A CRITICAL REVIEW OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL UNCERTAINTY LITERATURE SINCE 1987

Abstract

Environmental uncertainty has been a central construct of organizational theorists and strategic management researchers for many decades. The number of empirical studies using the uncertainty construct also continues to be significant. However, the confusion surrounding the conceptualization and measurement of the uncertainty construct remains a subject of scholarly debate. Through our comprehensive review of 77 empirical studies over the last 20 years and related theoretical and methodological work, we intend to (1) review the conceptualization trends and persisting issues that are apparent in uncertainty research, (2) review empirical issues particularly important to uncertainty work and illustrate how researches have or have not overcome some of these challenges, and (3) suggest directions for future research using the uncertainty construct.