Institutions and Organizations

Book excerpt: "A best seller in its first edition, Institutions and Organizations has been thoroughly revised and expanded. This second edition provides a comprehensive overview of the institutionalist approach to organization theory. Dick Scott presents a historical overview of the theoretical literature, an integrative analysis of current institutional approaches, and a review of empirical research related to institutions and organizations. He offers an extensive review and critique of institutional analysis in sociology, political science, and economics as it relates to recent theory and research on organizations. The second edition gives particular attention to the topics of agency and structure and to institutional change. Given the constraining and constitutive properties of institutions, how can actors intervene to introduce novelty? How is change possible? To a previous concern with 'convergent' change, a focus on increasing structural isomorphism, the author adds a thorough analysis of the sources of 'disruptive' change, deinstitutionalization, and the emergence of new kinds of institutions."--Publisher's description.