Long a fruitful area of scrutiny for students of organizations, the study of institutions is undergoing a renaissance in contemporary social science. This volume offers, for the first time, both often-cited foundation works and the latest writings of scholars associated with the "institutional" approach to organization analysis. In their introduction, the editors discuss points of convergence and disagreement with institutionally oriented research in economics and political science, and locate the "institutional" approach in relation to major developments in contemporary sociological theory. Several chapters consolidate the theoretical advances of the past decade, identify and clarify the paradigm's key ambiguities, and push the theoretical agenda in novel ways by developing sophisticated arguments about the linkage between institutional patterns and forms of social structure. The empirical studies that follow—involving such diverse topics as mental health clinics, art museums, large corporations, civil-service systems, and national polities—illustrate the explanatory power of institutional theory in the analysis of organizational change. Required reading for anyone interested in the sociology of organizations, the volume should appeal to scholars concerned with culture, political institutions, and social change.

Fully revised and refined, this new edition of Institutional Theory and Organizational Change considers the developments in the field of institutional organization theory over the past decade. With each chapter being significantly updated, the book explains what the institutional organization approach means by bringing special attention to how the institutional environment is made up and how organizations are governed by it.

The SAGE Handbook of Organizational Institutionalism brings together extensive coverage of aspects of Institutional Theory and an array of top academic contributors. Now in its Second Edition, the book has been thoroughly revised and reorganised, with all chapters updated to maintain a mix of theory, how to conduct institutional organizational analysis, and contemporary empirical work. New chapters on Translation, Networks and Institutional Pluralism are included to reflect new directions in the field. The Second Edition has also been reorganized into six parts: Part One: Beginnings (Foundations) Part Two: Organizations and their Contexts Part Three: Institutional Processes Part Four: Conversations Part Five: Consequences Part Six: Reflections

The changes in the US healthcare system since World War II are documented here, from new technologies, service-delivery arrangements, to financing mechanisms and underlying sets of organizing principles. The authors illustrate the work with five types of healthcare organizations.

Institutional theory has become one of the dominant organizational approaches in recent decades. Its roots can be traced to Europe, and an important intellectual objective of this book is to examine North American theory strands and reconnect them with European research traditions. In addition, this book focuses on how organizations and individuals handle heterogeneous and challenging social conditions which are subsequently reflected in various forms of change.

This Handbook forms part of wider research in responsibility, ethics and legitimacy of corporations. Through an interdisciplinary perspective with comparative integration of sociological, politological, philosophical, theological, ethical, economic, legal, linguistic and communication theoretical approaches this Handbook will clarify how the interrelation between company and environment is mediated by legitimating notions in public spaces and public relations; how and why these notions have changed radically; how these transformations strike on the epistemological as well as practical dimension of business companies; and the problems involved in these transformations at the macro-, meso- and micro levels. The Handbook begins with a historical introduction and chronology of the development of business legitimacy, providing a comprehensive assessment of the concept’s evolution and identifying the most influential authors and their works. These may be divided into authors who follow (1) a philosophical, sociological, or conceptual tradition in management and leadership in their treatment of legitimacy and those who belong to the research tradition of (2) application of the concept in management science and leadership as well as in organizational theory and business practice in the interdisciplinary perspective of the different approaches. The Handbook continues with systematic approaches and major themes developed in the concept of business legitimacy. Contributions here may be conceptual, empirical/applied or case studies. The different parts of the volume deal with the different topics to which business legitimacy has been applied, with how legitimacy is relevant in the various operational areas of the firm, and with the legitimacy theory’s responses to some of the most important issues that businesses and organizations currently face.

This revised and extended second edition evaluates the diverse approaches to organizational change that have defined the field. Explaining the assumptions and implications that accompany these diverse philosophies, this book demystifies the complexities of conflicting perspectives and delivers valuable insights into the research and practice of organizational change.

Institutional theory lies at the heart of organizational theory yet until now, no book has successfully taken stock of this important and wide-ranging theoretical perspective. With insight and clarity, the editors of this handbook have collected and arranged papers so readers are provided with a map of the field and pointed in the direction of new and emerging themes. The academics who have contributed to this handbook are respected internationally and represent a cross-section of expert organization theorists, sociologists and political scientists. Chapters are a rich mix of theory, how to conduct institutional organizational analysis and empirical work. The SAGE Handbook of Organizational Institutionalism will change how researchers, teachers and advanced students think about organizational institutionalism.

The institutional theory of organizations developed by Scott, Meyer and their colleagues over the past two decades has had an enormous impact on organizational theory and research. In this book, the editors review the major theoretical advances of the past decade and the empirical testing they have done on these theories. Their work has highlighted two key themes: the interrelationship between organizational complexity and the institutional environment; and the place of the individual within the organization.

Creating a clear, analytical framework, this comprehensive exploration of the relationship between institutional theory and the study of organizations continues to reflect the richness and diversity of institutional thought—viewed both historically and as a contemporary, ongoing field of study. Drawing on the insights of cultural and organizational sociologists, institutional economists, social and cognitive psychologists, political scientists, and management theorists, the book reviews and integrates the most important recent developments in this rapidly evolving field, and strengthens and elaborates the author’s widely accepted "pillars" framework, which supports research and theory construction. By exploring the differences as well as the underlying commonalities of institutional theories, the book presents a cohesive view of the many flavors and colors of institutionalism. Finally, the book evaluates and clarifies developments in both theory and research while identifying future research directions.