A General Theory of Organizational Stigma

In recent years, the term stigma has been widely applied to organizations. However, scholars have yet to advance a theoretically consistent definition or comprehensive theory of organizational stigma. The purpose of this paper is to define the construct of organizational stigma and provide a general theory that explains the conditions under which organizational stigmas are likely to arise, how this process unfolds, and the initial effects stigmas inflict on organizations. In doing so, we distinguish organizational stigma from both individual-level stigma and the organizational-level constructs of reputation, status, celebrity, and legitimacy. We then build upon multiple streams of research to develop a richer theoretical explanation of the roles social context, social processes, and social actors play in the origination and effects of an organizational stigma.

[1]  C. Shapiro.  Consumer Information, Product Quality, and Seller Reputation , 1982 .

[2]  Celia V. Harquail,et al.  Organizational images and member identification. , 1994 .

[3]  Sanford B. Ehrlich,et al.  Small Groups: Key Readings , 2006 .

[4]  J. Dutton,et al.  KEEPING AN EYE ON THE MIRROR : IMAGE AND IDENTITY IN ORGANIZATIONAL ADAPTATION , 2005 .

[5]  V. Yzerbyt,et al.  Requesting information to form an impression : the influence of valence and confirmatory status , 1991 .

[6]  C. Barnard.  The Functions of the Executive , 1939 .

[7]  P. Blumstein,et al.  THE HONORING OF ACCOUNTS , 1974 .

[8]  A. Jacoby,et al.  Felt versus enacted stigma: a concept revisited. Evidence from a study of people with epilepsy in remission. , 1994, Social science & medicine.

[9]  Alfred A. Marcus,et al.  AIRLINE DEREGULATION FACTORS AFFECTING THE CHOICE OF FIRM POLITICAL STRATEGY , 1986 .

[10]  Judee K. Burgoon,et al.  The Impact of Violations on Uncertainty and the Consequences for Attractiveness , 2000 .

[11]  R. Vonk,et al.  The Negativity Effect in Trait Ratings and in Open-Ended Descriptions of Persons , 1993 .

[12]  R. Burt.  Toward a Structural Theory of Action: Network Models of Social Structure , 1985 .

[13]  一馬 原岡,et al.  Lindzey, G & Aronson, E., 1985, The Handbook of Social Psychology, 3rd Edition, Vol. II, Random House, New York. , 1986 .

[14]  Shelley E. Taylor,et al.  Social cognition, 2nd ed. , 1991 .

[15]  Mark P. Zanna,et al.  Differential weighting of favorable and unfavorable attributes in impressions of personality. , 1972 .

[16]  R. Hall.  The strategic analysis of intangible resources , 1992 .

[17]  W. Boeker.  Power and Managerial Dismissal: Scapegoating at the Top. , 1992 .

[18]  Paul M. Hirsch.  The Dark Side of Alliances: The Enron Story , 2003 .

[19]  W. Powell,et al.  The iron cage revisited institutional isomorphism and collective rationality in organizational fields , 1983 .

[20]  Kimberly D. Elsbach.  Organizational Perception Management , 2006 .

[21]  Cynthia E. Devers,et al.  FALLING OUT OF FAVOR: ILLEGITIMACY, SOCIAL CONTROL, AND THE PROCESS OF ORGANIZATIONAL STIGMATIZATION. , 2005 .

[22]  R. R. Scott,et al.  Stigma, Deviance, and Social Control , 1986 .

[23]  Mark C. Suchman.  Managing Legitimacy: Strategic and Institutional Approaches , 1995 .

[24]  Anja Tuschke,et al.  The Adoption Of Institutionally Contested Organizational Practices: The Emergence Of Stock Option Pay In Germany , 2007 .

[25]  Donal E. Carlston,et al.  Caught in the act: When impressions based on highly diagnostic behaviours are resistant to contradiction , 1992 .

[26]  B. Uzzi,et al.  Social Structure and Competition in Interfirm Networks: The Paradox of Embeddedness , 1997 .

[27]  Kimberly D. Elsbach,et al.  Us versus Them: The Roles of Organizational Identification and Disidentification in Social Marketing Initiatives , 2002 .

[28]  D. Hamilton,et al.  Generality of impression-formation processes for evaluative and nonevaluative judgments. , 1971 .

[29]  Gary Alan Fine,et al.  The Construction of Nonpersonhood and Demonization: Commemorating the Traitorous Reputation of Benedict Arnold , 1995 .

[30]  Daniel J. Brass.  A social network perspective on human resources management , 1992 .

[31]  E. Goffman.  Stigma; Notes On The Management Of Spoiled Identity , 1964 .

[32]  Lori Rosenkopf,et al.  INSTITUTIONAL AND COMPETITIVE BANDWAGONS: USING MATHEMATICAL MODELING AS A TOOL TO EXPLORE INNOVATION DIFFUSION , 1993 .

[33]  Pamela Oliver,et al.  Whatever Happened to Critical Mass Theory? A Retrospective and Assessment* , 2001 .

[34]  Matthew Semadeni,et al.  Fight or Flight: Managing Stigma in Executive Careers , 2008 .

[35]  R. Lewicki,et al.  Trust And Distrust: New Relationships and Realities , 1998 .

[36]  B. Loasby.  The External Control of Organizations. A Resource Dependence Perspective , 1979 .

[37]  D. Mcadam.  Political Process and the Development of Black Insurgency, 1930-1970 , 1982 .

[38]  E. Romanelli,et al.  The New Institutionalism in Organizational Analysis , 1992 .

[39]  H. Thomas,et al.  Competitive Groups as Cognitive Communities: The Case of Scottish Knitwear Manufacturers Revisited , 1989 .

[40]  L. Cosmides,et al.  Cognitive adaptations for social exchange. , 1992 .

[41]  M. Hitt,et al.  Partner Selection in Emerging and Developed Market Contexts: Resource-Based and Organizational Learning Perspectives , 2000 .

[42]  A. Saxenian.  The New Argonauts: Regional Advantage in a Global Economy , 1994 .

[43]  Eric Abrahamson,et al.  MANAGEMENT FASHION: LIFECYCLES, TRIGGERS, AND COLLECTIVE LEARNING PROCESSES. , 1997 .

[44]  D. Hambrick,et al.  The Stigmatization and Devaluation of Elites Associated with Corporate Failures: A Process Model , 2008 .

[45]  M. Gluck,et al.  Explaining Basic Categories: Feature Predictability and Information , 1992 .

[46]  Orrin E. Klapp,et al.  American Villain-Types , 1956 .

[47]  Orrin E. Klapp,et al.  Heroes, villains and fools, as agents of social control. , 1954 .

[48]  E. Rogers,et al.  Diffusion of innovations , 1964, Encyclopedia of Sport Management.

[49]  Paul R. Milgrom,et al.  Predation, reputation, and entry deterrence☆ , 1982 .

[50]  D. Snow,et al.  Framing Processes and Social Movements: An Overview and Assessment , 2000 .

[51]  Joel Podolny.  A Status-Based Model of Market Competition , 1993, American Journal of Sociology.

[52]  Jamal Shamsie,et al.  THE CONTEXT OF DOMINANCE: AN INDUSTRY-DRIVEN FRAMEWORK FOR EXPLOITING REPUTATION , 2003 .

[53]  A J Lambert,et al.  Stereotypes and social judgment: the effects of typicality and group heterogeneity. , 1990, Journal of personality and social psychology.

[54]  Fred A. Mael,et al.  Social identity theory and the organization , 1989 .

[55]  R. Merton.  Social Structure and Anomie , 1938 .

[56]  R. Vonk,et al.  Negativity and potency effects in impression formation , 1996 .

[57]  C. Fombrun,et al.  What's in a Name? Reputation Building and Corporate Strategy , 1990 .

[58]  R. Kurzban,et al.  Evolutionary origins of stigmatization: the functions of social exclusion. , 2001, Psychological bulletin.

[59]  H. Thomas,et al.  Rivalry and the Industry Model of Scottish Knitwear Producers , 1995 .

[60]  John W. Meyer,et al.  Institutionalized Organizations: Formal Structure as Myth and Ceremony , 1977, American Journal of Sociology.

[61]  Joel Podolny,et al.  Status, Quality, and Social Order in the California Wine Industry , 1999 .

[62]  H. White,et al.  Production Markets as Induced Role Structures , 1981 .

[63]  R. Merton.  The Matthew Effect in Science , 1968, Science.

[64]  Carolien Martijn,et al.  Negativity and positivity effects in person perception and inference: Ability versus morality , 1992 .

[65]  Orrin E. Klapp,et al.  Notes toward the Study of Vilification as a Social Process , 1959 .

[66]  E. E. Jones.  Attribution: Perceiving the Causes of Behavior , 1987 .

[67]  Jack P. Gibbs,et al.  Major Developments in the Sociological Study of Deviance , 1975 .

[68]  David L. Deephouse,et al.  Media Reputation as a Strategic Resource: An Integration of Mass Communication and Resource-Based Theories , 1999 .

[69]  J Blascovich,et al.  Perceiver threat in social interactions with stigmatized others. , 2001, Journal of personality and social psychology.

[70]  Harold Garfinkel,et al.  Conditions of Successful Degradation Ceremonies , 1956, American Journal of Sociology.

[71]  E. E. Jones.  Social stigma: The psychology of marked relationships , 1984 .

[72]  Joel Podolny.  Networks as the Pipes and Prisms of the Market1 , 2001, American Journal of Sociology.

[73]  S. Fiske,et al.  The Handbook of Social Psychology , 1935 .

[74]  MARY A. SMITH,et al.  REPUTATION , 1913, Encyclopedia of Database Systems.

[75]  Mark R. Leary,et al.  The stigmatization of HIV and AIDS: Rubbing salt in the wound. , 1998 .

[76]  S. Sengupta,et al.  Impact of Strategic Alliances on Firm Valuation , 1998 .

[77]  T. Scheff,et al.  The labelling theory of mental illness. , 1974, American sociological review.

[78]  J. McGee.  The Blackwell handbook of strategic management , 2006 .

[79]  C. Fombrun,et al.  Macrocultures: Determinants and Consequences , 1994 .

[80]  Peer C. Fiss,et al.  The Diffusion of Ideas over Contested Terrain: The (Non)adoption of a Shareholder Value Orientation among German Firms , 2004 .

[81]  J. Pfeffer.  Understanding organizations: Concepts and controversies. , 1998 .

[82]  H. White,et al.  Where do markets come from , 1981 .

[83]  Anne S. Tsui,et al.  A Multiple-Constituency Model of Effectiveness: An Empirical Examination at the Human Resource Subunit Level. , 1990 .

[84]  J. Porac,et al.  Interorganizational Cognition and Interpretation , 2002 .

[85]  Noah E. Friedkin,et al.  Information flow through strong and weak ties in intraorganizational social networks , 1982 .

[86]  Mark S. Granovetter.  T H E S T R E N G T H O F WEAK TIES: A NETWORK THEORY REVISITED , 1983 .

[87]  J.-C. Spender,et al.  Industry recipes : an enquiry into the nature and sources of managerial judgement , 1989 .

[88]  H. Thomas,et al.  Taxonomic Mental Models in Competitor Definition , 1990 .

[89]  Dominic Abrams,et al.  Social Categorization, Social Identification, and Rejection of Deviant Group Members , 2008 .

[90]  G. Marwell,et al.  A Theory of the Critical Mass. I. Interdependence, Group Heterogeneity, and the Production of Collective Action , 1985, American Journal of Sociology.

[91]  Peggy A. Golden,et al.  THE EFFECT OF REPUTATION ON THE DECISION TO JOINT VENTURE , 1997 .

[92]  John I. Kitsuse.  Societal Reaction to Deviant Behavior: Problems of Theory and Method , 1962 .

[93]  M. Hitt,et al.  The Blackwell handbook of strategic management , 2005 .

[94]  B. Major,et al.  The social psychology of stigma. , 2005, Annual review of psychology.

[95]  Kjell Grønhaug,et al.  Structure and Strategy in Grocery Retailing: A Sociometric Approach , 1985 .

[96]  Patricia G. Devine,et al.  Exploring the interpersonal dynamics of intergroup contact. , 1996 .

[97]  Frances J. Milliken,et al.  Executives’ Perceptual Filters: What They Notice and How They Make Sense , 1988 .

[98]  Blake E. Ashforth,et al.  The Ubiquity and Potency of Labeling in Organizations , 1997 .

[99]  R. Burt.  Social Contagion and Innovation: Cohesion versus Structural Equivalence , 1987, American Journal of Sociology.

[100]  R. M. Hall,et al.  A framework linking intangible resources and capabilities to sustainable competitive advantage , 1993 .

[101]  E. Zajac,et al.  Status Evolution and Competition: Theory and Evidence , 2005 .

[102]  R. Bies,et al.  Beyond distrust: "Getting even" and the need for revenge. , 1996 .

[103]  R. Axelrod.  An Evolutionary Approach to Norms , 1986, American Political Science Review.

[104]  Toby E. Stuart,et al.  Interorganizational Endorsements and the Performance of Entrepreneurial Ventures , 1999 .

[105]  Mark S. Granovetter.  The Strength of Weak Ties , 1973, American Journal of Sociology.

[106]  Barbara Czarniawska,et al.  Exploring Complex Organizations: A Cultural Perspective , 1992 .

[107]  David E. Kanouse,et al.  Negativity in evaluations. , 1987 .

[108]  Jim Blascovich,et al.  Challenge and threat appraisals: The role of affective cues. , 2000 .

[109]  Edward J. Zajac,et al.  The symbolic management of stockholders: Corporate governance reforms and shareholder reactions , 1998 .

[110]  Mathew L. A. Hayward,et al.  Celebrity Firms: The Social Construction Of Market Popularity , 2006 .

[111]  C. Fombrun,et al.  Collective Strategy: Social Ecology of Organizational Environments. , 1983 .

[112]  Howard Kunreuther,et al.  21 Coping with Stigma : Challenges and Opportunities , 2000 .

[113]  G. Āllport.  The Nature of Prejudice , 1954 .

[114]  P. Blau.  Exchange and Power in Social Life , 1964 .

[115]  D. Dennett.  The Intentional Stance. , 1987 .

[116]  Eric Abrahamson.  Managerial Fads and Fashions: The Diffusion and Rejection of Innovations , 1991 .

[117]  G. Peeters,et al.  Positive-Negative Asymmetry in Evaluations: The Distinction Between Affective and Informational Negativity Effects , 1990 .

[118]  S. Borgatti,et al.  A General Theory of Network Governance: Exchange Conditions and Social Mechanisms , 1997 .

[119]  Jennifer Crocker,et al.  Reactions to stigma: The moderating role of justifications. , 1994 .

[120]  Matthew S. Kraatz,et al.  Exploring the Limits of the New Institutionalism: The Causes and Consequences of Illegitimate Organizational Change , 1996 .

[121]  S. Hilgartner,et al.  The Rise and Fall of Social Problems: A Public Arenas Model , 1988, American Journal of Sociology.

[122]  Hugh M. O'Neill,et al.  Patterns in the Diffusion of Strategies Across Organizations: Insights from the Innovation Diffusion Literature , 1998 .

[123]  Michael G. Pratt,et al.  Understanding ‘appropriateness’ in multinational organizations , 2007 .

[124]  Kimberly D. Elsbach,et al.  Acquiring Organizational Legitimacy Through Illegitimate Actions: A Marriage of Institutional and Impression Management Theories , 1992 .

[125]  E DeversCynthia,et al.  A General Theory of Organizational Stigma , 2009 .

[126]  Joel Podolny.  Market Uncertainty and the Social Character of Economic Exchange , 1994 .

[127]  J. Dutton,et al.  INTERPERSONAL SENSEMAKING AND THE MEANING OF WORK , 2003 .

[128]  R. Vonk,et al.  Differential evaluations of likeable and dislikeable behaviours enacted towards superiors and subordinates , 1999 .

[129]  C. Frith.  Social cognition , 2008, Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences.

[130]  G. Marwell,et al.  Social Networks and Collective Action: A Theory of the Critical Mass. III , 1988, American Journal of Sociology.

[131]  Philip Selznick.  Leadership in administration , 1957 .

[132]  Colin Camerer,et al.  Reputation and corporate strategy: A review of recent theory and applications , 1988 .

[133]  Mike W. Peng,et al.  Bankruptcy Law and Entrepreneurship Development: A Real Options Perspective , 2007 .

[134]  Vicki R. Lane,et al.  A Stakeholder Approach to Organizational Identity , 2000 .

[135]  Morton Grodzins,et al.  The Metropolitan area as a racial problem , 1958 .

[136]  Ronald K. Mitchell,et al.  Toward a Theory of Stakeholder Identification and Salience: Defining the Principle of who and What Really Counts , 1997 .

[137]  Deborah Dougherty,et al.  Exploring Complex Organizations: A Cultural Perspective. , 1992 .

[138]  Joel Podolny.  Status Signals: A Sociological Study of Market Competition , 2005 .

[139]  K. Erikson.  Notes on the Sociology of Deviance , 1962 .

[140]  H. Tajfel,et al.  The Social Identity Theory of Intergroup Behavior. , 2004 .

[141]  Edward J. Zajac,et al.  Substance and Symbolism in CEOs' Long-Term Incentive Plans , 1994 .

[142]  R. Burt.  Toward a structural theory of action , 1982 .

[143]  Michael Jensen,et al.  Should We Stay or Should We Go? Accountability, Status Anxiety, and Client Defections , 2006 .

[144]  H. Tajfel,et al.  An integrative theory of intergroup conflict. , 1979 .

[145]  E P HOLLANDER,et al.  Conformity, status, and idiosyncrasy credit. , 1958, Psychological review.

[146]  Jo-Ellen Pozner,et al.  To avoid surprises, acknowledge the dark side: illustrations from securities analysts , 2005 .

[147]  E. Miller.  Handbook of Social Psychology , 1946, Mental Health.

[148]  C. Prahalad,et al.  The dominant logic: A new linkage between diversity and performance , 1986 .

[149]  H. White,et al.  Where Do Markets Come From? , 1981, American Journal of Sociology.

[150]  Antoaneta P. Petkova,et al.  Being good or being known: An empirical examination of the dimensions, antecedents, and consequences of organizational reputation , 2005 .

[151]  J. Crocker,et al.  Social stigma and self-esteem: The self-protective properties of stigma. , 1989 .

[152]  Ad van Knippenberg,et al.  The Sovereignty of Negative Inferences: Suspicion of Ulterior Motives Does Not Reduce the Negativity Effect , 1994 .

[153]  Theodore Sasson,et al.  Media Images and the Social Construction of Reality , 1992 .

[154]  Paul M. Hirsch,et al.  From Ambushes to Golden Parachutes: Corporate Takeovers as an Instance of Cultural Framing and Institutional Integration , 1986, American Journal of Sociology.

[155]  Kimberly D. Elsbach,et al.  Defining Who You Are By What You're Not: Organizational Disidentification and The National Rifle Association , 2001 .

[156]  N. Ellemers,et al.  Self‐categorisation, commitment to the group and group self‐esteem as related but distinct aspects of social identity , 1999 .

[157]  S. Sitkin,et al.  Explaining the Limited Effectiveness of Legalistic “Remedies” for Trust/Distrust , 1993 .

[158]  Toby E. Stuart,et al.  A Role-Based Ecology of Technological Change , 1995, American Journal of Sociology.

[159]  R. I. Sutton,et al.  The Stigma of Bankruptcy: Spoiled Organizational Image and Its Management , 1987 .

[160]  Jeffrey C. Kohles,et al.  Romance of Leadership , 2009 .

[161]  H. Tajfel.  Social identity and intergroup relations , 1985 .