Mind, Self and Society from the Standpoint of a Social Behaviorist

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 organizations 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 dependency, goal ambiguity and technical uncertainty, and professionalization and structuration on isomorphic change. Finally, we suggest implications for theories of organizations and social change.

The iron cage revisited: Institutional isomorphism and collective rationality in organizational fields (Chinese Translation)

This paper aims at exploring the perspective of sustainability when digital transformation is adopted by one organization, although it was not the first goal targeted. Two different cases are analyzed, covering manufacturing and service industries. In those cases different factors will be analyzed, mainly focused on the positive effects of knowledge creation facilitated by direct or indirect application of digitalization. Specific analysis of different cases were carried out to identify different initiatives and the impact on environmental performance. The positive effects of the institutional dimension were also assessed.

Digitalization: An Opportunity for Contributing to Sustainability From Knowledge Creation

Born Globals—Is there fire behind the smoke?

Toward a theory of corporate sustainability: A theoretical integration and exploration

Qualitative research has gained in importance in the social sciences. General knowledge about qualitative data analysis, how to code qualitative data and decisions concerning related research design in the analytical process are all important for novice researchers. The purpose of this paper is to offer researchers who are new to qualitative research a thorough yet practical introduction to the vocabulary and craft of coding.,Having pooled, their experience in coding qualitative material and teaching students how to code, in this paper, the authors synthesize the extensive literature on coding in the form of a hands-on review.,The aim of this paper is to provide a thorough yet practical presentation of the vocabulary and craft of coding. The authors, thus, discuss the central choices that have to be made before, during and after coding, providing support for novices in practicing careful and enlightening coding work, and joining in the debate on practices and quality in qualitative research.,While much material on coding exists, it tends to be either too comprehensive or too superficial to be practically useful for the novice researcher. This paper, thus, focusses on the central decisions that need to be made when engaging in qualitative data coding in order to help researchers new to qualitative research engage in thorough coding in order to enhance the quality of their analyses and findings, as well as improve quantitative researchers’ understanding of qualitative coding.

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Coding Qualitative Data: A Synthesis Guiding the Novice

Micro-level translation of corporate sustainability: When strategy meets practice in the Danish hospitality sector

Purpose




The purpose of this paper is to further the understanding of how the transfer and adoption of headquarters (HQ)-mandated work practices are shaped by ongoing struggles among the multiple actors of a subsidiary. This paper suggests an alternative perspective for theorizing and researching the management practices and structures that emerge in the face of HQ demands for divergent practice change in subsidiaries, namely, a theory of practice approach.




Design/methodology/approach




The paper reports the findings of an ethnographic field study in a UK subsidiary of a multinational corporation based in Denmark.




Findings




The study provides a relevant contribution by demonstrating how the degree of adoption of alternative, HQ-mandated work systems undergoes dramatic changes over time due to socially dynamic negotiations and struggles between interest groups in a subsidiary.




Research limitations/implications




A practice theoretical approach unveils the underlying social micro-dynamics that shape the degree to which employees in subsidiaries “internalize”, actively sustain or disrupt divergent practices representing a given contextual rationale.




Originality/value




The practice perspective provides a way for understanding how the practices and rationales that emerge locally in response to HQ-demands are under ongoing (re)reconstruction. It responds to calls for research on why and how contextual rationales, institutional or cultural features, actively are made salient, polarized or convergent, in conflictual practice transfer processes due to local contingencies.

Practice transfer in MNCs: a process of tension and contestation

The majority of social science research is conducted within public or semipublic institutions, such as universities. Over the past decades, these institutions have experienced substantial changes in governance structures and an increased focus on performance contracts. Obviously, the new structures do not enter into a governance vacuum, but replace the existing profession-based governance structures. The present paper has a twofold purpose. First, we map the key features and problems of a profession-based governance system, focusing on principal-agent issues and motivational drivers. Second, we study the implications of the current changes in the social science research landscape, along with the central aspects of mechanism design, validity and employee motivation, as well as the ability to establish socially optimal resource allocations. We identify a number of potential problems that may come along with the current changes in governance structures and suggest directions for alternative solutions.

Mai Skjøtt Linneberg

Papers

Coding Qualitative Data: A Synthesis Guiding the Novice

Micro-level translation of corporate sustainability: When strategy meets practice in the Danish hospitality sector

Practice transfer in MNCs: a process of tension and contestation

On the governance of social science research: the replacement of profession with performance contracts

Institutional work through empathic engagement