Institutional Disruption Research Articles

Sanctions in an Interconnected World: Firms as Collateral Damage from Institutional Disruption

Sanctions in an Interconnected World: Firms as Collateral Damage from Institutional Disruption

Reversals of Capacity: Norms, Culture, and Institutional Disruption

Reversals of Capacity: Norms, Culture, and Institutional Disruption

The legitimacy work of institutional disruption and maintenance: examining the rivalry between LIV golf and the professional golf association

ABSTRACT Research Question Research has shown those within sport organizations engage in legitimacy work when innovation is introduced and/or when current institutional arrangements are challenged. However, both legitimacy work and emotions have received limited attention within sport management research. This study sought to answer two questions: How do actors in dominant sport organizations frame messages to influence perceptions of legitimacy? And, how are messages crafted to evoke emotional responses from evaluators of new endeavors? Research Methods Using framing theory to guide the analysis, the researchers conducted emotional discourse analysis of 38 mainstream sport media articles to understand how PGA members framed messages to evoke emotional responses from audiences to influence how they perceived LIV Golf. Results and Findings The findings showed that the PGA framed itself as true golf and used emotional discourse to show how LIV Golf undermined the PGA’s conception. Actors suggested that LIV was eroding the legacy and traditions of golf, destroying the game, and negating the meritocratic structures of golf. The discourses within these themes were rife with emotional syntax that became a means of legitimacy work to maintain the dominant positioning of the PGA. Implications This research extends current understandings of legitimacy and institutional work within sport management by showing how emotion can be used as a means of legitimacy work to address/hinder institutional field dynamics, like innovation and competition. This work also shows how subjects of legitimacy work can change from the introduced practices to the introducing actor. Finally, this work shows how challenges can induce institutional evangelism.

When a Ban Is Not a Ban: Institutional Work and the Russian Doping Scandal

There are fewer cases of such blatant acts to defy and subsequent heroic efforts to rearrange institutional norms than the Russian doping scandal. In adopting a neo-institutional perspective, the authors theorize the scandal as a case of attempted but failed institutional disruption. More specifically, the authors draw upon the institutional change literature and the institutional work perspective to explain the key events surrounding actors’ response to the scandal. The analysis utilized Gioia’s methodological approach to examine secondary empirical data. Findings reveal how stakeholders circumvented traditional governance structures in an attempt to disrupt institutional arrangements, but despite this, much of the preexisting institutional infrastructure has remained intact. The authors explain this outcome, in part, as a consequence of the counter-institutional work of key governing agencies and other actors to maintain the status quo within international sport.

Natural Language Processing for the Study of Institutional Change

Text Classification has been a well-studied task in Natural Language Processing. In this study deep learning methods are applied to train classifiers for the purpose of analyzing a data set of institutional change propaganda technique samples. Specifically this study explores how collective emotions underpin individuals’ participation in disruption of the hydropower institutionalized energy system. By exploring the context of local initiatives which seek to undermine the hydropower energy system, this study taps into micro-foundations of institutional disruption. The preliminary qualitative study reveals existing patterns in how emotions are tied to various steps of instigating and promoting institutional change. Text classification techniques are further applied to confirm and complement the preliminary findings. In particular Long short-term memory neural networks as well as transformer-based models are applied at two levels of classification: sentence level and token level. The trained classification models help investigate how generalizable the preliminary findings are. By combining qualitative and quantitative this study extends prior research by unpacking emotional dynamics implicated in institutional disruption by explaining how actors mobilize collective emotions as a basis to build support for institutional change.

Opening the black box between governance and management: A mechanism-based explanation of how governance affects the management of endangered species.

Good governance is needed to foster good management of the environment. Yet, the link between environmental governance and environmental management has received very little research attention. This paper adopts a mechanism-based framework to unpack the link between the governance and management of species at risk or endangered species in a working landscape. Using species at risk management in the South of the Divide region of southwestern Saskatchewan as a case study, we identified four governance conditions connected by five mechanisms to produce management outcomes. The governance conditions include facilitative leadership, local autonomy, trust, and incentives. The five mechanisms include institutional disruption, institutional crafting and drift, brokerage or bridging, program uptake, and alleviation of fear of harm. We discuss how using a mechanism-based approach could help us better understand the processes within the governance system that trigger particular management outcomes. For example, in this case study, dissatisfied factors disrupt the existing governance arrangements and create new ones that reflect their desire for local autonomy. Local autonomy, in turn, creates an atmosphere for local actors to form coalitions and build trust; trust enhances program uptake and the co-design and co-implementation of incentives, which then alleviates land managers' fear of harm from participating in species at risk management. Our study also suggests that top-down institutions that create room for further institutional work can become acceptable at the local level and enhance endangered species management. We conclude that a mechanism-based explanation can be useful for opening the black box connecting environmental governance and management and offering valuable recommendations to guide policy.

Stakeholder efforts to mitigate antiretroviral therapy interruption among people living with HIV during the COVID-19 pandemic in China: a qualitative study.

IntroductionThe COVID‐19 pandemic has affected antiretroviral therapy (ART) continuity among people living with HIV (PLHIV) worldwide. We conducted a qualitative study to explore barriers to ART maintenance and solutions to ART interruption when stringent COVID‐19 control measures were implemented in China, from the perspective of PLHIV and relevant key stakeholders.MethodsBetween 11 February and 15 February 2020, we interviewed PLHIV, community‐based organization (CBO) workers, staff from centres for disease control and prevention (CDC) at various levels whose work is relevant to HIV care (CDC staff), HIV doctors and nurses and drug vendors from various regions in China. Semi‐structured interviews were conducted using a messaging and social media app. Challenges and responses relevant to ART continuity during the COVID‐19 pandemic were discussed. Themes were identified by transcript coding and mindmaps.ResultsSixty‐four stakeholders were recruited, including 16 PLHIV, 17 CBO workers, 15 CDC staff, 14 HIV doctors and nurses and two drug vendors. Many CDC staff, HIV doctors and nurses responsible for ART delivery and HIV care were shifted to COVID‐19 response efforts. Barriers to ART maintenance were (a) travel restrictions, (b) inadequate communication and bureaucratic obstacles, (c) shortage in personnel, (d) privacy concerns, and (e) insufficient ART reserve. CBO helped PLHIV maintain access to ART through five solutions identified from thematic analysis: (a) coordination to refill ART from local CDC clinics or hospitals, (b) delivery of ART by mail, (c) privacy protection measures, (d) mental health counselling, and (e) providing connections to alternative sources of ART. Drug vendors contributed to ART maintenance by selling out‐of‐pocket ART.ConclusionsSocial and institutional disruption from COVID‐19 contributed to increased risk of ART interruption among PLHIV in China. Collaboration among key stakeholders was needed to maintain access to ART, with CBO playing an important role. Other countries facing ART interruption during current or future public health emergencies may learn from the solutions employed in China.

Entrapped in a failing course of action: Explaining the territorial crisis in 2017 Catalonia

ABSTRACT Why did the territorial conflict between the governments of Catalonia and Spain escalate to the point of extreme institutional disruption in October 2017? The present article explains this crisis – a declaration of independence followed by the imposition of direct rule – as the outcome of an Escalation of Commitment behaviour. By examining the iterative relationship between both governments, the article shows that they were trapped in a failing course of action, unable to withdraw from their early political decisions. Despite facing increasingly negative outcomes from their choices, both sides had already invested too much political capital to quit. Expectations and self-justification attitudes account for the escalation behaviour, together with a radicalized decision environment. The findings have broader implications for the study of nationalist politics: they show that the commitment to early decisions mediated by the existence of strong political incentives against compromise may lead to the escalation of territorial conflicts.

Institutional disruption and technology platforms: the Uber case

PurposeThe aim of this article is to test the hypothesis that peer-to-peer technology platforms (Uber) are associated with disruption in the institutional environment, affecting beliefs, norms and users' ways of thinking and acting.Design/methodology/approachProbability sample comprising 843 users (446 passengers; 397 drivers) in the city of Belo Horizonte, Brazil, using a set of indicators was specifically designed for this study.FindingsUber triggers significant changes in the systems of rewards and sanctions, in social preferences, and in entrepreneurial structure and governance, and promotes the coexistence of an institutional logic, hitherto dominant, with new believes, rules, norms and regulatory systems.Originality/valueThis is a pioneer study that associates institutional approach's elements with technology platforms; the authors also elaborated and utilized an analysis model consisting of a set of completely original indicators capable of mapping and measuring different dimensions of the phenomenon under analysis.

Field-configuring events as temporary sites for institutional change in sport: a case study of the Lausanne conference on anti-doping

ABSTRACT Research question Institutional work by actors (e.g. organisations or individuals) to create, maintain or disrupt institutions requires redefining what is considered legitimate behaviour. Furthermore, research indicates that field-configuring events (FCE), such as conferences, which temporarily unite actors, are important junctures for institutional processes. Research is yet to address how FCE intersect with the effectiveness of institutional work. The aim of this paper is to explore how (i) the legitimacy of an actor at the time of an FCE, and (ii) the co-location of actors at an FCE impact institutional work effectiveness. Research methods The 1999 Lausanne Conference is used as a case study because it led to significant institutional disruption in the field of anti-doping through the creation of the Lausanne Declaration. To analyse these institutional processes, a qualitative thematic analysis of 624 newspaper articles and archival documents from the conference was conducted. Results and Findings Firstly, we demonstrate that institutional maintenance can fail if an actor’s legitimacy is under challenge at the time of an FCE. Secondly, the co-location of likeminded actors can create a consensus that acts as a cue to enable institutional disruption. Implications Based on the findings, suggestions are made to inform decision-making processes about institutional work. Initial categorisation of FCE conditions are presented and five propositions are made for future exploration.

A Crucial Moment for Reflection on the Importance of Ethical Leadership in Academic Medicine.

The extreme disturbances caused by the COVID -19 pandemic on our academic medical centers compounded by a recurrent surge of violence against people of color have reopened our wounds exposing fragility, inequality, and continued racial disparities in society and health. At the center of this severe institutional disruption, leaders will be compelled to take action to keep their constituents and patients safe and their hospitals and departments afloat during and after a pandemic, all while simultaneously addressing and implementing the cultural changes required to eliminate systemic racism and discrimination. Organizational disruptions of this magnitude will naturally test one's principles, loyalties and responsibilities while challenging the practical burdens of leadership. If the goal of responding to these upheavals is to bring them to resolution and ultimately to bring about organizational change for the better, ethical leadership is critical. Applying ethical principles allows leaders to chart clear paths to solutions both in the short and long term. We review the principles of ethical leadership exemplified by a case illustration and provide a novel resource to help ensure ethical leadership in academic medicine and beyond.

Challenging the Amateur rule in the NCAA: a case study of the failed attempt at institutional disruption by Northwestern University football players

ABSTRACT Research question: The purpose of this study was to explore how the unionization movement of Northwestern University (NU) football players in the NCAA almost disrupted the institution of US collegiate sports that would challenge the amateur rules for student-athletes. Research methods: Qualitative research methods were employed, by collecting data from print media and content analysis. Results and findings: Data analysis revealed that six themes: Athletics versus Academics, Important Rulings (or decisions) that affected the Outcomes of Unionization, The Perspective Opinions of the Unionization Movement, Scholarship as an Employee Contract, Athletes as Employees, and The NCAA Prioritize their Bottom Line. Implications: The disruption that occurred highlights the challenge of the amateur rules that are imposed by the NCAA to its athletes, while also bringing the forefront the focus of the NCAA and its bottom financial line.

Reconciling nature, people and policy in the mangrove social-ecological system through the adaptive cycle heuristic

While mangroves are increasingly described as social-ecological systems (SESs), performing SES research is so much more than merely documenting local resource utilisation patterns in case studies. The aim of this paper is to review and show how ecological, human and institutional resilience could be understood and fostered in an era of uncertainty, through the adaptive cycle (AC) heuristic. Uncertainties come in many forms and shapes: climate change, social and economic dynamics, natural disasters, political and institutional disruption and ever-increasing public demands for participation. Social-ecological studies form windows of experimentation that can provide insights beyond their case-specific context. In order to synthesise and structure the cumulative knowledge base arising from existing and future studies, the need for a suitable overarching framework arose. Here, the AC heuristic represents the connectedness between variables of the mangrove SES versus the mangrove's accumulated capital (natural, built, human and social). We posit that the AC heuristic can be used to interpret spatial and temporal changes (ecological, social, economic, political) in mangrove SESs and we exemplify it by using the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami as well as a century-long silviculture case. The AC, combined with the SES scheme, allows integration of the spato-temporal dynamics and the multi-dimensional character of mangrove SESs. We also reviewed the ecosystem functions, services and disservices of mangrove SESs, linking each of them to SES capital and variable (fast or slow) attributes, which in turn are closely linked to the different axes and phases of the AC. We call upon mangrove scientists from the natural, applied, social and human sciences to join forces in fitting diversified empirical data from multiple case studies around the world to the AC heuristic. The aim is to reflect on and understand such complex dynamic systems with stakeholders having various (mutual) relationships at risk of breaking down, and to prepare for interactive adaptive planning for mangrove forests.

Collective Rage, Power, and Institutions: Examining Institutional Disruption, Defense, and Reaction

In this paper we explore the role of the collective emotion rage in institutional disruption and change. While rage is considered a form of anger, the unique and intense experience of collective rage and potential for disruption deserves focused attention. We argue that rage can be experienced collectively as well as can be collectively suppressed or can be expressed in a number of ways. When such collective rage is expressed, various forms of collective institutional disruption may occur. We also argue that institutional guardians are likely to resist that disruption and engage in defensive and reactionary behaviors to defend existing institutional structures.

Going cashless: Change in institutional logic and consumption practices in the face of institutional disruption

This study explores how sudden disruptive changes lead to changes in institutional logic and associated consumption practices. The empirical context is provided by the demonetization of high-denomination currency in India in 2016. The findings reveal that micro-level consumption practices are embedded within macro-level social structures and institutions. Therefore, institutional changes lead to corresponding changes in the material, competence, and meaning dimensions of consumption practices. This study examines the neglected dimension of the delegitimation of consumption practices and markets. The study points to artifactual spatialization and indirect identification as important mechanisms of change in materiality, and sheds light on the microfoundations of institutions. It explores the sensemaking work of adjusting, adapting, adopting, and advocating by micro-actors and the sensegiving work of problematizing, enrolling, and facilitating by macro-actors. Thus, sensemaking and sensegiving enactments are conceptualized as institutional work.

Creating institutional disruption: an alternative method to study institutions

PurposeThis paper develops a new method to study institutions based on institutional work theory. Institutional disruption is intentionally utilized to explore the taken-for-granted foundations of social institutions. The paper outlines the method and considerations.Design/methodology/approachTaking inspiration from ethnomethodological breaches, the paper outlines the steps in the new method called researcher initiated institutional disruption (RIID). The four steps are identifying the institution, identifying the institutional actors, selecting the disruption type and disrupting the institution to gather data (action and reaction). RIID utilizes three types of institutional disruption: undermining assumptions and beliefs, resistance and issue raising.FindingsThe new method complements traditional field methods, such as observation, by showing how a researcher can deliberately make taken-for-granted institutional features visible. The paper finds that RIID offers the opportunity to gather different data, but it is not appropriate for every study and carries potential consequences in the field.Originality/valueThis paper contributes to the literature by outlining an innovative use of theory as method. The approach has not previously been detailed and offers the potential to access previously inaccessible research questions, data and theoretical insights.

A Performative Perspective on Institutional Disruption: Investigating Regulatory De-Capturing in the U.K. Corporate Taxation Field

We conducted a longitudinal case study on the disruption of the institutionalized neoliberal belief system that had contributed to regulatory capture in the corporate taxation field in the United Kingdom. Specifically, we investigated why the problematizations communicated by one public interest group succeeded in gaining the public attention and support necessary for challenging and disrupting the institutional quo and why the problematizations communicated by a previous public interest group, despite their similar ideational content, failed to do so. Our comparative analysis led us toward developing a performative perspective on challengers’ problematization work which highlights the critical role of dramatic enactments in gaining sufficient attention and support in the public sphere for institutional disruption to occur.

Reflections on the Role of Bemusement in Institutional Disruption

In this essay, I reflect on the disruptive potential of bemusement. When people are bemused, we feel confused or bewildered. We can also feel wry pleasure, especially if we are bemused by something perplexing, that confounds expectations or norms. I explore how the affective tensions of bemusement can unsettle persons’ emotional investment in institutional order. I argue that disruption arises from surfacing the absurdities that are part of what is accepted as normal, and I illustrate this with a discussion of the “Dismaland Bemusement Park.” I assert the importance of confounding stability, order, and rationality by recognizing the parallel existence of confusion, absurdity, and illogics. Practical access to these parallel dynamics arises from the art of cultural subversion. Such an art both politicizes and gives pleasure to those involved in disruption and it embraces the ensuing confusion as a critique—as a potentially insightful twist on institutional order.

A Performative Perspective On Institutional Disruption: Investigating Regulatory De-Capturing...

We conducted a longitudinal case study on the disruption of the institutionalized neoliberal belief system that had contributed to regulatory capture in the corporate taxation field in the United K...

Institutional Aesthetics: Embodied Ways of Encountering, Evaluating, and Enacting Institutions

The cognitive turn in institutional theory has led to the systematic neglect of people’s sensory capacities. In this paper we offer a cross-level theory of the role in institutional processes of sensory and evaluative forms of knowledge. Called here the aesthetic mode, this way of knowing combines humans’ innate sensory capacity to engage the world with their learned capacity to evaluate what they encounter. We argue that people evaluate the world’s natural, social, and spiritual phenomena through the lenses of a personal aesthetic, each person’s distinct internalization of the institutional aesthetic codes of the communities in which they are in embedded. A personal aesthetic informs and animates people’s internal conversations as they evaluate the social arrangements they encounter and deliberate over how they should participate in the institutional processes of maintaining, disrupting, or creating social arrangements. Attending to people’s aesthetic ways of knowing positions us to better understand when, why, and how people deliberate about institutional values and arrangements and choose to engage in purposive institutional work. It also offers a way of conceptualizing and examining the reflexivity said to be at the heart of embedded agency. We discuss the implications for understanding of institutional work, institutional biography, and of how people experience institutional disruption and re-creation.