O33 - Economic Development, Technological Change, and Growth - - Technological Change - - - Technological Change: Choices and Consequences; Diffusion Processes
References listed on IDEAS Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
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DRUID Working Papers
96-8, DRUID, Copenhagen Business School, Department of Industrial Economics and Strategy/Aalborg University, Department of Business Studies.
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DRUID Working Papers
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[Downloadable!]