Title: Assessing subjective influences on managerial decisions

Authors: Andreas G. Nikolopoulos

Addresses: Athens University of Economics and Business, Department of Business Administration, 76 Patision Street, 10434 Athens, Greece

Abstract: The application of managerial theories and techniques does not often lead to increased efficiency for company performance, so they raise doubts concerning their empirical credibility. The present study attempts to approach the role of subjectivity in the making of management decisions, by incorporating company characteristics, the gender of the decision maker, and the type of decision-making utilised in human resource management. My findings indicate that subjectivity plays a very important role in managerial decision making for both domestic and multinational companies. However, subjectivity differs in quantity and quality according to the characteristics of the company and the decision maker, and to the kind of decision to be taken. This paper should help the reader to clarify the role of subjectivity in managerial decisions, and removes a significant factor that causes inefficiencies in the implementation of company goals.

Keywords: decision makers| subjectivity; subjectivity|s assessment; business culture; human resource management; business ethics.

DOI: 10.1504/IJMDM.2002.002482

International Journal of Management and Decision Making, 2002 Vol.3 No.3/4, pp.337-352

Published online: 18 Jul 2003 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article