Discursive strategies and radical technological change: Multilevel discourse analysis of the early computer (1947-1958)

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Kahl, Steven J.; Grodal, Stine
• 署名单位: Dartmouth College; Boston University
• 刊物名称: STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT JOURNAL
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0143-2095
• DOI: 10.1002/smj.2453
• 发表日期: 2016
• 页码: 149-166
• 关键词: discourse and strategy; qualitative methods; discourse analysis; cognition and markets; market emergence; disruptive technologies; MARKET CATEGORIES

摘要

Research summary: This paper uses multilevel discourse analysis to advance strategic management research, focusing on the question of why firms fail in the face of radical technological change. Answering this question requires addressing how customers develop their interpretations and evaluation criteria of the new technology. This interpretive process occurs through discussions with other market participants. Firms can influence customers' interpretations through the use of language and visual imageswhat we call discursive strategies. Firms can fail to navigate technological disruptions because their discursive strategies do not communicate effectively with customers. Yet, methodological limitations have restricted the study of discursive strategies. We draw on multilevel discourse analysis and apply this method to explain why IBM outperformed Remington Rand in the early insurance market for computers. Copyright (c) 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.