Explaining environmental heterogeneity

This paper contributes to the literature by providing increased clarity over what is environmental heterogeneity and how it can be incorporated into firm survival studies. Too often environmental heterogeneity, while acknowledged, is merely controlled for rather than explained. With reference to empirical evidence, this paper offers an explanation of a process capable of accessing and explaining the nature and significance of environmental heterogeneity. Drawing on Brandon’s widely accepted biological definition of the environment; this paper offers a new view of how environmental heterogeneity can be explained in organizational studies. The conclusion drawn is that we need to remain curious as to how our collective thinking can be further advanced via greater inter-disciplinary collaboration.