The iron cage revisited: institutional isomorphism and collective rationality in organizational fields

What makes organizations so similar? We contend that the engine of rationalization and bureaucratization has moved from the competitive marketplace to the state and the professions. Once a set of organization emerges as a field, a paradox arises: rational actors make their organizations increasingly...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: DiMaggio, Paul Joseph, Powell, Walter W.
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2005
País:Brasil
Institución:Fundação Getulio Vargas (FGV)
Repositorio:Revista de Administração de Empresas
Idioma:portugués
OAI Identifier:oai:ojs.periodicos.fgv.br:article/37123
Acceso en línea:https://periodicos.fgv.br/rae/article/view/37123
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Institutional theory
organizational change
isomorphism
organizational fields
rationality
Teoria institucional
mudança organizacional
isomorfismo
campos organizacionais
racionalidade
Descripción
Sumario:What makes organizations so similar? We contend that the engine of rationalization and bureaucratization has moved from the competitive marketplace to the state and the professions. Once a set of organization emerges as a field, a paradox arises: rational actors make their organizations increasingly similar as they try to change them. We describe three isomorphic processes - coercive, mimetic, and normative - leading to this outcome. We then specify hypotheses about the impact of resource centralization and structuration on isomorphic change. Finally, we suggest implications for theories of organizations and social change.