Useful Research

TWOCrossing Boundaries to Investigate Problems in the FieldAn Approach to Useful Research

AMY C. EDMONDSON

FOR MOST SCHOLARS in organizational behavior, the importance of advancing theory is obvious. In a field that arose in response to management challenges (Miner, 2002), one might argue that research advancing practice should be highly valued as well. Indeed, the need for strategies to manage the challenges faced by the organizations that inspire and fund our work creates an obvious imperative for research that helps those who manage and work in them.

We are told that the norms and demands of academic careers limit our ability to be useful (e.g., Fox, 2003). As the scholars in this book illustrate, however, the hurdles are far from insurmountable. ...