A Theory of Routines as Mindsavers

Bernard Sinclair-Desgagné () and Antoine Soubeyran

CIRANO Working Papers from CIRANO

Abstract: A large number of our daily activities are routinized in the sense that they are done without explicit deliberation. We provide a first model that captures this phenomenon. In a dynamic setting routines arise endogenously from the necessity to economize on time and attention. Routines are shown to be ubiquitous, not only in trivial tasks that bear no direct payoff, but also in tasks where stakes are high and where deliberation and delivery are strictly complementary with respect to output. In jobs that comprise several tasks, the timing of routinization on one task is seen to depend on this task's relative contribution to output. In jobs that require different sorts of know-hows, routinization is linked to their total number. The relationship between routines and some well-known features of economic behavior, such as inertia and resistance to change, unreadiness towards increased rewards, and satisficing under time pressure is also briefly examined. Un grand nombre de nos activités quotidiennes sont routinisées, au sens où nous les pratiquons sans trop y penser. Cet article propose un premier modèle de ce phénomène. Avec le temps, des routines apparaissent dû à la nécessité d'économiser effort et attention. On trouve des routines partout, non seulement dans les tâches dites triviales parce qu'elles ne rapportent rien en soi,0501s aussi dans celles dites nobles où les enjeux sont grands. Lorsqu'un travail comprend plusieurs tâches, une tâche donnée est routinisée plus tôt quand sa contribution est relativement plus faible. Lorsqu'un travail comprend une seule tâche0501s requiert différents savoir-faire, le moment où cette tâche devient routine est lié au nombre total de savoir-faire. On étudie finalement le lien entre les routines et certains comportements économiques bien connus, comme l'inertie et la résistance au changement, la non-réponse aux incitations, et la tendance à sous-optimiser quand le temps presse.

Keywords: Time allocation; multitasking; learning-by-doing; satisficing; Gestion du temps; tâches multiples; apprentissage; rationalité limitée (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D20 D90 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2000-11-01
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:cir:cirwor:2000s-52

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