Abstract
Building on the work of Cecilia L. Ridgeway and J. Berger, the authors construct a set of assumptions that describe how the legitimation and delegitimation of informal power and prestige orders can be created in task oriented situations. Their conception is a multilevel one. Cultural beliefs begin the process by shaping the likelihood that one actor treats another with honorific deference. But to result in legitimacy, this process must be carried through by the contingent reactions of others who can provide consensual validation. In this way, actors can collectively construct a local reality that makes the power and prestige order normatively prescriptive. Using the graph-theoretical formulations of status characteristic theory and of the theory of reward expectations, and in conjunction with legitimation and delegitimation assumptions, they derive a set of general propositions. These propositions describe how different status and evaluation conditions affect the likelihood that a power and prestige order will be legitimated or delegitimated. Their formulation provides a theoretical account for observations on the stability of legitimated orders in task settings, for research on the impact of evaluations on delegitimation, and for findings on the effect of status consistency on legitimation
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.