Diffuse Decision-Making in Hierarchical Organizations: An Empirical Examination

The applied research resource allocation decision process in a complex, hierarchical federal organization is explored in this paper. This decision process includes the identification of research objectives and the funding of projects selected to achieve the objectives. The hierarchical, geographical, and temporal diffuseness of participation in the decision process is described. Several a priori conjectures are presented concerning how the decision to fund research projects might be made in such a hierarchically and spatially diffused organization. The conjectures are empirically tested using data for 181 projects from the 1970 budget cycle, and their implications are discussed.