Isomorphic Change Research Articles

A framework proposal: analysing studies of circular economy with the institutional theory

This study proposes a framework to facilitate the Circular Economy (CE) implementation cases analysis from the Institutional Theory (IT) perspective. The development of this theoretical framework was based on the levels of operationalisation of the Circular Economy and the types of isomorphic changes. To demonstrate the framework's applicability, we present a matrix classifying 59 case studies into nine quadrants (3 x 3). Subsequently, the papers' contents were discussed, revealing strategies and practices for institutional behavioural change that drive CE implementation at the micro, meso, and macro levels. Therefore, the results of this work contribute not only to academia by introducing a new way of analysing CE case studies but also to managers by discussing implemented or ongoing implementation cases.

İZOMORFİK DEĞİŞİME HAPSOLMAK MI? KAMERUN'UN TARİHSEL EŞİKLERİNE OLAN PATİKA BAĞIMLILIĞI

Abstract
 This paper makes the case for the causal relation between national historical thresholds, isomorphic change, path dependency and the policy transfer of governance systems in a developing country emerging from a long ‘western domination.’ The study used the isomorphic change to trace back the trajectory of administrative reform in a developing country like Cameroon. The theory of path dependency has provided the needed tools to decipher the hidden dynamics of administrative models loosely adopted through the lenses of the multi-level account of policy transfer. Finally, the systematic analysis of the German protectorate from 1884 to 1916, the France and British mandate and trusteeship from 1916 to 1945 and from 1945 to 1956/57 respectively, laid out the policy transfer’s dynamics and the lock-in frame binding the Cameroonian administrative reform into an atypical furrow of largely ritualistic/ceremonial changes. The said changes are hiding long-lasting conformity to mores of neo-patrimonialism, strategic conformity to international standards and the increasing returns’ outcomes ascribing the country into a path dependent ‘trap’ since. By looking for causal assessment of historical sequences on today’s administrative outcomes in Cameroon, associated with a systematic and contextualised comparison of similar and contrasting cases, this research is conducted from the standpoint of comparative historical analysis. The core finding is that after several decades, Cameroon has adopted trajectories that remain fundamentally disconnected from domestic cultural and anthropological realities, producing hybrid, decoupled systems of governance. The study concludes that the historical cornerstones of Cameroon have promoted and served as fertile ground for the isomorphic reproduction and policy transfer of administrative models from former resident foreign countries (Germany, Great Britain and France).

The test developer’s dilemma: Evaluating the balance of feasibility and empiric performance of test development techniques for repeated written assessments

Purpose Written assessments face challenges when administered repeatedly, including resource-intensive item development and the potential for performance improvement secondary to item recall as opposed to understanding. This study examines the efficacy of three-item development techniques in addressing these challenges. Methods Learners at five training programs completed two 60-item repeated assessments. Items from the first test were randomized to one of three treatments for the second assessment: (1) Verbatim repetition, (2) Isomorphic changes, or (3) Total revisions. Primary outcomes were the stability of item psychometrics across test versions and evidence of item recall influencing performance as measured by the rate of items answered correctly and then incorrectly (correct-to-incorrect rate), which suggests guessing. Results Forty-six learners completed both tests. Item psychometrics were comparable across test versions. Correct-to-incorrect rates differed significantly between groups with the highest guessing rate (lowest recall effect) in the Total Revision group (0.15) and the lowest guessing rate (highest recall effect) in the Verbatim group (0.05), p = 0.01. Conclusions Isomorphic and total revisions demonstrated superior performance in mitigating the effect of recall on repeated assessments. Given the high costs of total item revisions, there is promise in exploring isomorphic items as an efficient and effective approach to repeated written assessments. Practice points Item psychometrics were comparable across repeated assessments developed with three different techniques: verbatim repetition, isomorphic changes, and total revisions. Isomorphic changes and total item revisions demonstrate superior performance in mitigating the effect of recall on repeated assessments as compared to a verbatim repetition of test items. Given the high costs of total item revisions, there is promise in exploring isomorphic items as an efficient and effective approach to repeated written assessments.

The distinctiveness of public sector HRM: A four‐wave trend analysis

AbstractGiven the rhetoric that human resource management (HRM) models adopted by public and private organisations are becoming more similar, this study questions whether the traditional distinction between public and private sector HRM is still relevant. Building from institutional theory, we study continuity and change using four‐wave data from eight European countries. We find that the traditional public sector investment in employee well‐being continues to be distinctive only for HRM practices aimed at equal opportunities. Private sector organisations, on the other hand, make greater use of performance‐oriented HRM practices including compensation and benefits, performance appraisal data, and modern development and career management practices. Cross‐sector convergence is explained through coercive and mimetic isomorphic change, while persistent differences indicate that time‐honoured public sector values are less susceptible to change. This study provides a much‐needed update of the public‐private comparison and a trend analysis of developments over time.

Survival of Civil Society Organizations Across Multiple Political Regimes: The Case of the Czech Scouting Organization Junák, 1914–2019

ABSTRACT This article explores how civil society organizations survive multiple regime changes. This is a case study of Junák, a Czech scouting organization, that experienced the shift from democratic capitalism to authoritarian communism and back again. I build on archival and interview data to test how new institutional concepts of the regulative, normative, and cultural-cognitive institutional pressures fare when applied to organizational survival across regime change. I found that Junák responded to institutional pressures through a multiplicity of responses, including isomorphic, ceremonial, and innovative changes as well continuity of selected attributes. During communism, ceremonial change prevailed, helping the CSO to preserve some of its organizational aspects. After 1989, Junák opted for a combination of change and continuity. This case study raises new questions about voluntarism in Central and Eastern Europe during authoritarianism and its impact on civil society and its organizations after 1989.

Blurring the boundaries. University actorhood and institutional change in global higher education

ABSTRACT Higher education (HE) scholarship often focuses on the so-called ‘entrepreneurial’ university as a consequence of new public management reforms. Simultaneously, the remarkable expansion of private HE is said to fragment, specialize, and diversify HE systems. Such diagnoses are misleading as they ignore wider environmental pressures and simultaneous changes in both public, non-profit and for-profit HE. We argue that putative diversity in HE operates as a ceremonial façade behind which large-scale isomorphic change across national HE systems, sectors, and organizational forms occurs. Multiple causes trigger such change originating in the increasingly global HE environment, including a burgeoning international HE regime, accounting and accountability practices, increased permeability of HE systems facilitated by open borders, education markets, and global science as well as (neo)liberal ideologies stressing human capital and human rights. As other organizations, those in HE become subject to these pressures turning universities into more rationalized, standardized, and strategic actors.

A Case Study of Higher Education in Mongolia: Institutional Isomorphism

Universities elsewhere have been changing its purposes, functions, roles, and pursuits in society. This study is a case study of Mongolian higher education in which institutional changes are taking place incrementally. The purpose of this study is to explore institutional isomorphism or homogenization of a case university in Mongolia in two different periods of which one is a university under the Soviet regime in the past, and the other is under the democracy in present. The research question was how a university in Mongolia has been changing isomorphically under the different environmental pressures. The study applied a single case study proposed by Yin (2003; 2009) to explore homogenization or isomorphic changes at one prestigious higher education institution in Mongolia. Interviews, reports, and other related documents were used for the analysis. The analytical procedure applied main elements of qualitative research methods. The findings are discussed in three major themes: coercive isomorphism of a university, isomorphic changes triggered by the faculty members: bottom-up process, and mimetic isomorphism modeling after American higher education. It is concluded that the institutional changes taken place in the university was first pressured by the coercion dictated by the political social circumstances, that is, Soviet regime; second, by the faculty members triggered by the professionalization; and third, by the mimicry modeling after successful higher education institution, an American higher education system.

Designing the Organizational Future

Purpose: Over the last decades, universities in general have seen an increase in managerial top-down policies, often pertaining to strategic organizational communication. This paper, in addressing such managerial policies, does focus on German universities as they provide an interesting context to explore the rise of strategic organizational communication as a managerial practice. German universities grant full legal autonomy to their chairholders, and thus, faculty compliance with top management policies cannot be exacted. From there, it seems worthwhile exploring how university management tries to initiate compliance by communicative means. One prominent communication strategy pertains to Corporate Design (CD): university administrations disseminate guidelines as to the use of all forms of planned, visual communication. With this managerial practice in view, we explore arguments employed in exemplary CD guidelines. The overall aim is to show how management attempts to initiate faculty compliance via rational and persuasive communication.
 Frame: This case study combines Bourdieusian field theory with neo-institutionalist and narratological approaches. In order to explore how university leadership tries to assert governance claims, we refer, in particular, to the concepts of field struggles, isomorphic change, and legitimacy.
 Approach: Our case study concentrates on the attempted implementation of CD in German universities. Our sample comprises 40 CD manuals, most of them with official prefaces by university presidents. In order to detect dominant themes in these manuals we employ thematic analysis.
 Findings: We find that CD policies are being used, by management, as a strategic marketing instrument for external communication, as well as a soft, internal governance instrument. We identify two dominant themes: First, university leadership argues in favor of CD by referring to external and internal stakeholders (legitimation). With a view to external stakeholders, management argues that CD is an important communication instrument of differentiation in a perceived university ‘market’. As to internal stakeholders, CD is intended to integrate both individual scholars, as well as scholarly sub-units into an overarching organizational structure. In this case, we consider CD to be a specific symbolic mode of communication aiming to have impact on the university’s perception externally and internally. Second, we find different persuasive management strategies supposed to actually make faculty employ the new CD (governance). Here, we identify highly different communication strategies, ranging from direct orders to appeals. The variety in strategic communication reveals the organizational paradox of restricted legal governance options, and the new managerial claim to governance.
 Implications: We contribute to higher education and organizational communication research by revealing homogeneic rationales for an isomorphic change process that are being described as differentiation. We alert that legal professorial autonomy may slowly be eroded by means of consistent strategic communication.

Institutional pressures, isomorphic changes and key agents in the transfer of knowledge of Lean in Healthcare

PurposeApplication of operations management in healthcare is particularly promising to improve the overall organisational performance, although the Italian system is behind in introducing related techniques and methods. One of the recent experiments in healthcare is the implementation of “Lean Thinking”. The purpose of this paper is to investigate which exogenous forces are driving knowledge transfer on Lean, both in the private and public healthcare sectors.Design/methodology/approachInformed by institutional sociology (DiMaggio and Powell, 1983; Powell and DiMaggio, 1991), the paper builds on the case study methodology (Yin, 2013) to elucidate the environmental pressures that are encouraging the adoption of Lean thinking by Italian hospitals and Local Health Authorities.FindingsThe study highlights the economic, coercive, mimetic and normative pressures that are triggering the adoption of Lean thinking in the Italian National Health System (INHS). At the same time, the authors reveal the pivotal importance and innovative roles played by diverse prominent key-actors in the different organisations investigated.Originality/valueConsidering that little is known to date regarding which exogenous forces are driving the transfer of knowledge on Lean, especially in the public healthcare sector, the paper allows scholars to focus on patterns of isomorphic change and will facilitate managers and policy makers to understand exogenous factors stimulating the transfer of Lean thinking and the subsequent innovation within health organisations and systems.

TQM implementation: From institutionalization to superior performance attainment

Drawing on institutional theory and the resources and capabilities view, this study aims to shed light on the idea that isomorphic organizational changes seek legitimacy over efficiency. Our study ...

Organizational changes towards a European academic field. A case study of frictions in the narratives of Europeanization at a German university from an institutional perspective

Purpose: Departing from institutional theory and the concept of organizational narratives, this study identifies frictions between university professors and university governance. These frictions pertain to the construction and operationalization of university Europeanization, on the way towards a Europeanized academic field. The organization in this study is in a discursive stand-by position, caused by both organizational structures, and contradicting accounts of Europeanization. Design: The data set comprises, first, a thematic analysis of the official internationalization strategy pursued by the university, and an interview with its initiator. Second, a thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews with 13 professors is conducted, complemented by responses to short standardized questionnaires. Findings: The change process is described as mimetic isomorphism, and faculty opposes normative isomorphic change. Three main areas of friction are identified. First, this study demonstrates that professors and university leadership construct Europeanization differently. Second, professors express a high awareness of independence from university governance. Third, professors appear to partially align their and their staff's research activities with national standards. The university leadership, pushing for Europeanized standards, acknowledges the legitimacy of these conflicting strategies. Implications and Value: The Europeanization of higher education is investigated from an institutional-narratological view in an attempt to connect organizational research with research on societal Europeanization. Europeanization is subjected to intra-organizational struggles over the interpretation of the term. Counter-narratives of what Europeanization means should be recognized in order to pursue a pluralistic notion of Europeanization.

The Multiple Dynamics of Isomorphic Change: Australian Law Schools 1987–1996

The theory of institutional isomorphism has been criticized for overemphasizing organizational convergence and neglecting organizational divergence. Drawing on a range of empirical data, this paper shows that multi-dimensional accounts of isomorphic change are not necessarily incompatible with accounts emphasizing divergence as a typical form of organizational response to environmental uncertainties. The specific case investigated is the proliferation of academic organizational units teaching law at Australian universities over a ten-year period (1987–1996) that saw far-reaching structural transformations of the Australian university system. The key heuristic strategy employed in this paper is to scrutinize (a) when isomorphic responses appear to occur, and (b) which specific organizational form they take. In the empirical case examined, scrutiny of each of these dimensions strongly suggests that at least some isomorphic responses of universities were driven by a dual agenda of manifesting not only similarity but also distinction.

Institutional Isomorphism in Religious Entities of Post-Soviet Tajikistan

Grounded in institutional isomorphism theory, the paper analyzes the extent to which the process of homogenization (isomorphism) can be useful in our understanding of changes within religious entities. Examining the emergence and development of religious entities in post-Soviet Tajikistan, I find that three isomorphic mechanisms are less dependent on the impact of religious institutional environments and interaction among religious organizations. Rather, isomorphic changes are manifested as the result of interaction with the state. Mimetic and normative processes are observed in a weak state, whereas coercive isomorphism is exerted under the influence of a strong state. A relative heterogeneity of the religious field is observed in the first two stages of the development of religious entities. Once the state expands its regulation and control, religious entities become more homogeneous in structure and administration due to coercive isomorphism. Implications for extending the concept of institutional isomorphism beyond traditional organizational fields are discussed.

Drivers of and Barriers to Professionalization in International Sport Federations

ABSTRACTIn a changing and complex environment, international sport federations (IFs) have to face new challenges. These challenges can trigger or hinder IFs’ professionalization processes. While researchers have examined organizational change and professionalization of national sport federations (NFs) and clubs, studies on IFs are rare. Considering professionalization as an important element of IFs’ change processes in recent years, the study attempts to fill this gap. The conceptual framework is based on the concepts and dynamics of organizational change, the influence of isomorphic pressures and the operationalization of a multi-level framework. Data from six case studies was analyzed by means of qualitative content analysis. Findings reveal multiple causes of IFs’ professionalization. Three particular findings are discussed: professionalization as a dynamic process with phases of acceleration that vary depending on IFs’ size; IFs’ becoming increasingly business-like through isomorphic changes; and five causes of particular relevance to IFs’ current professionalization process.

Institutionalization of Higher Vocational Education in China: A Neoinstitutionalist Perspective

From the perspective of neoinstitutionalism, higher vocational education has become an emerging institution in Chinese society. Its development over three decades entails a trend of institutionalization of higher vocational education. In such a process, higher vocational education is gaining legitimacy and experiencing isomorphic changes. Various challenges have indicated an absence of institutional legitimacy at all levels of higher vocational education, namely regulative, normative, and cultural-cognitive legitimacy. The latter two are considered key for the ongoing process of institutionalizing higher vocational education. Moreover, the emergence and development of higher vocational education in China has indicated isomorphic changes in Chinese higher education in terms of non-university sectors, practical/skills learning, teachers with dual qualifications and graduate employment.

No Longer Junior Colleges: Integrating Institutional Diversity in Graduate Higher Education Programs

Aim/Purpose: This article argues that given the isomorphic pressures on both community colleges and four-year institutions, historic divisions between community college leadership programs and general higher education programs are no longer serving the needs of new scholars and practitioners in the field. Graduate programs of higher education should integrate an understanding of community colleges and institutional diversity in meaningful ways throughout a graduate curriculum now focused on four-year institutions. Background: Community colleges and four-year institutions are engaging in isomorphic change which is weakening traditional boundaries between these sectors to create a more integrated system of higher education. Methodology: Using a framework of institutional isomorphism, this article reviews recent literature on changes within community colleges and four-year institutions and provides recommendations for infusing this isomorphism into graduate higher education programs. Contribution: By infusing an understanding of institutional diversity into all graduate course-work, educators can prepare future scholars and practitioners for a changing higher education landscape and expand beyond reductive representations of the higher education field.

Explaining the accreditation process from the institutional isomorphism perspective: a case study of Jordanian primary healthcare centers

While the main focus of accreditation initiatives has been on hospitals, the implementation of these programs is a relatively new notion among other types of healthcare facilities. Correspondingly, this study aims to understand how accreditation is perceived among primary public healthcare centers using an isomorphic institutional theory. Semi-structured, in-depth interviews were conducted with 56 healthcare professionals and administrative staff from seven non-profit healthcare centers in Jordan using an explanatory case-study approach. The informants' narratives revealed that all three components of institutional theory: coercive, mimetic, and normative pressure, were drivers for institutional change in seeking accreditation. There was an overlapping and blending between the three various types of pressure. While participants perceived that healthcare centers faced formal and informal pressures to achieve accreditation, health centers were reluctant about the time, amount of effort, and their ability to achieve the accreditation. Ambiguity and fear of failure forced them to model successful ones. Moreover, the findings revealed that normative values of health professionals enhanced institutional isomorphism and influenced the accreditation process. Identifying these isomorphic changes may help key stakeholders to develop plans, policies, and procedures that could improve the quality of healthcare and enhance accreditation as an organizational strategic plan. Moreover, the study provided explanations of why and how organizations move to adopt new interventions and grow over time. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Teaching and learning disrupted: isomorphic change

Purpose The marketplace demands a technological skillset among our college graduates, and scholars acknowledge the educational underpinnings (or lack thereof) regarding technology and its place in marketing education. The current research, therefore, aims to explore how academic institutions and programs have responded to coercive, mimetic and normative isomorphic pressures in reshaping the experiences of current marketing students. Design/methodology/approach To understand this pressure and its implications with regards to the marketing curriculum, this research explores the integration of technology into the marketing classroom via the three forces of institutional isomorphic change: coercive forces, mimetic processes and normative pressures. The current research uses both primary and secondary data to examine how isomorphism is occurring in digital marketing education. Findings We find that the integration of technology into the classroom comes from the forces of institutional isomorphic change. Although these forces are pressuring business schools to include technology in their marketing curriculum, a widespread adoption of this necessary media is yet to follow. Research limitations/implications From a research perspective, this paper portrays the forces that are acting to disrupt teaching and learning in the current global marketplace. Previous research tends to focus on how educators can teach a particular subject area. This paper brings together forces of change as related to educators, students and managers. Practical implications Educators and their educational institutions have to continue to learn to teach digital marketing. Students have a role to play in that they have to be agents of change for a stronger and newer marketing curriculum. Finally, managers need to partner with educators and students to create a stronger environment for learning practical tools. Originality/value Weber (2013) utilized this theoretical foundation for understanding how such pressures impacted the coverage and offering of courses addressing ethical, social and sustainability issues in graduate marketing curricula. This research within the digital marketing educational arena is the first to attempt to understand technology integration into marketing education.

Revisiting Adoption of Conducted Energy Weapons (CEWs) by Canadian Police

This article focuses on the consequences of increasing patron–client relationships between manufacturers of Conducted Energy Weapons (CEWs) and Canadian police. It explicates the potential for institutional isomorphism in Canadian police. Four markers of isomorphic change in the policing field generated by the growing dependency of police on CEW manufacturers are highlighted. The article argues that the role CEW makers assume is intrinsically complex and contradictory and constitutes a gatekeeping, legitimizing, and ideationally (re)structuring process.

Romanization and Isomorphic Change in Phrygia: the Case of Private Associations

AbstractRomanization in the province of Asia did not manifest itself in linguistic or cultural changes, but is very visible in a trend towards corporate organization. In the cities of western and southern Phrygia, professional associations developed that were able to gain a prominent position alongside the civic institutions. It is possible to relate this process to incentives provided by Roman law. In the villages surrounding these cities, and especially in the rural areas of northern and eastern Phrygia, the conditions were different, but there are several indications that a new preference for formal organization and its epigraphic representation developed here as well.