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Journal of Business Research Callfor papers: The micro-foundations of pricing(Deadline31 August 2015)Guest editors: Andreas Hinterhuber, Hinterhuber & PartnersStephan Liozu, Chatham University Aims and scope Research on the micro-level of organizational decisionmaking has witnessed a surge in interest as of recent. In a dedicated specialissue in the Strategic Management Journal(Powell, Lovallo, & Fox, 2011)Levinthal (2011)asks the question “A behavioral approach to strategy – what’s thealternative?”. The SMJ Editors state that “strategic management theory lacks adequatepsychological groundings” and that “until strategy theory builds strongerfoundations in psychology, it will struggle to explain the facts of firmperformance” (Powell, et al., 2011, p. 1370). Recent developments in finance,organization theory and strategic management have moved micro-level aspects ofdecision making solidly within mainstream research. The literature on pricing,however, has not yet dedicated attention to the examination of itsmicro-foundations, although pricing is arguably the most important driver ofshort-term profits (Nagle & Holden, 2002).While arguably journals do publish studies examining aspects related tomicro-foundations (Che-Ha, Mavondo, & Mohd-Said,2014; Mousavi& Kheirandish, 2014; Raghubir,2006),there is, as of today, no systematic research on the micro-foundations ofpricing. Research on the micro-foundations of organizationaldecision making is based on the following premises (Hodgson, 2012):“Organizations are made up of individuals, and there is no organization withoutindividuals” (Felin & Foss, 2005, p. 441);“Nothing is more fundamental in setting our research agenda and informing ourresearch methods than our view of the nature of the human beings whose behaviorwe are studying” (Simon, 1985, p. 303);“Combining methodological individualism with an emphasis on causal mechanismsimplies that strategic management should fundamentally be concerned about howintentional human action and interaction causally produce strategic phenomena” (Abell, Felin, & Foss, 2008, p.492). The planned JBR special issue, The micro-foundations of pricing, will examine how individual-levelcharacteristics affect how organizations deal with pricing. We define “pricing”broadly to include the following elements: determination of list prices, price-setting practices, pricerealization, price negotiations with customers, freedom to set prices/grantdiscounts to customers, price flexibility, price communication, valuecommunication, information processing on competitor prices, informationprocessing on customers/customer needs, information processing on costs,incentive systems, bonus systems, headquarter support on pricing, CEOchampioning of pricing, pricing capabilities. Our interest in the micro-foundations of pricingsprings from the simple recognition that organizations do not act--individualsdo. As scholars, however, we have a tendency to attribute to organizationsproperties which only individuals can have. The literature speaks of “organizationalcapabilities” and describes organizations as “innovative”; however,organizations do not have capabilities, individuals do; organizations are notinnovative, individuals are. We thus want to explore how individualcharacteristics affect pricing in organizations. Consequentially, in this call for papers we aim toshed light on the following non-exhaustive list of research questions. Individual characteristics and pricingdecisions: How do individual psychological traits (e.g. altruism, intelligence)influence preferences for price setting practices (e.g. preferences forvalue-based pricing as opposed to cost-based pricing)? Are pricing approachesat the individual level (again: value-based pricing may be an example) theresult of particular psychological traits? How do individual characteristicsinfluence negotiation in pricing? Are negotiation styles of individuals (e.g.collaborative, competitive, accommodating) the result of particular psychologicaltraits? Or: how do psychological traits (e.g. aggressiveness versusassertiveness) influence price negotiation outcomes? Thepersistence dysfunctional pricing practices: Why and how do dysfunctionalpricing practices persist? Does hard-wiring of pricing practices happendifferently for functional as opposed to dysfunctional pricing practices?Conversely: What are triggers of innovative pricing practices at the individuallevel? How do innovative pricing practices at the individual level gaintraction to lead to new pricing practices at the organizational level? Oragain: which mechanisms prevent innovation at the individual level fromemerging at the organizational level? Goalframing and pricing: How do hedonicgoals (concerned about short-term gains), gaingoals (concerned about longer term benefits), and normative goals (concerned with adhering to moral principles)interact at the individual level to influence pricing decisions? What is theeffect of the focal goal frame on individual pricing decisions? Does anindividual preference for a given pricing approach (e.g. value-based pricing)reflect a given focal goal frame? Individual considerations and collectiveactions in pricing: Pricing is, by nature, an activity that touches virtuallyall aspects of business: sales, marketing, finance, general management, humanresources, and research and development. The pricing function, if present,leads and influences actors from these different functions. This leads to thequestion: What is the origin of individual beliefs and assumptions on pricingby different organizational actors in pricing and how are these individualfactors aggregated at a collective level to produce pricing decisions? How doindividual assumptions on pricing and individual hierarchical power interact tolead to collective pricing decisions? Do relationships of friendships in theorganization favor the emergence of given pricing practices? Boundedrationality and pricing: How do cognitive biases affect pricing decisions? Whatis the impact of behavioral or cognitive biases on the price setting and pricenegotiation process? Irrationality explained: What is irrational behavior inpricing? In Hamlet we read: “Though this be madness, yet there is method in’t”.Is there a rationale for irrational behavior in pricing? Individual preferencesand pricing: How stable are customer preferences in B2B? Are preferences in B2Bconstructed? Intuition and pricing: Whatis the role of intuition in pricing decision-making process? Research methods andguidelinesWe are open to a wide number of research methods andexpect all papers to either make a strong empirical contribution or tochallenge conventional wisdom concerning all aspects of pricing at theintersection between individual characteristics and organizational practicesthrough novel, insightful and carefully crafted conceptual propositions. Manuscript submission and any inquires should besent electronically by 31 August 2015 as an MSWord file attached to an e-mailto special issue coeditors. Andreas Hinterhuber [log in to unmask] Stephan Liozu [log in to unmask] journal information and how to prepare the manuscript, please access JBR’sGuide for Authors at the following URL: http://www.elsevier.com/journals/journal-of-business-research/0148-2963?generatepdf=true. ReferencesAbell, P., Felin, T., & Foss, N. (2008). Buildingmicro-foundations for the routines, capabilities, and performance links. Managerial and Decision Economics, 29(6),489-502.Che-Ha, N., Mavondo, F. T., & Mohd-Said, S. (2014).Performance or learning goal orientation: Implications for businessperformance. Journal of BusinessResearch, 67(1), 2811-2820.Felin, T., & Foss, N. J. (2005). Strategic organization:A field in search of micro-foundations. StrategicOrganization, 3(4), 441-455. .Hodgson, G. M. (2012). The Mirage of Microfoundations. Journal of Management Studies, 49(8),1389-1394.Levinthal, D. A. (2011). A behavioral approach tostrategy—what's the alternative? StrategicManagement Journal, 32(13), 1517-1523.Mousavi, S., & Kheirandish, R. (2014). Behind and Beyonda Shared Definition of Ecological Rationality: A Functional View of Heuristics.Journal of Business Research, 67(8),1780-1785.Nagle, T. T., & Holden, R. K. (2002). The strategy and tactics of pricing: A guideto profitable decision making (3rd ed.): Prentice Hall Englewood Cliffs,NJ.Powell, T. C., Lovallo, D., & Fox, C. R. (2011).Behavioral strategy. Strategic ManagementJournal, 32(13), 1369-1386.Raghubir, P. (2006). An information processing review of thesubjective value of money and prices. Journalof Business Research, 59(10), 1053-1062.Simon, H. A. (1985).Human nature in politics: The dialogue of psychology with political science. American Political Science Review, 79,293-304. Contact information: AndreasHinterhuber, Hinterhuber & Partners; e-mail: [log in to unmask] Stephan Liozu, Case Western ReserveUniversity; e-mail: [log in to unmask] Andreas HinterhuberPartner, Hinterhuber & PartnersStrategy Pricing LeadershipInnsbruck, AustriaPhone: +43 664 402 7 [log in to unmask] ____ AIB-L is brought to you by the Academy of International Business. For information: http://aib.msu.edu/community/aib-l.asp To post message: [log in to unmask] For assistance: [log in to unmask] AIB-L is a moderated list.