Creative Decision-Making in Situations of Uncertainty : The Case of the Selection of Models by Fashion Houses
Given the great uncertainty in “creative” industries, how do cultural producers make decisions ? We approach this question through a study of a particular case, the selection of models by fashion houses for their shows in New York, London, Milan and Paris. The data employed are both qualitative (ethnographic interviews) and quantitative (analysis of social networks). While the producers present the selection of models as a question of “taste,” or personal preferences, we show that their decisions are, in fact, defined by mechanisms of information-sharing in social networks, notably through “optional” mechanisms. Our data analysis reveals that cultural producers’ decisional processes are a question of strategic choices based on status, even if their rhetoric refers to personal taste.