History Of Change Management Theory. From lewin's 3 step change theory of 'unfreeze, make changes, refreeze' to a current expectation that organisations should never ". Lewin's first venture into change management started with researching field theory in 1921.
Change management literature and its historical development are often used to develop new change frameworks, beyond the ones mentioned here. Decision theory (1960s) the decision theory method of change management suggested that individuals “satisfice” when they make decisions. However references to change and change management can be found in the psychological literature more than 40 years.