Studying Concepts as Fashions

Abstract A positivist understanding of language—the idea that language is neutral, reflects reality, and can be controlled—usually underlies research in Strategic Studies. This chapter first introduces interpretivism to Strategic Studies, which assumes that language shapes reality and thus exercises power. From an interpretivist perspective, changes or ambiguities in meaning are productive and useful to understand power dynamics that structure the field. The chapter then introduces the lifecycle model that scholars in management studies developed to analyse management fashions. Composed of four stages—innovation, diffusion, institutionalization, and decline—this model will be used in the following three case-study chapters to outline the rise and fall of each concept. Finally, the chapter introduces the logic of structured, focused comparison that allows us to draw inferences about the recurring patterns of fashions in the field of Strategic Studies.