Too Taboo to Change: How Actors Address and Respond to Taboo-Breaking Issues

Abstract

I broaden the area of organizational and strategy research by introducing the concept of taboo issues. I perform a longitudinal, inductive, qualitative study to explore how the strategic actors in a religious organization address and respond to taboo-breaking issues. My findings highlight that such claims are perceived as a harmful deviation of the foundational principles and codified doctrines of the organization. However, when leaders hold themselves accountable for their strategic claims, reframing the tabooed issues and meeting events to garner legitimacy for these claims, they transform the initially taboo-breaking claims and retain the righteousness of a taboo-laden debate.