The Interplay of Routine and Decision-Making in Action: A Literature Review and Proposed Synthesis

Abstract

What precisely is the relation between routine and decision-making? How do actors’ decisions affect routine – and, in turn, how does the development of routine affect decision-making? Over the last few decades, research into routine has been increasingly disconnected from classical decision theory. The main aim of this paper is to bridge this ‘schism’ and find a new synthesis. A review of the literature shows that many of the basic insights into action and repetition are surprisingly uncontroversial. Building on these insights, the main contribution of this paper is to offer a ‘cognitive’ adaptation of routine that re-connects both concepts and serves as a conceptual foundation for an investigation of the interplay of routine and decision-making in action. This investigation throws a completely new light on what Feldman (2000) and Pentland/Feldman (2005) call the ostensive aspect of routine.