Understanding management : the social science foundations An objective of this book is to argue that the academic field of management which is conventionally divided into six sub disciplines has common underlying concerns. This argument is presented in Chapter 1 but it is also reflected in the structure of the book. I use chapters to present the content of these sub disciplines and themes to explore commonalities. This explains the contents pages below P. vi The management field. Theme 1. Accounting for capitalism The firm. Theme 2. The agency problem Workers of the world ... .Theme 3. A short history of collective action The search for consummate cooperation. Theme 4. A short history of bounded rationality The structuring of organizations. Theme 5. Measuring performance : scorecards and league tables Strategy as competition and cooperation. Theme 6. A short history of the M form Strategy as organizational theory. Theme 7. Managing markets from hierarchies The strange rise of financial economics. Theme 8. The modern corporation The anthropology of management. Theme 9. Performativity does life imitate art In search of a better past