Institutional Complexity and Organizational Responses

TLDR

Organizations confront institutional complexity when multiple institutional logics issue incompatible prescriptions. The study investigates how plural institutional logics are experienced within organizations and how they respond, offering a framework for future analysis. Drawing on literature about field-level structures and organizational attributes, the authors examine the strategies and structures organizations deploy to manage competing demands. The authors conclude by proposing avenues for future research on institutional complexity.

Abstract

Organizations face institutional complexity whenever they confront incompatible prescriptions from multiple institutional logics. Our interest is in how plural institutional logics, refracted through field-level structures and processes, are experienced within organizations and how organizations respond to such complexity. We draw on a variety of cognate literatures to discuss the field-level structural characteristics and organizational attributes that shape institutional complexity. We then explore the repertoire of strategies and structures that organizations deploy to cope with multiple, competing demands. The analytical framework developed herein is presented to guide future scholarship in the systematic analysis of institutional complexity. We conclude by suggesting avenues for future research.