Research in the strategic theory of the firm: 'Isolationism' and 'integrationism'

It has been increasingly often argued that strategy research should aim for a 'strategic theory of the firm', that is, a theory explains the existence, boundaries, organization and competitive advantage of the firm within a unified theoretical framework. This paper discusses two archetypal strategies in research in the strategic theory of the firm, namely 'isolationism' and 'integrationism'. While the former is representative of the positions that either the knowledge-based view or the modern economics of organization can develop into full-blown strategic theories of the firm, the integrationist strategy stresses that progress is more likely to emerge from a combination of insights and research procedures from both the knowledge-based view and the modern economics of organization. The paper argues in favour of integrationism. In addition, the paper presents some novel criticisms of both the knowledge-based view and the modern economics of organization.