CAUSAL AMBIGUITY, MANAGEMENT PERCEPTION, AND FIRM PERFORMANCE

Abstract

We integrate and extend research on causal ambiguity, indicating the principal causal paths from ambiguity to performance and discussing the connections between empirical findings and resource-based expectations. We then develop the linkage between causal ambiguity and management perception. Drawing on experimental and field research, we give testable propositions linking ambiguity, perception, and firm performance; integrate this research with studies of causal ambiguity; and suggest directions for future causal ambiguity research.