Supply chain management as Lakatosian research program

Abstract

Purpose – There is an ongoing and controversial debate about the current state of maturity of supply chain management (SCM) as research discipline and its future development. Openness to theory of other fields is on the one hand welcome and on the other hand denounced as arbitrariness hampering the progression of SCM. This paper aims to contribute to this debate outlining one promising framework that structures the field and provides guidance for its evolution. Design/methodology/approach – This paper conceives SCM as a Lakatosian research program from a philosophy of knowledge perspective that allows for continuously developing the knowledge base of SCM. After outlining the peculiarities of knowledge development according to Lakatos, the hard core of the program is delimitated from its protective belt by means of various analytical criteria referring to the meta, discipline, and practice level. The distinction framework is illustratively applied to four SCM research articles. Findings – Developing SCM as a Lakatosian research program entails two main challenges: consensus regarding the irrefutable hard core and theoretic and methodological openness regarding its protective belt. Research limitations/implications – Meeting these challenges requires distinguishing between hard core and protective belt. Thus, the Lakatosian viewpoint facilitates both the integration of knowledge from a diversified range of research designs into the body of SCM knowledge and safeguards its stability and its identity as research program. Originality/value – This paper is a rare attempt of grounding SCM in a coherent conceptualization of scientific knowledge development.