The contingency, or situational, approach to management theory and practice emerged in the early 1960s from organizational research conducted in the United States and England. With the arrival of the sixties came the expansion of markets based not on the introduction of new products but rather on the differentiation of existing products. Consumers were demanding more variety in the products they purchased. The Henry Ford axiom from a previous generation, “You can buy a car of any color as long as it is black,” was no longer acceptable. With consumer demand becoming more diversified, so did the types of organizations that were being founded. In addition, the work force was becoming less blue-collar and more white-collar. Read more about contingency theory Eric Raymond compressor air dryer