Pseudotheory proliferation is damaging the organizational sciences

In recent years, there has been an increasing emphasis on the role of theory in organizational behavior (OB) research. Authors are strongly encouraged to develop “theory” in their manuscripts and to make “theoretical contributions.” This trend is in stark contrast to the process used in other fields of science. Our counterparts in those fields follow the scientific method and define theory as a concise and elegant hypothesis that has survived extensive empirical testing. Rather than being based on extensive empirical research, many of OB’s theories are based on a limited number of primary studies (at best) or speculation and conjecture (at worst). OB researchers are discouraged from testing other researchers’ theories or replicating previously published work. Consequently, many OB theories do not meet the criteria for a true scientific theory. We propose that OB researchers should re-embrace the scientific method and focus on creating a body of empirical research that could be used in the future to establish true scientific theories (through extensive hypothesis testing, empirical research, and conceptual replications) rather than concocting pseudotheories. Research in the personnel selection subfield of OB provides a reasonable exemplar of this model, yet it has been derided of late for being too atheoretical. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.