O Campo Organizacional de eSports no Brasil: Uma Análise Institucional do Fenômeno

Digital technologies have fundamentally changed organizations, industries, and even the society. Although institutional theory provides rich array of perspectives to both the content and dynamics of such changes, research at the intersection of institutional scholarship and digitalization has remained scarce. In this essay, I draw on the institutional logics perspective to elaborate digitalization as involving a new set of interconnected managerial beliefs and norms, organizational practices, and diverse material and social structures that together complement and challenge the established logics in organizations and institutional fields. I draw attention to two central organizing principles in the logic of digitalization: the pursuit of digital omniscience – the efforts to represent and conceive the world through digital data – and digital omnipotence – the efforts to bring activities inside and outside organizations under the control of information systems. I conclude the essay by elaborating how the institutional logics perspective can help understand organization-level efforts to leverage digitalization by incumbent corporations and new digital-native companies.

While prior studies have examined the influence of environmental factors (e.g. regulatory, market, and socio-cultural environment) on construction safety accidents, the explanations offered remain piecemeal and the environmental factors are largely treated as given and immutable. In reality, the external environment is dynamic and continuously evolving. Contractors are subject to regulatory, market and socio-cultural segments of environment simultaneously. However, there has to date been little apparent effort to systematically investigate: 1) what are the pressures or expectations faced by contractors that operate in the broader context? And 2) how do contractors typically adapt to these pressures and expectations?
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\nDrawing on the institutional theory, this study aims to investigate how contractors experience and respond to the complex safety demands in their surrounding institutional environment. Institutional theory is borrowed because 1) the broad definition of institutions encompasses a wide range of environmental factors; and 2) it informs the mechanisms of how organisations are shaped by and strategically respond to institutional pressures. Given that the institutional theory in safety research is still nascent, lacking well-established constructs and casual relationships, a qualitative research strategy was employed, comprising three interlinked components: archival and documentary data analysis; case study; and semi-structured interviews.
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\nAt the first step, the documentary and archival data analysis was conducted to establish a holistic view of the institutional environment faced by construction companies. Based on the documentary and archival data, this study developed a concept of construction safety-defined organisational field and provided a historical overview of the control and coordination mechanisms of the field. It is found that the field has undergone four stages: early days, the embryonic stage, golden time and the transition stage.
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\nAn exploratory case study at the second step aimed at exploring whether site safety practices could be interpreted from an institutional theory perspective, and if it does, how? Safety practice data were obtained from 62 open-ended interviews and project archives. The institutional perspective was proved insightful in understanding contractors’ safety practices. The findings showed that the complex institutional environment, especially the incompatible progress and safety requirements, was a key determinant of mixed site safety practices.
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\nWith the insights obtained from the documentary analysis and case study, semi-structured interviews were lastly carried out to investigate: 1) the specific institutional demands imposed on contractors regarding site safety; and 2) how contractors respond to the complex institutional demands. 24 semi-structured interviews were conducted. The data analysis follows the logic of abduction. By travelling back and forth between extant institutional theory literature and empirical evidence, the research findings were gradually formed.
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\nIt is found that contractors face four categories of institutional demands comprising: 1) legislations and enforcement; 2) clients’ requirements; 3) construction companies’ internal requirements; and 4) field-level voluntary safety programmes. The results also showed that site safety is guided by two intertwining logics: the prescriptive logic and the performance-based logic. These two logics work collectively to improve site safety.
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\nFive patterns of institutional complexity were identified residing in the complex institutional environment. These are: 1) inconsistent regulatory demands; 2) regulatory uncertainty and rigidity; 3) redundant institutional demands from field actors; 4) conflict between safety demands and production efficiency; and 5) disparate values and beliefs about safety and the ways to achieve safety. Contractor’s experience of institutional pressures and general safety management strategies depend on construction companies’ field positions (i.e., central and peripheral). The level of institutional complexity experienced by contractors is moderated by project structure and governance. It is found that contractors would adopt a series of strategic responses, such as concealment, buffering, imitation and influence, to cope with those five patterns of institutional complexity.
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\nThis study extends the existing safety research to an institutional domain. The organisational field perspective adds a new dimension to explain safety management actions or structures of construction companies. Practical implications are also provided for policy-makers, clients and construction companies.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore how management controls in an organization take shape amidst the tensions between external institutional forces and the internal dynamics arising from the different powers and interests of managers as well as from intra-organizational norms, rules and taken-for-granted assumptions.Design/methodology/approachAdopting an interpretivist stance, this study employs the embedded (nested) case study approach drawing evidence from an apparel group which consists of a head office and four clusters. Theoretically, the paper is informed by institutional theory, and particularly draws on concepts such as organizational field, ceremonials, rational myths, isomorphism, institutional logics and loose coupling. It is further complemented by strategic responses of Oliver (1991), as well as materials and discursive elements in elaborating how external pressures influence control practices of an organization, and how internal actors strategically respond to those pressures in balancing external legitimacy and internal efficiency requirements.FindingsThe field-study findings reveal that management controls of the case-study organization have taken shape amidst external pressures, specifically from customers and internal dynamics such as interests of key actors, who strategically respond to external pressures and head -office specifications.Research limitations/implicationsSituating management controls within external pressures and internal dynamics, the findings of this study have implications for research on organizational heterogeneity, and it offers learning points for managers in formulating management controls by balancing conflicting internal and external pressures.Practical implicationsIn reality, practicing managers are faced with conflicting logics arising from external pressures and internal dynamics stemming from different power- and interest-holding managers as well as intra-organizational norms, rules and taken-for-granted assumptions in their everyday encounters in organizations. This study provides some pointers for such practicing managers in designing and implementing management control systems by effectively balancing these opposing influences and formulating systems suited to the circumstances of a particular organization.Originality/valueMoving beyond the widely held narrow conceptualization of institutional theory akin to (external) isomorphism and organizational conformity, this paper brings out organizational heterogeneity through the active agency of actors in terms of their power, interest and proclivities as well as their use of organizational norms and rules in responding to such external institutions.

This paper attempts to respond to recent calls for the need for a critical outlook of power in institutional theory. While critical theory has several strands and provides a vast scope for bridging and borrowing, of notable relevance for institutional theory among the various strands of critical theory are Foucault and Bourdieu, as also pointed out in recent calls. Foucault’s widely known power-knowledge perspective and Bourdieu’s widely used concept of fields, capital and habitus are particularly useful to inform the gaps of power in institutional logics and organizational fields. I draw from Foucauldian power-knowledge perspective to show how it can unravel the contradictory nature of institutional logics and I draw from Bourdieu to show how his concepts of field, capital and habitus have or have not been used, and how they can be used to understand the interplay of contradictory institutional logics in hierarchically structured organizational fields. I do this by firstly giving a background of why critical theory is useful to inform the gaps of power in institutional theory based on recent calls and then proceed to focus on the concepts of Foucault and Bourdieu to inform institutional logics and organizational fields around power. Thus, in this paper, I broadly aim to contribute to the 'critical' gaps in institutional theory by borrowing from critical theory.

Embedding the Examination of Multilevel Factors in an Organization Field Context

PurposeThis paper aims to deal with the concepts of “institutions” and “institutional logics” in the context of business-to-business (B2B) marketing systems and uses institutional theory as a framework to look at value co-creation.Design/methodology/approachBy integrating the literature on value co-creation, institutional theory and institutional entrepreneurship, the paper argues that the boundaries of B2B marketing systems are continuously reshaped through legitimation processes occurring through actors’ institutional work, thus making co-created value the only legitimate value.FindingsThe paper proposes a conceptual framework and furthers the conceptual development of value co-creation and augments the literature on service-dominant logic and the notion of co-created value by assuming a legitimacy-based B2B market systems perspective.Practical implicationsThis paper presents a number of propositions that serve to illustrate several managerial implications. These arise from organizations co-creating value by conforming to the various institutional logics that maximize their legitimacy.Originality/valueThe paper makes a contribution by developing a critical theoretical framework based on the application of institutional theoretical constructs/concepts (e.g. ceremonial conformity, decoupling, considerations of face, confidence and good faith).

Institutional logic theory, a pivotal framework within organizational studies, delineates the multifaceted and intricate logics that underpin organizational fields. This theoretical perspective elucidates the manner in which diverse individuals or groups within an organization internalize and manifest distinct institutional logics, alongside the ensuing political and cultural conflicts. Furthermore, the theory endeavors to elucidate the complexities inherent in institutional logic across organizational fields, examining the reflection of these logics among various individuals or groups and their associated political and cultural dichotomies. Central to this discourse is the acknowledgment of the core systems that constitute the fabric of a country, encompassing the state, market, familial structures, corporate entities, professional bodies, and religious institutions. These components not only coexist with inherent conflicts but also exhibit a high degree of interdependence, underlined by their shared institutional logics. This literature attempts to review and analysis institutional logic in the field of entrepreneurship and integrates institutional logic into entrepreneurs’ personal background, experience, and other social characteristics, and study how institutional logic operates. It is recommended that future researchers take entrepreneurs as the research object and conduct more in-depth research on the evolution of organizational response strategies when political and cultural conflicts occur between different groups within the enterprise, combined with institutional logic theory.

The unprecedented global COVID-19 crisis has jolted service businesses whose raison d’être is delivering satisfaction through human interaction. Faced with this existential threat, services must suddenly become resilient and pivot towards futuristic strategies. This paper draws upon institutional theory to develop a conceptual model that explains how service firms can transition to effective crisis management, grapple with pandemic disruption, and engender resilient strategies. In particular, institutional theory advocates tinkering and theorizing approaches for recovery and future growth. While tinkering provides a baseline layer of social acceptance and stimulates innovation via marginal changes such as adherence to norms (e.g., social distancing), theorizing creates legitimacy through new institutional logics (e.g., frames of references) and radical innovations as customers learn new meanings about service firms. Using examples from past pandemics such as the Spanish Flu of 1918 that killed more than 20 million people worldwide, and natural disasters like Hurricane Katrina, this paper articulates how firms have historically created theorizing by framing the cause of pandemics and disasters as unique attributions that engender social connectedness and resilience. For example, during past pandemics, institutional theory research shows that service firms which created social connections gained rapid legitimacy and success in the post pandemic era. In fact, social bonds forged through local charities magnified embeddedness and provided firms with long lasting loyalty and reputation outcomes. The paper concludes by providing several managerial applications of tinkering and theorizing strategies in the COVID-19 era. In particular, it highlights how service firms can tackle the new normal of social distancing, sheltering at home, and demand decrement through tinkering and theorizing. Finally, the study discusses how the COVID-19 situation can spur theorizing and innovation via machine learning (ML) and artificial (AI) applications in the areas of customer service and new product development.

A dynamic model of socio-technical change : institutions, actors and technologies in interaction

While institutional logics theory has increasingly been applied in higher education research, especially in the past five years, agreement is lacking on how to approach institutional logics analysis. This results in proliferating institutional logics in higher education studies and often confuses newcomers to the field as to how to use institutional logics in their empirical research. As a response to this situation, our study outlines the state-of-the-art application of institutional logics in higher education studies through scrutinising 59 articles that apply institutional logics in organisation studies in the field of higher education. Specifically, we ask the following research questions: What approaches to institutional logics analysis are used in higher education studies? What institutional logics are identified/applied in higher education studies? What challenges are evident in applying institutional logics in higher education studies? How does the use of institutional logics in higher education research contribute to institutional logics theory? The most profound outcomes of our literature analysis are: First, we construct a novel typology of approaches to institutional logics analysis that is positioned on two-dimensions: the reasoning applied (deductive vs. inductive), and the level at which the logic is examined (societal vs. field/local); Second, we create an exhaustive list of institutional logics (over 50) applied and identified in these studies; Third, we discover major challenges in using institutional logics in higher education research. Finally, we clearly define societal-level and field-level logics and suggest a rationalisation of institutional logics approaches in order to fully utilise the explanatory power of institutional logics.

In recent years, Sustainable Supply Chain Management (SSCM) research has gained interest from both scholars and practitioners as a way forward in addressing significant sustainability issues in the supply chain. In comparison to environmental and economic sustainability issues, less attention has been paid to social sustainability issues in the supply chain. Hence, this study seeks to address this research gap by exploring the institutional pressures, institutional logics, institutional complexity, barriers and enablers associated with implementing socially SSCM, specifically from the multi-stakeholder perspective in a developing country context. Using the multi case study approach, this study present evidence from three tiers of the Malaysian rice supply chain – the retailer and distributor and farmer tiers; as well as evidence on the roles of external stakeholders – government and non-government organisations (NGOs). This thesis developed a conceptual framework and proposes novel interactions between institutional pressures, institutional logics, institutional complexity, barriers and enablers. Using the empirical findings to clarify these relationships, the study contributes towards a better understanding of the implementation of social sustainability in the supply chain. First, the evidence has illustrated the role of enablers, i.e. management support, compliance with labour law and compliance with certification requirements, on strengthening the impact of institutional pressures, e.g. government enforcement of immigration laws, employee social security provision, employee provident fund, and MyGAP certifications, on supply chains in order to achieve positive isomorphism. On the other hand, evidence related to barriers, i.e. behavioural issues, high cost, market forces, process delay, lack of resources, lack of expertise, lack of clear guidelines and poverty, indicates that they have reduced the impact of institutional pressures leading towards slower isomorphism. The study also uncovers institutional logics that influence the way organisations respond to social sustainability initiatives. In particular, despite persistent institutional pressures, the evidence suggests that financial logics will remain dominant in commercial supply chains. Specifically, this is due to the way in which financial logics will tend to influence the perceived barriers. For example, high cost is perceived to be a strong barrier for organisations when profitability logic is strong. Hence, when financial logics influence barriers, this could in turn reduce the impact of institutional pressures. On the other hand, sustainability logic is likely to be more prevalent when enablers are present. For example, management support is stronger when organisations have sustainability logic. Hence, sustainability logic can increase the effectiveness of enablers and consequently, strengthen the relationship between institutional pressures and increased social sustainability. Finally, the stakeholders i.e. Government and NGOs have a significant role in the implementation of socially SSCM. In particular, Government exerts coercive pressures for social initiatives such as the enforcement of immigration laws, employee social security, employee provident fund, and MyGAP certifications. On the other hand, NGOs are promoting normative pressures such as upstream/downstream education through knowledge fairs and training programs for the supply chain. Furthermore, NGOs were found to extend their support to assist the supply chain to gain political influence, government financial support and seek new markets for socially sustainable products.

Why and how do marginalized consumers mobilize to seek greater inclusion in and more choice from mainstream markets? We develop answers to these questions drawing on institutional theory and a qualitative investigation of Fatshionistas, plus-sized consumers who want more options from mainstream fashion marketers. Three triggers for mobilization are posited: development of a collective identity, identification of inspiring institutional entrepreneurs, and access to mobilizing institutional logics from adjacent fields. Several change strategies that reinforce institutional logics while unsettling specific institutionalized practices are identified. Our discussion highlights diverse market change dynamics that are likely when consumers are more versus less legitimate in the eyes of mainstream marketers and in instances where the changes consumers seek are more versus less consistent with prevailing institutions and logics.

Building institutions based on information disclosure: lessons from GRI's sustainability reporting

Institutional theory and institutionalization improve our understanding of strategic communication, but are largely neglected in communication research. This article discusses the varying perspectives of institutional theory and their benefits for broadening the theoretical foundation of communication management. Institutional theory is no monolithic concept but covers different schools and camps. Three main branches of institutional theory—new institutional economics, historical and political institutionalism and organizational institutionalism—are discussed with a specific focus on the latter. Organizational field and institutional logics can be applied to strategic communication. By using a three pillar model of institutions the explanatory power of each strand of institutional theory leads to new insights and future research for strategic communication.

This research examines the evolution of human resource management (HRM) practices within Samsung and Lotte, two major South Korean conglomerates. Both companies have been profoundly influenced by the Japanese management paradigm, especially in areas like seniority-based promotion rooted in Confucian values. Drawing from institutional theory, the study elucidates how similar economic trajectories in South Korea and Japan fostered comparable institutional logics and pressures in HRM. However, as organizations navigate institutional shifts, their responses and resulting HRM adaptations can diverge. Utilizing a comparative approach through the lens of the institutional logic theory, key findings unveil as follows: (1) Samsung and Lotte’s HR practices exhibit a strong Japanese influence, highlighting cultural/historical context’s importance. (2) Despite similar pressures, the conglomerates developed distinct HR practices attributed to differing institutional logics. (3) Institutional logics play a pivotal role in shaping HRM and influencing organizational behavior. (4) Organizations adapt HR practices in response to institutional complexities, leading to practice divergence. (5) The study extends institutional theory’s application in understanding organizations’ varied responses to similar pressures. (6) Findings offer HR professionals insights on tailoring strategies based on contextual understanding. The study extends the application of institutional theory in deciphering varied organizational responses. Practically, it provides HR professionals guidance on contextually appropriate HRM strategies. Companies across Asia can leverage these insights to anticipate HR practice shifts and align them with evolving institutional frameworks.