In this paper, we provide a perspective on why behavioral research is critical to the operations management (OM) field, what prior research exists, and what opportunities lie ahead. The use of human experiments in operations management is still fairly novel despite a small stream of publications going back more than 20 years. We develop a framework for identifying the types of behavioral assumptions typically made in analytical OM models. We then use this framework to organize the results of prior behavioral research and identify future research opportunities. Our study of prior research is based on a search of papers published between 1985 and 2005 in six targeted journals including the

Whenever intrepid researchers venture into new terrain, they find that they require knowledge outside of their formal training. This paper reviews bodies of knowledge for operations management (OM) researchers interested in the new area of Behavioral Operations. We highlight theoretical constructs and empirical phenomena from cognitive psychology, social psychology, group dynamics, and system dynamics. We also provide a guide for where to go to learn more about each body of knowledge. Our overall goal is to lower the startup costs for new researchers in Behavioral Operations.

Social exchange theory is used to gain a better understanding of the relationship between a buyer and a supplier that is characterized by lock‐in situations. We begin by reviewing the theoretical foundations of social exchange theory. Next, we use an illustrative multinational business example from a Danish Business Group to demonstrate the complexities of the lock‐in situation. Conjectures related to lock‐in behaviors are initially developed and then examined by means of a game‐theoretic model. The analysis provides a basis for the development of propositions which are examined employing a behavioral experiment. The results indicate that the optimal pricing strategy of the supplier is to lower the price with increasing demand and the optimal investment intensity of the buyer decreases with increasing demand. The paper concludes by presenting directions for future research.

Manufacturing firms are increasingly using advanced enterprise-level information systems to coordinate and synchronize externally oriented functions such as marketing and supply chain and internally oriented activities such as manufacturing. In this paper, we present a model of manufacturing performance that simultaneously considers the effects of a firm's integrated IS capability in conjunction with interfunctional and interorganizational coordination mechanisms. Consistent with the complementarity perspective, we view this specific form of IS capability as enhancing manufacturing's coordination with marketing and supply chain functions to drive manufacturing performance. Additionally, the theoretical model presented here introduces manufacturing-IS coordination, a form of coordination not considered in past research, as a key antecedent to integrated IS capability. The research thus provides a comprehensive framework for examining manufacturing performance in contexts that have been transformed by the use of advanced information systems. The theoretical model is tested using primary data collected from manufacturing firms and matched with objective manufacturing performance data from secondary sources. Results show that a firm's integrated IS capability, as well as the complementary effects of IS capability with manufacturing, marketing, and supply chain processes, are significant predictors of manufacturing performance. These findings are robust to concerns of endogeneity, unobserved heterogeneity, and alternative model specification.

Reducing the risks believed to be associated with product availability can be critical to increasing consumer retention rates. This study considers the role that perceptions of channel integration have on such beliefs and their impact on purchasing decisions. Surveys distributed to purchasers of specific goods both online and in-store provide data used in the analysis of these effects. The findings suggest that firms simultaneously managing both online and instore channels should not only reassess the repercussions of availability failures but also consider efforts that encourage the transparency of channel integration.

Effective project management relies on the timely exchange of information regarding appropriate resource availability, associated scheduling options, and related costs and benefits. At the same time, such information, or lack thereof, can also impact the behavior of project managers in ways that do not directly focus on work objectives but nevertheless affect performance. The research developed in this paper is primarily focused on demonstrating both direct and moderating effects that information can have on decision makers' actions and perceptions in an environment where multiple projects are pursued simultaneously. In order to study these linkages we designed and executed a controlled experiment designed to simulate aspects common to a multi-party project management environment. Our findings suggest that greater visibility of situational information in this environment impacts project outcomes mainly by affecting a project manager's actions and perceptions regarding both the behavior of others and the priority given to his/her task. The study extends existing information processing theory by developing and examining notions of informed rationality and reciprocity, as well as examining the effect of information on post-task sense making. Insights from the study suggest a set of behavioral issues that should be considered in future information processing and project management research. #

The study of the nuances of human behavior in supply chain management (SCM) contexts and the behavioral reactions that accompany changes in operating policies has finally started to gain a strong headwind. This has come after several decades of operational modeling in which the behavior of the human actors, so critical to the mechanics of operating policies, has either been largely simplified or ignored. With the growth in joint work in experimental behavioral testing and improvements in behavioral codification, greater insight into the practicality of operational policies is now emerging. Yet in order to ensure such practicality, the rigor of this new joint experimentation needs to be ensured. While SCM researchers have a rich history in the rigor of artificial modeling, the sparse history of behavioral experimentation in SCM provides much less evidence of an understanding of what ''rigor'' with such methods entails. The purpose of this brief essay is to touch on some of the basic tenets of rigorous behavioral experimentation, and to hopefully promote such rigor in future SCM behavioral studies.

Abstract