A Review of Approaches to Empirical Research on the Resource-Based View of the Firm†

Abstract

This study reviews empirical studies of the resource-based view (RBV) and examines methodological issues and new directions that will help to clarify the value and boundaries of the RBV. Through our comprehensive review of the research design and operationalization of resource-based constructs used in 125 empirical studies, we (1) discuss key empirical issues particularly important to RBV research, (2) illustrate how researchers have or have not overcome some of these challenges, and (3) highlight two important approaches that offer promise for sharpening the boundary conditions of the RBV: an integrative framework for RBV research and utilization of nonsignificant results.

Keywords

resource-based view operationalization of resources sustainability confounding factors nonsignificant results

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Acedo, F.J. , Barroso, C. , & Galan, J.L. 2006. The resource-based theory: Dissemination and main trends . Strategic Management Journal, 27: 621-636 .

Ahuja, G. , Coff, R.W. , & Lee, P.M. 2005. Managerial foresight and attempted rent appropriation: Insider trading on knowledge of imminent breakthroughs . Strategic Management Journal, 26: 791-808 .

Amit, R. , & Schoemaker, P.J.H. 1993. Strategic assets and organizational rent . Strategic Management Journal, 14: 33-46 .

Anand, B.N. , & Khanna, T. 2000. Do firms learn to create value? The case of alliances . Strategic Management Journal, 21: 295-315 .

Anand, J. , & Singh, H. 1997. Asset redeployment, acquisitions and corporate strategy in declining industries . Strategic Management Journal, 18: 99-118 .

Athanassiou, N. , & Nigh, D. 1999. The impact of U.S. company internationalization on top management team advice networks: A tacit knowledge perspective . Strategic Management Journal, 20: 83-92 .

Bacharach, S.B. 1989. Organizational theories: Some criteria for evaluation . Academy of Management Review, 14: 496-515 .

Bain, J.S. 1959. Industrial organization. New York: Wiley .

Balkin, D.B. , Markman, G.D. , & Gomez-Mejia, L.R. 2000. Is CEO pay in high-technology firms related to innovation? Academy of Management Journal , 43: 1118-1129 .

10.

Barney, J.B. 1986. Strategic factor markets: Expectations, luck, and business strategy . Management Science, 32: 1231-1241 .

11.

Barney, J.B. 1991. Firm resources and sustained competitive advantage . Journal of Management, 17: 99-120 .

12.

Barney, J.B. 2001. Is the resource-based `view' a useful perspective for strategic management research? Yes . Academy of Management Review, 26: 41-56 .

13.

Barney, J.B. , & Arikan, A.M. 2001. The resource-based view: Origins and implications. In M. A. Hitt , R. E. Freeman , & J. S. Harrison (Eds.), The Blackwell Handbook of Strategic Management. Oxford: Blackwell Publishers .

14.

Barney, J.B. , Wright, M. , & Ketchen Jr., D.J. 2001. The resource-based view of the firm: Ten years after 1991 . Journal of Management, 27: 625-641 .

15.

Bergh, D.D. 1995. Size and relatedness of units sold: An agency theory and resource-based perspective . Strategic Management Journal, 16: 221-239 .

16.

Bourgeois, L.J., III , & Eisenhardt, K.M. 1988. Strategic decision processes in high velocity environments: Four cases in the microcomputer industry . Management Science, 34: 816-835 .

17.

Boyd, B.K. , Gove, S. , & Hitt, M.A. 2005. Construct measurement in strategic management research: Illusion or reality? Strategic Management Journal, 26: 239-257 .

18.

Brock, J.K.U. 2003. The “power” of international business research . Journal of International Business Studies, 34: 90-99 .

19.

Brown, S.L. , & Eisenhardt, K.M. 1998. Competing on the edge: Strategy as structured chaos. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press .

20.

Brush, T.H. , Bromiley, P. , & Hendrickx, M. 1999. The relative influence of industry and corporation on business segment performance: An alternate estimate . Strategic Management Journal, 20: 519-547 .

21.

Bruton, G.D. , Oviatt, B.M. , & White, M.A. 1994. Performance of acquisitions of distressed firms . Academy of Management Journal, 37: 972-989 .

22.

Carpenter, M.A. , Sanders, W.G. , & Gregersen, H.B. 2001. Bundling human capital with organizational context: The impact of international assignment experience on multinational firm performance and CEO pay . Academy of Management Journal, 44: 493-512 .

23.

Chen, M. , Farh, J. , & MacMillan, I.C. 1993. An exploration of the expertness of outside informants . Academy of Management Journal, 36: 1614-1632 .

24.

Coff, R.W. 2002. Human capital, shared expertise, and the likelihood of impasse in corporate acquisitions . Journal of Management, 28: 107-128 .

25.

Cohen, J. , Cohen, P. , West, S.G. , & Aiken, L.S. 2003. Applied Multiple Regression/Correlation Analysis for the Behavioral Science. 3rd ed. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum .

26.

Combs, J.G. , & Ketchen Jr., D.J. 1999. Explaining interfirm cooperation and performance: Toward a reconciliation of predictions from the resource-based view and organizational economics . Strategic Management Journal , 20: 867-888 .

27.

Conner, K.R. 1991. A historical comparison of resource-based theory and five schools of thought within industrial organization economics: Do we have a new theory of the firm? Journal of Management, 17: 121-154 .

28.

Cortina, J.M. , & Folger, R.G. 1998. When is it acceptable to accept a null hypothesis: No way, Jose? Organizational Research Methods, 1: 334-350 .

29.

D'Aveni, R.A. 1994. Hypercompetition: Managing the dynamics of strategic maneuvering . New York: Simon & Schuster .

30.

Delios, A. , & Beamish, P.W. 2001. Survival and profitability: The roles of experience and intangible assets in foreign subsidiary performance . Academy of Management Journal, 44: 1028-1038 .

31.

Denrell, J. , Fang, C. , & Winter, S.G. 2003. The economics of strategic opportunity . Strategic Management Journal, 24: 977-990 .

32.

Dess, G. , Ireland, R.D. , & Hitt, M.A. 1990. Industry effects and strategic management research . Journal of Management. 16: 7-27 .

33.

Dierickx, I. , & Cool, K. 1989. Asset stock accumulation and sustainability of competitive advantage . Management Science, 35: 1504-1511 .

34.

Drazin, R. , & Rao, H. 2002. Harnessing managerial knowledge to implement product-line extensions: How do mutual fund families allocate portfolio managers to old and new funds? Academy of Management Journal, 45: 609-619 .

35.

Dutta, S. , Narasimhan, O. , & Rajiv, S. 2005. Conceptualizing and measuring capabilities: Methodology and empirical application . Strategic Management Journal, 26: 277-285 .

36.

Eisenhardt, K.M. , & Martin, J.A. 2000. Dynamic capabilities: What are they? Strategic Management Journal, 21: 1105-1121 .

37.

Farjoun, M. 1998. The independent and joint effects of the skill and physical bases of relatedness in diversification . Strategic Management Journal, 19: 611-630 .

38.

Ferguson, R.D. , & Ketchen, D.J. 1999. Organizational configurations and performance: The role of statistical power in extant research . Strategic Management Journal, 20: 385-395 .

39.

Galunic, D.C. , & Anderson, E. 2000. From security to mobility: Generalized investments in human capital and agent commitment . Organization Science, 11: 1-20 .

40.

Godfrey, P.C. , & Hill, C.W.L. 1995. The problem of unobservables in strategic management research . Strategic Management Journal, 16: 519-533 .

41.

Hamel, G. , & Prahalad, C.K. 1990. The core competence of the corporation . Harvard Business Review, 68(3): 79-93 .

42.

Harrigan, K.R. 1983. Research methodologies for contingency approaches to business strategy . Academy of Management Review, 8: 398-405 .

43.

Hatch, N.W. , & Dyer, J.H. 2004. Human capital and learning as a source of sustainable competitive advantage . Strategic Management Journal, 25: 1155-1178 .

44.

Hayward, M.L.A. & Hambrick, D.C. 1997. Explaining the premiums paid for large acquisitions: Evidence of CEO hubris . Administrative Science Quarterly, 42: 103-127 .

45.

Helfat, C.E. 2000. Guest editor's introduction to the special issue: The evolution of firm capabilities . Strategic Management Journal , 21: 955-960 .

46.

Helfat, C.E. , & Peteraf, M.A. 2003. The dynamic resource-based view: Capabilities lifecycles . Strategic Management Journal, 24: 997-1010 .

47.

Henderson, R. , & Cockburn, I. 1994. Measuring competence? Exploring firm effects in pharmaceutical research . Strategic Management Journal, 15: 63-84 .

48.

Hitt, M.A. , Bierman, L. , Shimizu, K. , & Kochhar, R. 2001. Direct and moderating effects of human capital on strategy and performance in professional service firms: A resource-based perspective . Academy of Management Journal, 44: 13-28 .

49.

Hoopes, D.G. , Madsen, T.L. , & Walker, G. 2003. Why is there a resource-based view? Toward a theory of competitive heterogeneity . Strategic Management Journal, 24: 889-902 .

50.

Hoskisson, R.E. , Hitt, M.A. , Wan, W.P. , & Yiu, D. 1999. Theory and research in strategic management: Swings of a pendulum . Journal of Management, 25: 417-456 .

51.

Hoskisson, R.E. , Hitt, M.A. , Johnson, R.A. , & Moesel, D.D. 1993. Construct validity of objective (entropy) categorical measure of diversification strategy . Strategic Management Journal, 14: 215-235 .

52.

Huber, G.P. & Power, D.J. 1985. Retrospective reports of strategic level managers: Guidelines for increasing their accuracy . Strategic Management Journal , 6: 171-180 .

53.

Jensen, M.C. 1983. Organization theory and methodology . The Accounting Review, 58: 319-339 .

54.

Klassen, R.D. , & Whybark, D.C. 1999. The impact of environmental technologies on manufacturing performance . Academy of Management Journal, 42: 599-615 .

55.

Koch, M.J. , & McGrath, R.G. 1996. Improving labor productivity: Human resource management policies do matter . Strategic Management Journal, 17: 335-354 .

56.

Leonard-Barton, D. 1992. Core capabilities and core rigidities: A paradox in managing new product development . Strategic Management Journal, 13 (Summer Special Issue): 111-125 .

57.

Levitas, E. , & Chi, T. 2002. Rethinking Rouse and Daellenbach's rethinking: Isolating vs. testing for sources of sustainable competitive advantage . Strategic Management Journal, 23: 957-962 .

58.

Levinthal, D. , & Myatt, J. 1994. Co-evolution of capabilities and industry: The evolution of mutual fund processing . Strategic Management Journal, 15: 45-62 .

59.

Lippman, S. , & Rumelt, R.P. 1982. Uncertain imitability: An analysis of interfirm differences in efficiency under competition . Bell Journal of Economics , 13: 418-438 .

60.

Makadok, R. 1999. Interfirm differences in scale economies and the evolution of market shares . Strategic Management Journal, 20: 935-952 .

61.

Makadok, R. , & Walker, G. 2000. Identifying a distinctive competence: Forecasting ability in the money fund industry . Strategic Management Journal, 21: 853-864 .

62.

McEvily, S.K. , & Chakravarthy, B. 2002. The persistence of knowledge-based advantage: An empirical test for product performance and technological knowledge . Strategic Management Journal, 23: 285-305 .

63.

McGahan, A.M. , & Porter, M.E. 1997. How much does industry matter, really? Strategic Management Journal, 18 (Summer Special Issue): 15-30 .

64.

Meyer, A.D. 1991. What is strategy's distinctive competence? Journal of Management, 17: 821-833 .

65.

Miller, C.C. , Cardinal, L.B. , & Glick, W.H. 1997. Retrospective reports in organizational research: A reexamination of recent evidence . Academy of Management Journal, 40: 189-204 .

66.

Miller, D. , & Shamsie, J. 1996. The resource-based view of the firm in two environments: The Hollywood film studios from 1936 to 1965 . Academy of Management Journal, 39: 519-543 .

67.

Mowery, D.C. , Oxley, J.E. , & Silverman, B.S. 1996. Strategic alliances and interfirm knowledge transfer . Strategic Management Journal, 17 (Winter Special Issue): 77-91 .

68.

Nelson, R.R. 1991. Why do firms differ, and how does it matter? Strategic Management Journal, 12: 61-74 .

69.

Newbert, S.L. 2007. Empirical research on the resource-based view of the firm: An assessment and suggestions for future research . Strategic Management Journal, 28: 121-146 .

70.

Park, S.H. , Chen, R. , & Gallagher, S. 2002. Firm resources as moderators of the relationship between market growth and strategic alliances in semiconductor startups . Academy of Management Journal, 45: 527-545 .

71.

Penrose, E. 1959. The theory of the growth of the firm. New York: Wiley .

72.

Peteraf, M.A. 1993. The cornerstones of competitive advantage: A resource-based view . Strategic Management Journal, 14: 179-191 .

73.

Pettus, M.L. 2001. The resource-based view as a developmental growth process: Evidence from the deregulated trucking industry . Academy of Management Journal, 44: 878-896 .

74.

Pisano, G.P. 1994. Knowledge, integration, and the locus of learning: An empirical analysis of process development . Strategic Management Journal, 15: 85-100 .

75.

Popper, K.R. 1959. The logic of scientific discovery. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul .

76.

Porter, M.E. 1980. Competitive strategy. New York: Free Press .

77.

Priem, R.L. 2007. A consumer perspective on value creation . Academy of Management Review, 32: 219-235 .

78.

Priem, R.L. , & Butler, J.E. 2001a. Is the resource-based “view” a useful perspective for strategic management research? Academy of Management Review , 26: 22-40 .

79.

Priem, R.L. , & Butler, J.E. 2001b. Tautology in the resource-based view and the implications of externally determined resource value: Further comments . Academy of Management Review, 26: 57-65 .

80.

Rao, H. , & Drazin, R. 2002. Overcoming resource constraints on product innovation by recruiting talent from rivals: A study of the mutual fund industry, 1986-94 . Academy of Management Journal, 45: 491-507 .

81.

Ray, G. , Barney, J.B. , & Muhanna, W.A. 2004. Capabilities, business processes, and competitive advantage: Choosing the dependent variable in empirical tests of the resource-based view . Strategic Management Journal, 25: 23-37 .

82.

Reed, R. , & DeFillippi, R. 1990. Causal ambiguity, barriers to imitation, and sustainable competitive advantage . Academy of Management Review, 15: 88-102 .

83.

Reger, R.K. , & Huff, A.S. 1993. Strategic groups: A cognitive perspective . Strategic Management Journal, 14: 103-124 .

84.

Robins, J. , & Wiersema, M.F. 1995. A resource-based approach to the multibusiness firm: Empirical analysis of portfolio interrelationships and corporate financial performance . Strategic Management Journal, 16: 277-299 .

85.

Rouse, M.J. , & Daellenbach, U.S. 1999. Rethinking research methods for the resource-based perspective: Isolation sources of sustainable competitive advantage . Strategic Management Journal, 20: 487-494 .

86.

Rouse, M.J. , & Daellenbach, U.S. 2002. More thinking on research methods for the resource-based perspective . Strategic Management Journal, 23: 963-967 .

87.

Rumelt, R.P. 1982. Diversification strategy and profitability . Strategic Management Journal, 3: 359-369 .

88.

Rumelt, R.P. 1984. Toward a strategic theory of the firm. In R. Lamb (Ed.), Competitive Strategic Management : 556-570. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall .

89.

Rumelt, R.P. 1991. How much does industry matter? Strategic Management Journal, 12: 167-185 .

90.

Schilling, M.A. , & Steensma, H.K. 2002. Disentangling the theories of firm boundaries: A path model and empirical test . Organization Science, 13: 387-401 .

91.

Schumpeter, J.A. 1939. Business cycles: A theoretical, historical, and statistical analysis of the capitalist process. New York: McGraw-Hill .

92.

Schumpeter, J.A. 1942. Capitalism, socialism, and democracy. New York: Harper .

93.

Silverman, B.S. 1999. Technological resources and the direction of corporate diversification: Toward an integration of the resource-based view and transaction cost economics . Management Science, 45: 1109-1124 .

94.

Simonin, B.L. 1997. The importance of collaborative know-how: An empirical test of the learning organization . Academy of Management Journal , 40: 1150-1174 .

95.

Singh, K. 1997. The impact of technological complexity and interfirm cooperation on business survival . Academy of Management Journal, 40: 339-367 .

96.

Sutton, R.I. 1990. Organizational decline processes: A social psychological perspective. In B. M. Staw & L. L. Cummings (Eds.), Research in Organizational Behavior, 12: 205-253. Greenwich, CT: JAI Press .

97.

Tatikonda, M.V. , & Montoya-Weiss, M.M. 2001. Integrating operations and marketing perspectives of product innovation: The influence of organizational process factors and capabilities on development performance . Management Science, 47: 151-172 .

98.

Teece, D.J. , Pisano, G. , & Shuen, A. 1997. Dynamic capabilities and strategic management . Strategic Management Journal, 18: 509-533 .

99.

Van den Bosch, R.A.J. , Volberda, H.W. , & de Boer, M. 1999. Coevolution of firm absorptive capacity and knowledge environment: Organizational forms and combinative capabilities . Organization Science, 10: 551-568 .

100.

Weick, K.E. 1974. Middle range theories of social systems . Behavioral Science, 19: 357-367 .

101.

Weick, K.E. 1995. What theory is not, theorizing is . Administrative Science Quarterly, 40: 385-390 .

102.

Wernerfelt, B. 1984. A resource-based view of the firm . Strategic Management Journal, 5: 171-180 .

103.

Wernerfelt, B. 1995. The resource-based view of the firm: Ten years after . Strategic Management Journal, 16: 171-174 .

104.

Wiggins, R.R. , & Ruefli, T.W. 2002. Sustained competitive advantage: Temporal dynamics and the incidence and persistence of superior economic performance . Organization Science, 13: 82-105 .

105.

Wiggins, R.R. , & Ruefli, T.W. 2005. Schumpeter's ghost: Is hypercompetition making the best of time shorter? Strategic Management Journal, 26: 887-911 .

106.

Williamson, O.E. 1999. Strategy research: Governance and competence perspectives . Strategic Management Journal, 20: 1087-1108 .

107.

Wright, P.M. , Smart, D.L. , & McMahan, G.C. 1995. Matches between human resources and strategy among NCAA basketball teams . Academy of Management Journal, 38: 1052-1074 .

108.

Zaheer, S.A. 1995. Overcoming the liability of foreignness . Academy of Management Journal, 38: 341-363 .

109.

Zajac, E.J. , & Bazerman, M.H. 1991. Blind spots in industry and competitor analysis: Implications of interfirm (mis)perceptions for strategic decisions . Academy of Management Review, 16: 37-56 .

110.

Zander, U. , & Kogut, B. 1995. Knowledge and the speed of the transfer and imitation of organizational capabilities: An empirical test . Organization Science, 6: 76-92 .