A description and mathematization of an adaptation-based culture mechanism

Organizational culture is recognized as a critical and influential aspect of organizational performance. Yet, the underlying mechanism of culture and methodological approaches that effectively link theoretical concepts to empirical models are vague. Consequently, organizational culture has largely been reduced to a linear, static variable in organizational research and management applications. Mathematical approaches can effectively bridge common theoretical culture elements to dynamic empirical interpretation. This paper makes explicit a theoretically-grounded mechanism of the relationship between culture and outcomes. Probability theory and set theory are used to define key elements of the culture mechanism, and an approach for derivation of testable hypotheses is presented. Providing theoretically-driven analyses may take research a step further to provide intervention insights to researchers and practitioners.