ABSTRACT
Abstract: This chapter contends that there has been a progressive refinement of information technology (IT) outsourcing since the mid-1980s. Specifically, it is proposed that the evolution and progressive refinement of IT outsourcing practices can be attributed to “population-level learning.” Population-level learning is a learning phenomenon that occurs at the level of a population of organizations through mechanisms such as selective imitation and inferential learning. Four features of IT outsourcing are studied in detail: (1) outsourcing scope, (2) vendor selection, (3) outsourcing contract, and (4) outsourcing outcome.
