Stakeholder theory: Revisiting the origins

The stakeholder theory was proposed as a holistic way of managing organizations that acknowledged stakeholders' roles and the firm's fiduciary duty towards them. Despite the theory being firmly rooted in organizational management, trends of published research showcase and stakeholder scholars' rue that the adoption of stakeholder theory in strategic management research has been limited. This study aims to extend our understanding of the constrained endorsement of stakeholder theory in strategic management research by revisiting the theory's origins. We review some of the significant theoretical studies contributing to the theory's growth and development and identify theoretical issues related to considerable debate amongst academicians. Lending legitimacy to our arguments, we also identify and discuss a few recent strategic management studies that still have been developing and building on the initial debates related to the stakeholder theory. The authors believe that addressing these persistent gaps in the theory might further the theory's adoption in strategic management research and practice.