Colleagues -
Thank you to all those who responded to my request for information regarding a theoretical base for improvisational behavior. Below, please find a summary of those responses:
Hmieleski, K.M., & Corbett, A.C. 2006. Proclivity for improvisation as a predictor of entrepreneurial intentions. Journal of Small Business Management, 44(1), 45-63.
Hmieleski, K.M., & Corbett, A.C. 2008. The contrasting interaction effects of improvisational behavior with entrepreneurial self-efficacy on new venture performance and entrepreneur work satisfaction. Journal of Business Venturing, 23, 482-496.
Look at literature on business and the arts:
For instance, dissertation by Rochelle Mucha (Proquest, Business as performance art.)
Look at the membership of AACORN (www.aacorn.net - there you will find the pioneers in this field with a range of publications and studies to peruse)
Books: Improv by Keith Johnstone and Group Genius by Keith Sawyer
Look at the bricolage literature:
Baker & Nelson (2005- ASQ)
Baker et al. (2003)
Take a dramatalurgical perspective:
Benford (1992) Dramaturgy and social movements: The social construction and communication of power. Sociological Inquiry
Gardner, W.L. & Avolio, B.J. 1998. The charismatic relationship: A dramaturgical perspective. Academy of Management Review, 23(1), 32-58.
Grandey (2003) When "the show must go on": Surface acting and deep acting as determinants of emotional exhaustion and peer-rated service delivery in AMJ
Take a social psychological perspective:
Eisenberg, J. & Thompson, W.F. 2003. A matter of taste: Evaluating improvised music. Creativity Research Journal, 15, 2 & 3, 287-296.
Quote taken directly from response: "First, the Dept of Defense (USA) are looking at 'emerging' roles in high-pressure situations (search and rescue; special operations; combat) and, I believe, are in population-level studies now on what can only be called 'improvisational' leadership and group roles in various work functions.
second, there's a huge literature on this question from studies in theater and in creative dramatics (chiefly, using improvisational techniques to facilitate children's learning). I'm aware of some attempts to relate these to work performance--DoD's work is one of these; some of the best practices in autonomous team formation are another. Anyway, from the strictly-defined 'improvisational' perspective in performance, people look first and foremost to Viola Spolin's books on improvisation, several decades old but still the industry standard. It seems to me that they are particularly associated with Chicago and (maybe most notably) with the Second-City comedy groups there and in Toronto. They're great fun to read as well.
Third, there's a substantial experimental and quasi-experimental literature on the subject, especially from the social psychologists, who got onto it in the 'conformity' research in the 1960s & 70s. But for the bottom-line approach in performing arts, I'd certainly have a look at Spolin and at a lot of the research which she inspired, much of it dissertation based. It's a short step from that work to, for example, some of the most dynamic work in autonomous and semi-autonomous teams (for which Hackman, for me, remains state of the art). (Speaking of Dr. Hackman, HB press has available a 20 or 30 minute video illustrating Hackman's approach to team performance by looking at the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra (which by charter has no 'leader', in the form of conductor) and traditional orchestral performance models (including the L. A. Symphony, under Mehta).
Finally, NEA has funded the production and web archiving of a series of short, very powerful videos on improvisation, narrated by Wynton Marsalis. I do not have the URL at hand, but I know several people (including me) who use these materials in OB and management courses. Probably you can find them easily with google or by accessing Jazz at Lincoln Center's web site."
Karl Weick's works (books such as Sensemaking in Organizations, Making Sense of Organizations, Managing the Unexpected, etc.)
Organizational Improvisation by Ken N. Kamoche
Experiencing Risk, Spontaneity and Improvisation in Organisational Life: Working Live by P. Shaw
Thank you again - it's a fascinating area that I think is under-researched, and I look forward to what comes next!
Doan
Doan Winkel
PhD Student
University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee
Sheldon B. Lubar School of Business - S360
PO Box 742
Milwaukee, WI 53201
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