Restoring a Taste for Science: Enhancing Strategic Management Knowledge by Changing the Governance of Academic Journals

Too many strategic management scholars may have lost their passion for research or what Robert Merton has defined as the ‘taste for science.’ A lack of passion curtails the pursuit of original, creative research, and the knowledge generated often may be of questionable value for the field’s advancement and business practices. We argue that the reduction of a scholar’s passion for research and an insufficient generation of meaningful knowledge are influenced by a flawed academic governance system. The current governance system of our academic journals and universities undermines attaining the legitimate interests of individual faculty, the scientific community, and broader society. To resolve this situation, we propose a new governance system based on open access and open evaluation. We demonstrate how this alternative system can meet the interests of its stakeholders, encourage more meaningful research and knowledge, and restore a scholar’s ‘taste for science.’