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The Organizational Construction of Authenticity: An Examination of Contemporary Food and Dining in the U.S
Abstract
This chapter attempts to strengthen theoretical connections between interpretive cultural studies of authenticity and organizational studies. Adopting an unstructured qualitative approach, we use the domain of contemporary food and dining to develop a conceptual framework for assessing authenticity. We start by recognizing the two very different classical symbolic interpretations of authenticity: (1) type authenticity, where the question involves whether an entity is true to its associated type (or category or genre); and (2) moral authenticity, where the issue concerns whether the decisions behind the enactment and operation of an entity reflect sincere choices (i.e., choices true to one's self) rather than socially scripted responses. We next suggest that, in response to social change, these two interpretations have each spawned a unique but related different meaning of authenticity. From type authenticity came what we call craft authenticity, which involves whether something is made using the appropriate techniques and ingredients. Idiosyncratic authenticity emerged out of moral authenticity; here the question is whether there is a commonly recognized (usually historical) quirkiness to the product or place. Our analysis then proceeds to develop a general conjecture, namely, that communication and impact of authenticity comes through most forcefully when it is constructed organizationally—tightly and visibly integrated into the structure of an organization. Depending on which of the four meanings of authenticity is operative, the details of the most compelling organizational construction will vary.
... For the sake of theorizing, however, we focus on more extreme cases -'purer' organizations -to create an understanding of an ideal type of pure organization (Weber, [1921(Weber, [ ] 1978. We distinguish purity -an organization's steadfast adherence (in action) to a single institutional logic -from authenticity -an audience's attribution of an organization's fit with a socially constructed category (Carroll & Wheaton, 2009;Fine, 2003) and address how a pure organization's behaviour may (or may not) inspire attributions of authenticity. ...
... Authenticity in the eyes of audiences is socially constructed and context-dependent (Carroll & Wheaton, 2009;Fine, 2003;Peterson, 2005;Potter, 2010). In organizational studies, authenticity is an attribution of 'whether an entity is true to its associated type [or category]' (Carroll & Wheaton, 2009, p. 255). ...
... Pure organizations exemplifying an audience's constructed categories -those the audience considers authentic -gain status and, consequently, superior access to resources (Bothner et al., 2022;Boyle, 2003;Carroll & Wheaton, 2009;Glynn & Lounsbury, 2005;Lehman et al., 2014;Leory et al., 2012;Potter, 2010;van Knippenberg & Hogg, 2003). Institutional gatekeepers differentiate between those that are worthy of resources and those that are not, bestowing status on those that fit with their expectations (Kerckhoff, 1976). ...
We build a comprehensive and coherent understanding of organizational purity as an organization’s steadfast adherence to a single institutional logic. This logic becomes the core tenet of its identity, an end in itself rather than a means toward survival. Instead of responding to institutional pressures, pure organizations may self-categorize vis-à-vis a potentially threatening ‘other’ through their own identity work. They mark and pursue their distinction from others, structure themselves to preserve their purity, and favor strategies that express the logic they embody. In so doing they may fail more often than organizations that are more responsive to institutional pressures. When pure organizations enter new institutional fields they can act as change agents, but where their logic dominates, they may block change. Different audiences, in turn, affect the success and survival of pure organizations by conferring authenticity, legitimacy or contempt, depending on their alignment with the pure organization’s logic. Further examining purity will enable organizational theorists to better account for non-rational action and extend work on institutional logics.
... Meaning that the decisions behind the enactment and operations are true to themself, as opposed to following societal expectations and norms. Type authenticity, which we will be using, looks at whether the entity is true to its associated type (or category or genre) (Carrol and Wheaton, 2009). In this case, it means whether the materials of a digital 3D recreated stop motion are true to the associate type. ...
... In every interview the question was asked "What is 'real' stop motion to you?". This question is based on literature on type authenticity (Carrol and Wheaton, 2009). The responses will be used to compare to the responses to the digitalized animation. ...
... To solve the research question and find the viewers perception of authenticity there were specific questions asked based on literature in type authenticity (Carrol and Wheaton, 2009). ...
The rise of CGI has in many cases displaced stop motion as a preferred technique for visual effects and animation. This thesis focuses on how this traditional technique could be digitalised and what impact this has on the viewers perception of authenticity. It aims to evaluate how traditional stop-motion materials can be successfully translated to a digital medium and analyse how this recreation is received by the viewer. Conclusions were drawn from semi-structured interviews with individuals that have had experiences using stop motion. By doing a direct comparison between digital and traditional claymation their perception of authenticity was assessed. The data results indicate that a digital version of stop motion is not authentic and that there are several key elements, such as animation, texture, lighting, imperfections, and that it should stylistically match, need to be held into account when creating a digital version of stop motion. Elements like human touch and human error play a crucial role in creating a convincing recreation of stop motion. Although, it seems that a digital and traditional version should not necessarily have to compete, but rather coexist.
There is potential in these findings as it can serve as a foundation to evaluate other stop-motion styles and animation techniques.
... According to Carroll and Wheaton (2009), authenticity relates to something made using appropriate techniques and ingredients chosen by qualified personnel. It requires mastery of production, knowledge, skills, and techniques and demands special training, learning, and experiences. ...
... Per Carroll and Swaminathan's (2000) study, microbreweries brewing their beers were considered more authentic and faithful to traditional production methods. Furthermore, Carroll and Wheaton (2009) provide further guidance, specifically regarding food producers. The authors argue that from authenticity emerges the subcategory "craft authenticity," in which the construction of authenticity is related to the extent to which a food and beverage producer seems to reflect the expectations of their category based on production methods, tools, and labour employed. ...
... According to Carroll and Wheaton (2009), authenticity is not a "real" thing or something that can be objectively determined but rather a socially constructed phenomenon. In this view, certain aspects of a product, performance, place, or producer are somehow defined and treated as authentic by audiences in a given social context. ...
In this article, we examine the process of enhancing craft beers through brewers' narratives about quality and authenticity and establishing recognition and reputation through craft beer competitions and festivals. We conducted in-depth interviews with microbrewery owners, conversed with consumers and brewers, observed craft beer festivals, and monitored posts on brewery Facebook pages. We explore narratives about the various processes involved in building authenticity and quality in the craft beer market, highlighting the production of unique and exclusive styles in small batches with carefully selected ingredients and the brewery's origin and local identity. These narrative elements contribute to cultivating a culture centred on experiential consumption and the differentiation of craft production from mass production. Additionally, they lead to recognition through beer competitions and consecration through award certificate ceremonies and bottle labels, which validate the reputation and quality of beers produced by artisanal brewers.
... Craft-based ventures are often characterized by unique, local, and counter-mainstream goods (Ocejo 2017). Place in craft-entrepreneurship is often simplified to place being a positive source of creative inspiration or place-based marketing used to highlight the 'authentic' nature of craft-based ventures (Carroll and Wheaton 2009). The authenticity literature has long demonstrated the centrality of place, which can be clearly seen in terms of products granted a 'geographical indication' (GI) to demonstrate their link to the place they are made and conformity to a certain type and standards of production (Beverland 2005). ...
... While Carroll and Wheaton (2009) argue that innovation in service of craft development can be viewed as legitimate, here 'craft authenticity' is based on being 'true to craft' rather than 'true to type' (Carroll and Wheaton 2009, 268). However, Schifeling and Demetry (2021) argue that craft authenticity is dependent on audience perception; for instance, craft entrepreneurs engaging in automation may be accused of violating authenticity, even if the final product is objectively superior. ...
... As such entrepreneurial activities are not isolated but are influenced by and embedded within various social and environmental factors (Wigren-Kristoferson et al. 2022). Craft authenticity has been defined as being 'true to craft' (Carroll and Wheaton 2009) and the legitimacy of authenticity claims are dependent on audience perception (Schifeling and Demetry 2021). The craft entrepreneurs in our study viewed the social and cultural aspects of place as integral to their craft. ...
... While job seekers may indeed react favorably to externally-directed CSR as some research has shown (see Rupp & Mallory, 2015 for review), we submit that this effect may be conditioned by the firm's HIHRS (i.e., whether a firm's CSR towards external stakeholders is seen favorably depends on its commitment to internal stakeholders-employees). Put differently, we expect that job seekers consider both a firm's externally-and internallydirected practices, to form a perception about the firm's authenticity-a cognitive assessment of an organization based on the extent to which its actions are seen as genuine, sincere, and consistent with moral principles (Carroll & Wheaton, 2009;Cording et al., 2014;Lehman et al., 2019). Specifically, we expect the link between an organization's externally-directed CSR and job seekers' perceptions of that organization's authenticity will be more positive when the company has higher levels of HIHRS. ...
... Evaluating an entity based on a comparative assessment of its acts in multiple domains is fundamental to the notion of perceived authenticity (Carroll & Wheaton, 2009;Cha et al., 2019;Lehman et al., 2019). Thus, we expect perceptions of organizational authenticity to explain the joint (viz; interactive) effects of CSR and HIHRS on organizational attractiveness. ...
... Yet for all the discourse this construct has generated, two fundamental components remain to this day. First, authenticity captures a sense of whether an entity's acts are perceived to be genuine and sincere (Cha et al., 2019;Lehman et al., 2019)-a conceptualization that often leads authenticity to be considered through a moral lens (e.g., Carroll & Wheaton, 2009). Following from this, the second component of research on authenticity is that these perceptions are inherently comparative, in that they involve assessing whether some entity is seen as consistently acting according to a positive, normative standard (e.g., Caza et al., 2018;Hewlin et al., 2020;Sedikides et al., 2017). ...
This paper explores the conditions under which job seekers may not respond positively to a potential employer's corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities. We propose that the relationship between an organization's externally‐directed CSR activities and job seekers’ perceptions of the organization's attractiveness is moderated by whether the organization is also engaging in internally‐directed high‐investment human resource systems (HIHRS). Results from a combination of three studies—an archival study of Fortune 500 companies (Study 1), a survey study (Study 2), and an experiment (Study 3)—provide support for our hypotheses. When an organization has lower levels of internally‐directed HIHRS, the positive influence of externally‐directed CSR on attraction to an organization diminishes (Study 3) or disappears (Studies 1 and 2). Importantly, we identify perceptions of organizational authenticity as one key mechanism driving these effects (Studies 2 and 3).
... Therefore, a conflict exists between adaptation and The conflicting value of adaptation versus authenticity to the environment has been recognized in the context of leadership (Dulebohn, 2020;Livermore, 2018), but there is a dearth of investigations in the area of customer-firm interactions. Extensive research has focused on the positive outcomes associated with both adaptation (Azab and Clark, 2017;Kraak and Holmqvist, 2017;Lorenz et al, 2017) and authenticity (Carroll and Wheaton, 2009;Kolar and Zabkar, 2010;Magnusson et al. , 2019) in ICSEs. Literature is silent on a reconciliation of the conflict or, in more practical terms, the optimal level of adaptation versus authenticity for successful interactions. ...
... Cultural authenticity is "the perception of what is genuine or real in terms of the cultural origin of the brand in the eyes of the customer" (Southworth, 2019, p. 288). An object or service perceived as authentic carries a deeper meaning and greater value to transaction partners, especially consumers (Carroll and Wheaton, 2009;Frazier et al., 2009;Grayson and Martinec, 2004). The cultural authenticity of domestic ICSEs is important as it offers customers worldwide the opportunity to connect with and experience a part of another culture distant from their everyday lives (Beverland and Farrelly, 2009;Özsomer and Altaras, 2008;Southworth, 2019). ...
Intercultural service encounters and consumers’ desire for such cultural experiences are increasingly becoming a part of everyday consumption. Guided by social judgment theory, this study explores
how two value-adding, yet conflicting tenants of successful intercultural service encounters, cultural authenticity, and adaptation, influence positive consumer outcomes. ICEs often require adaptation to the customer’s culture, thereby risking a reduction in the cultural authenticity of the experience. This study researches the optimum level of adaptation of an intercultural service encounter needed to achieve desired authenticity perceptions for positive consumer outcomes. The study also identifies the influence of generational cohorts and cultural competencies on developing such positive consumer outcomes
... Namely, they offer readily comparable product structures (food and menus), and similar notions of authenticity apply to them. Second, analyzing the domain allows us to build on research in restaurants, categories, and authenticity (Carroll & Wheaton, 2009;Demetry, 2019;Demetry & Fine, 2011;DeSoucey, 2016;Kov acs, Carroll, & Lehman, 2014;Kov acs & Hannan, 2010;Lu & Fine, 1995;Schifeling & Demetry, 2021). Third, diners eat in many different kinds of restaurants (genre variations), both at home and when traveling. ...
... Finally, because authenticity may carry multiple meanings, such as moral authenticity and type authenticity (Carroll & Wheaton, 2009), we re-coded the reviews with the moral and type authenticity scales of O'Connor, and re-ran our analyses with these measures. We found that, in terms of omnivorousness and cosmopolitanism, the patterns hold similarly for moral and type authenticity as well. ...
... (Source: Carroll & Wheaton, 2009) And to simulate its growing importance, Carroll and Wheaton measured the increasing concern of the word authenticity. They suggested that the prevalence of authenticity concerns should be reflected in the frequency with which the word itself comes up in influential public texts -how often it creeps into the public discourse. ...
... Figure 1.2 shows how many articles annually were tagged the word "authentic" published in Washington Post, within 150-year period. The chart the significant increase of attention towards authenticity over a time (Carroll and Wheaton, 2009). Hede, et al. (2014) recently stated their findings support the view that authenticity is one of the most important, and possibly one of the most complex, marketing constructs that have emerged in the literature in the past few decades. ...
The marketing of cultural tourism faces a dilemma between maximizing the economic return and nurturing the culture’s social functions. It needs to attract segments driven by cultural motifs, through a differentiation based on authenticity. Perceived authenticity changes over a time, but how it does remains elusive to researchers. This research investigated fluctuations of existential authenticity in cultural tourists in Bali. Participants were purposively and conveniently-sampled among visitors of cultural attractions. It comprised two stages: qualitative for building the model, and quantitative fortesting the variables. The first employed Grounded Theory interviewing 24 visitors, found the variables and built a modelof how they work. The second used SEM with 224 valid responses from Bali. For external validity, a survey in Alsace received 84 responses. An MGA compared samples from Bali and Alsace, eight out of ten paths were not significantly different. The model helps managers understand the fluctuations and manage the variables. Hence, this research delivered an empirical model on the fluctuations of perceived authenticity in cultural tourism.
... Individuals who are in search of an authentic gastronomic experience are motivated to build a deep connection with a certain destination through food. (Carroll & Wheaton, 2009;Kovács et al., 2014). Food authenticity can impact customers' gastronomic purchasing decisions. ...
This introduction to the book Gastronomy Tourism - Experiences and Innovation provides an overview of Gastronomy as a useful tool for tourism development and marketing. Gastronomic experiences provide a vibrant link between local culture and inquisitive tourists, showcasing the lifestyle and identity of destinations through the mutual enjoyment of food. The development of gastronomy tourism therefore presents opportunities for the expansion of cultural and experience based tourism authenticity and genuineness of local and regional cuisine, but at the same time it creates challenges in the maintenance of the authenticity of gastronomy. It also covers key themes including memorable gastronomic experiences, hybrid gastronomy, authenticity and the future of gastronomy.
... Critically, craft production is considered an alternative to traditional, economicallyrational concepts of production grounded in profit, technology, and growth (Bell, Mangia, Taylor & Toraldo, 2018;Elias et al., 2024;Luckman, 2015). Craft production derives value from its emphasis on traditional techniques (Adamson, 2007;Dacin, Dacin, & Kent, 2019) and is often associated with small-scale, privately-owned firms (Beck, Swaminathan, Wade, & Wezel, 2019;Carroll & Wheaton, 2009). The importance of non-market value extends to the maker, as well; the craftsperson is considered to possess personally embodied expertise (Kroezen et al., 2021) and be well-rounded, cognizant of the production process, motivated to do "a job well for its own sake" (Sennett, 2008: 9). ...
... Annak felismerése, hogy a stílus szerves része az értékteremtésnek, sokkal szélesebb repertoárral ruházza fel az üzleti vezetőket, amelyet kihasználhatnak a versenytársaktól megkülönböztető stratégiák kidolgozásában. A kutatók hangsúlyozzák a kapcsolatot egy adott termelési módszer vagy stílus iránti elkötelezettség és a termékek hitelességének megítélése között (Beverland, 2005;Carroll &Wheaton, 2009). Carsten Friberg filozófus szerint az esztétikusan élvezetesre törekvés nem csupán ideális a designban, hanem mindig áthatja a gazdaság: "A gazdasági érdekek az érzékszerveket veszik célba, és az érzéki vonzódáson mint a termékek és a környezetük vonzerején túlmutatva bármilyen észlelésre irányulnak" (Friberg, 2019). ...
A designesztétika, az esztétikai vonzó hatás elérésének beépítése a tervezésbe, az e hatás által kiváltott élmény megtervezése és eszközrendszere, valamint az erre épülő élménygazdaság jelentősége vitathatatlanul megnőtt és egyre hangsúlyosabb szerepet játszik a vállalatok versenyképességében, melyet a stratégiai tudatosság határoz meg. A cégvezetők számára háttéranyagot is biztosítva tanulmányunk célja, hogy az élménygazdaság működési mechanizmusának alapját képező esztétika fogalmának általános értelmezését kibővítve bemutassuk azon összefüggéseket, hogyan lehet eljutni a designesztétikából kiindulva a gazdaságesztétikára épülő, a jövőbeli eredményeket nagymértékben meghatározó élménygazdaság hatékony működéséhez. Az esztétika beépítése a designfolyamatba az első alkotó gondolat felmerülésétől, tudatosan megjelenve érheti el azt a hatást, amellyel vonzó, az egyéni és a közös érdekeket is sikerrel megcélzó választási lehetőség jöhet létre (befogadó esztétika). A primer kutatás a kreatívipar területéről kvalitatív mélyinterjúkon keresztül ismerteti az aktív gazdasági szereplők kapcsolódási területeit és stratégiai fókuszpontjait. Az elemzett esztétikai vállalati stratégiák jelentős mértékben különböznek. Alapvető vezérelvként szükséges hangsúlyozni az esztétikai egyediséget és unikumot. A legoptimálisabb stratégia egy olyan kétpólusú brandépítés, melyben az esztétika és a technológia együttesen, oszcillatív módon dominál.
... The theory of authenticity in consumer psychology forms the theoretical foundation of this study. From this perspective, authenticity extends beyond the object itself; it also encompasses whether it aligns with the expectations of the authenticity evaluator (Carroll & Wheaton, 2009). The evaluations of object authenticity rely on consumer goals stemming from the idea that consumers pursue authenticity to derive meaning in their lives, and prefer brands and experiences that align with and reinforce their desired identity (or identities) as related to their personal goals. ...
... Urbanist Jacobs (1961) noted long ago that residents are quick to refer to local restaurants as a sign of the vitality and appeal of their communities. Consequently, substantial scholarly research has focused on food and restaurants to study culture, creativity, categories, boundaries, work, and the attribution of valuation and meaning (Blank, 2007;Carroll & Wheaton, 2009;Demetry, 2013;Dupin & Wezel, 2023;Fine, 2008;Goldberg et al., 2016;Lane, 2014;Leschziner, 2015;Opazo, 2016). As famed food critic Anthony Bourdain expressed it, "Food is everything we are" (Schulz, 2010). ...
Research Summary
We investigate the extent to which the increasing availability of ratings information has affected heterogeneity in firm performance and, if so, what market segments are responsible for these changes. A unique dataset was constructed with restricted-access government data to examine these questions in the context of the New York City restaurant industry between 1994 and 2013. We find that firms serving tourist and expensive price point market segments experienced increasing sales discrepancies as a function of rating differentials when ratings information became more easily accessible with the advent of online rating platforms. These findings depict how the prevalence of online rating systems have shaped competition and value capture, thus providing insight into the determinants of firm performance heterogeneity.
Managerial Summary
We examine the extent to which increasing availability of ratings information has affected firm performance by estimating changes in comparative sales between New York City restaurants between 1994 and 2013. Analyses indicate that increased access to ratings information during this period had a considerable effect on comparative sales for firms serving the tourist and the expensive price point market segments. These results provide insights into other industries where access to evaluations and rating systems have also increased. This work suggests that online ratings have affected how firms compete and capture value, and managers have opportunities to use rating systems to their advantage.
... Generally speaking, now that the internet has become more pervasive, artisan entrepreneurs have reduced such impediments, and their goods are more accessible to a broader pool of customers (Kuhn & Galloway, 2015;Luckman, 2015). In addition, there has been a complementary shift in consumer-based social movements, such as sustainability, farm-to-table, and 'buy local,' making artisan products more appealing (Carroll & Wheaton, 2009). In fact, Luckman (2018) reported that one of the biggest challenges artisan entrepreneurs seem to be facing is how to manage this explosive growth in consumer demand while not getting too big. ...
Transformative improvements require systemic change in an economy marked by extreme wealth inequality, stratified by geography, identity, and other social markers. In this chapter, we seek to raise awareness in the technology, design, and scientific communities of the long history of artisans—skilled, independent labor striving to keep a relatively unalienated workplace—that can offer a crucial resource to those interested in designing for a liberated economy. It is a resource as a history of counter-hegemonic movements and identities organized around technology. But it is also a potential site for participatory design, solidarity design and other methods for co-developing innovative strategies by which automation can support the rise of an unalienated economy. Rather than simply a throwback to a romantic past, artisans offer a present-day space for understanding work as a liberated form of expression and a locus for technological innovation grounded in just and sustainable ways of life.
... Legitimacy and authenticity are forms of a broader category of social phenomena termed social value-judgements. Researchers have identified a broad range of social valuejudgments, some of which-status (Podolny 2010), reputation (Fombrun and Shanley 1990), legitimacy (Suddaby et al. 2017)-have been the focus of decades of empirical research and others of which-authenticity (Carroll and Wheaton 2009), celebrity (Zavyalova et al. 2017)-are emergent areas of increased empirical attention. While each of these categories of social value-judgement play an important role in the constitution and perceived effectiveness of various aspects of corporate behavior, we focus attention on the two types of value-judgements that most directly capture the core competing tension inherent in the shift from shareholder to stakeholder value as the stated purpose of the modern corporation-legitimacy and authenticity. ...
We apply the lens of social judgement theory to understand the causes and consequences of the growing debate about the purpose of the corporation. Our historical analysis suggests that the debate about corporate purpose is not new and that it tends to arise during periods of growing economic inequality. Our analysis also suggests that the discursive shift from shareholder to stakeholder capitalism will trigger a new standard of social evaluation of corporations in which we no longer judge corporate behavior based on standards of legitimacy but rather on standards of authenticity. We explore what this change in social evaluation will mean for corporate competition.
History: This paper has been accepted for the Strategy Science Special Issue on Corporate Purpose.
This study aims to know the nature of the relationship between the three research variables, which are “brand authenticity”, “brand trust”, and “brand loyalty”. In addition to knowing the role of “brand trust” as a mediating variable in the relationship between “brand authenticity” and “brand loyalty”. These relationships were tested through a survey conducted using an electronic questionnaire published on social media targeting customers of the Baghdad Soft Drinks Company. The number of respondents to the questionnaire was (236) observations. SPSS V.23 and AMOS V.23 programs were used to analyze the data statistically. The study reached a set of conclusions, the most important of which is the positive role of “brand trust” as a mediator in the relationship between “brand authenticity” and “brand loyalty”.
Research Summary
Commercial success in craft‐based industries requires projecting authentic identities but direct claims of authenticity can backfire and raise suspicions of pecuniary motivation, an antithesis to authenticity. Managing authentic identities is thus central to the success of craft‐based ventures. We argue that organizations can shape their audience's perceptions of authenticity and appeal by tacitly and indirectly conveying a resonant identity meaning with visibility and credibility . Our empirical analysis, set in the US craft beer industry, reveals strong support for the idea that craft ventures can raise authenticity and appeal through managing the content/meaning, visibility, and credibility of their identity claims. We discuss the implications of our theory and findings for the role of organizations in the social construction of authenticity and appeal.
Managerial Summary
Managers of craft ventures in identity‐driven markets face a strategic challenge in managing growth—how to maintain the authentic identity of their firm as its scale of operations expands. In modern‐day craft industries, consumers covet offerings from firms that they deem authentic but overt claims of authenticity by producers are ineffective. Our study of the craft beer market suggests that managers can leverage strategic assets like organizational resources (ownership structure), capabilities (investment in technology and product variety) and position (third‐party endorsements) to effectively communicate their firm's identity meaning with credibility and visibility. This holds significant practical implications for how managers can successfully navigate the growth process and their firms can continue to be viewed as authentic craft producers even as they increasingly benefit from scale.
Elite craftspeople, as specialist producers with privileged access and resources, can elevate the perceived status of craft elements such as materials, traditions, and techniques regarded as lowbrow due to their association with marginalized groups. While they strive to emphasize cultural appreciation, they often face accusations of cultural appropriation, which, if unaddressed, can undermine the perceptions of authenticity crucial for achieving higher cultural status. However, this tension between appreciation and appropriation overlooks the complex interplay of authenticity types that can structure the actions of elite craftspeople. Drawing on a qualitative study of new Peruvian cuisine, we examine how local elite chefs elevate marginalized craft elements through authenticity claims and develop a dual process model of cultural appreciation and appropriation. In doing so we identify how the elevation of marginalized craft elements involves, and even necessitates, aspects of appreciation and appropriation, especially when power dynamics are at play. We provide insights into the interplay between authenticity as connection and conformity, the agency in neo-craftwork, and claims of craftwashing.
Sociological research has demonstrated a keen interest in authenticity by different audiences in a wide variety of social domains. The current study joins recent efforts by both sociologists and pornography scholars to empirically investigate the meaning and importance of authenticity for pornography viewers. It relies on in-depth interviews with 302 regular pornography viewers from a wide range of countries, cultural backgrounds, ethnicities and sexual identities. Findings show that most viewers ascribe significant importance to watching sexual acts that they perceive as authentic, although a significant minority does not find authenticity to be very important. I discuss the implications of these findings to sociological theory and research in fields such as the sociology of culture, the sociology of emotions and the sociology of consumption, reflecting on the challenges that demands for authenticity in pornography pose to feminist ethics.
Purpose
This study aims to explore the key attributes of robot chef restaurants and their influencing factors from the perspective of customers and analyzes how these key attributes affect customer perceived value.
Design/methodology/approach
A mixed-methods research design was used in this study. Using 473 online reviews and ratings (Study 1), the research summarized customers’ evaluations on three types of attributes (environment, service and food) and identified the key attributes along with their influencing factors. Subsequently, through field questionnaires (Study 2) involving 269 actual customers, structural equation modeling was used to analyze how the identified key attributes and their influencing factors impact customer perceived value.
Findings
This study reveals that customers in robot chef restaurants prioritize food attributes, particularly valuing food authenticity alongside food quality. In contrast to traditional restaurants, customers’ evaluations of food attributes in robot chef restaurants are significantly influenced by the competence of robot chefs. Notably, customers’ negative attitudes toward robots diminish the positive effects on both food quality and food authenticity.
Practical implications
To enhance customer perceived value, robot chef restaurants should concentrate on food attributes. They can achieve this by fostering a high-quality, authentic food experience through the elevation of robot chefs’ competence and by providing customer education.
Originality/value
This study expands research on the customer experience in robotic restaurants by proposing an integrated model determining factors that affect the perceived customer value.
Scholars contend that craft spirit makers communicate authenticity by emphasizing their passion for and commitment to tradition and by downplaying self-interest and profit. However, the presence of large corporations has made it more difficult for consumers to distinguish “true” artisanal values and methods from imitators. The lucrative craft spirit market has exposed the susceptibility of authenticity, which is often thought to be a distinguishing feature between craft and industrial firms. Drawing on the analysis of semi-structured interviews with distillers and craft industry actors, fieldwork at craft distilleries and state alcohol commission meetings, and the content of company materials, we explore how, and, with what consequence, distillers account for and respond to the obstacles associated with authenticity. In navigating internal and external constraints, distillers are forced to make accommodations that comply with consumer expectations and regulatory policies. As we show, assumptions about authenticity and craft as “good” inhibit craft distillers’ creativity and hamper their ability to express an authentic identity on their own terms.
Against the background of a growing interest in the resurgence of craft work, this article examines the organizational conditions that characterize craft-based production in contemporary society and how they help to facilitate craft resurgence. The paper identifies three organizational conditions of contemporary craft-based production, relating to the mass market, producing by means of flexible specialization, and using infrastructures. By applying a historical lens, I argue that these organizational conditions have formed into a particular way of organizing craft-based production which is attuned to local and temporal specificities. Therefore, this study builds on a complementary, symbiotic notion of craft which considers industrial manufacture, serial production and digital technologies to be constitutive of craft making. By offering an alternative conceptual framework to grasp the resurgence of craft, this article contributes to the understanding of organizational resilience.
O projeto de pesquisa pretende analisar a construção do mercado de cervejas artesanais no Brasil a partir dos percursos de empresarialização de cervejeiros artesanais, dos valores e representações nos quais a partir de uma estrutura de oportunidades sociais, simbólicas, econômicas e de recursos permitem a transformação de um hobby em uma atividade empresarial. A estratégia metodológica inspirada no trabalho de Lahire por meio de entrevistas em profundidade explorar as diversas esferas da vida de seus entrevistados, e ao
reconstruir as trajetórias de vida, retratar a construção do mercado de cervejas artesanais, enfatizando as semelhanças, as diferenças, as diversidades e continuidades, de um processo que esta acontecendo globalmente, mas enraizado nos processos locais. A expansão de microcervejarias, ao longo da última década, é decorrente de um percurso de empresarialização de cervejeiros artesanais, que transformam um hobby de fazer cerveja em casa, em panelas, em uma nova carreira, reconvertendo suas trajetórias profissionais para a identificação como cervejeiro artesanal, responsável pela abertura de novas microcervejarias, utilizando-se do conhecimento e das habilidades aprendidas e desenvolvidas neste fazer artesanal.
O carnaval é uma data que se destaca no calendário brasileiro. Nessa época diversas festas acontecem por todo o país. Em Pernambuco já existem focos históricos de animação como o bloco do Galo da Madrugada, os palcos distribuídos pelo Recife Antigo e as fantasias das Ladeiras de Olinda. No interior chama a atenção a Folia do Papangu, uma festa conhecida pela presença dos Papangus, pessoas com o corpo inteiramente coberto por tecido e máscaras. Essa festa acontece desde o início do século passado e passou por diversas mudanças e hoje ela se configura como uma das maiores festas carnavalescas de Pernambuco. É um acontecimento repleto de referências culturais históricas da região oferecidas com o trato de um grande evento. As atrações da festa exercem um fascínio naqueles que a presenciam. A pesquisa então foca em entender como se dá esse encanto e a teoria zizekiana sobre o gozo no capitalismo orientou essa busca. Os foliões procuram na festa o gozo, que é estruturado pela fantasia. Observou-se tal experiência como construção sociohistórica e a análise de discurso foucaultiana foi adotada. Como resultados foram encontradas duas formações discursivas complementares que permitem o entendimento do funcionamento do gozo e da fantasia na Folia do Papangu.
We offer a new perspective on how cultural markets are structured and the conditions under which innovations are more likely to emerge. We argue that in addition to organization- and producer-level factors, product features—the locus of marketplace interaction between producers and consumers—also structure markets. The aggregated distribution of product features helps producers gauge where to differentiate or conform and when consumers may be more receptive to the kind of novelty that spawns new genres, our measure of innovation. We test our arguments with a unique dataset comprising the nearly 25,000 songs that appeared on the Billboard Hot 100 chart from 1958 to 2016, using computational methods to capture and analyze the aesthetic (sonic) and semantic (lyrical) features of each song and, consequently, the market for popular music. Results reveal that new genres are more likely to appear following markets that can be characterized as diverse along one feature dimension while homogenous along the other. We then connect specific configurations of feature distributions to subsequent song novelty before linking the aesthetic and semantic novelty of individual songs to genre emergence. We replicate our findings using industry-wide data and conclude with implications for the study of markets and innovation.
A pesquisa analisa a construção do mercado de cervejas artesanais, a partir das narrativas de cervejeiros profissionais, que transformaram um hobby em uma atividade empresarial, através da caracterização deste mercado de trabalho artesanal, da identidade e autenticidade para as cervejas artesanais e o papel dos cervejeiros na construção da narrativa do mercado. Para elaborar a pesquisa mapeie cervejarias, realizei visitas, participei de festivais, fiz incursões netnográficas no Facebook, e entrevistas em profundidade com cervejeiros artesanais. A expansão de microcervejarias nesta década é decorrente de um percurso de empresarialização de cervejeiros artesanais, que transformam um hobby de fazer cerveja em casa, em panelas, em uma nova carreira profissional. O desejo de ser empresário de si, se fundamenta na autonomia, na iniciativa, e individualização, na qual a formação do mercado passa por suas identidades profissionais e organizacionais, na relação com os consumidores, na colaboração entre cervejarias, na oposição as cervejarias industriais, e na diferenciação com cervejas autênticas, pois cada garrafa contém histórias que contam a formação do mercado de cervejas artesanais.
Increasing demands to be seen as authentic at work have created a paradox of self-presentation for employees: the desire to be seen as simultaneously true to self and professionally appropriate in workplace interactions. The present paper introduces one way in which individuals may navigate this tension: strategic authenticity, a self-presentational approach that involves enacting behaviors intended to increase colleagues’ perceptions of one’s authenticity while accounting for individual and contextual factors that influence one’s professional image. I propose that the behavioral signals of social deviations (nonconformity and spontaneity) and self-expressions (transparency and vulnerability) increase colleagues’ perceptions of a worker’s authenticity but pose a threat to their professional image. Next, I highlight how felt authenticity and the degree of perceived violation of social expectations (i.e., benign versus taboo signal content and aligning with communal versus agentic norms) moderate the impact of signals on perceptions of authenticity and professional image, suggesting that strategic authenticity can be achieved via a careful selection of behaviors based on individual and contextual factors. Last, I consider how the enactment of strategic authenticity leads to high-quality connections at work, which over time, may lead to the formation of positive relationships (enhanced by an actor’s felt authenticity). This paper extends prior scholarship on authenticity, professional image construction, and high-quality connections by highlighting how to balance interpersonal goals to appear authentic and at the same time, maintain a desirable professional image in workplace interactions.
Purpose
Artificial intelligence (AI) allows the brand to co-create value with young customers through mobile apps. However, as many brands claim that their mobile apps are using the most updated AI technology, young customers face app fatigue and start questioning the authenticity of this touchpoint. This paper aims to study the mediating effect of authenticity for the value co-creation of AI-powered branded applications.
Design/methodology/approach
Drawing from regulatory engagement theory, this study conceptualize authenticity as the key construct in customers’ value experience process, which triggers customer value co-creation. Two scenario-based online experiments are conducted to collect data from 444 young customers. Data analysis is performed using ANOVA and Process Hayes.
Findings
The results reveal that perceived authenticity is an important mediator between media richness (chatbot vs AI text vs augmented reality) and value co-creation. There is no interaction effect of co-brand fit (high vs low) and source endorsement (doctor vs government) on the relationship between media richness and perceived authenticity, whereas injunctive norms (high vs low) strengthen this relationship.
Practical implications
The finding provides insights for marketing managers on engaging young customers suffering from app fatigue. Authenticity holds the key to young customers’ technological perceptions.
Originality/value
This research highlights the importance of perceived authenticity in encouraging young customers to co-create value. Young customers consider authenticity as a motivational force experience that involves customers through the app’s attributes (e.g. media richness) and social standards (e.g. norms), rather than brand factors (e.g. co-brand fit, source endorsement).
Research Summary
Research suggests firms can reduce stakeholder contention (e.g., lawsuits, protests) by collaborating with threatening stakeholders. We propose that by tapping into stakeholder networks and identities, collaborations also produce ripple effects beyond the firm's partner to attenuate contention from a broader set of stakeholders. Using variation in firms' and stakeholders' willingness to collaborate exogenous to contention to account for selection, our examination of contentious and collaborative interactions between 136 environmental movement organizations and 600 US firms corroborates our arguments. Firms face less contention when they collaborate with a better‐connected stakeholder motivated to share affirming information about the firm, or with a more contentious and authentic stakeholder. Our findings generalize to stakeholder criticism beyond movement organizations, suggesting collaborations are powerful tools for fashioning less contentious environments.
Managerial Summary
Companies can reduce conflict from hostile stakeholders like social activists by collaborating with their friends. We find social movement organizations mount fewer protests, boycotts, lawsuits, and other conflict against a company that collaborates with an organization that is either well connected in the movement or known for mobilizing movement's grassroots. This suggests that cross‐sector collaborations quell conflict through passing affirming information about a company through interorganizational networks or through the broadcast of an affirming signal to the broader stakeholder environment. We find that criticism from a wide range of stakeholders (e.g., media) also abates, suggesting that collaborations are powerful tools for fashioning less contentious environments.
Purpose
Authenticity is a trait that is considered by both Gen Z and Millennials as an integral part of the social media influencer persuasive episode. This research uses thematic analysis to deconstruct how both Gen Z and Millennials develop their perceptions of social media influencer authenticity.
Design/methodology
This study conducted four focus groups with a total of 15 members of Gen Z and 13 members of Millennials. Participants were screened to ensure they followed lifestyle social media influencers and have made purchases based on influencer recommendations. The online focus groups discussed how participants from each generation evaluate the authenticity of Social Media Influencers (SMIs) using a six-factor cumulative model (Nunes, Joseph C., Andrea Ordanini & Gaia Giambastiani. 2021. The concept of authenticity: What it means to consumers. Journal of Marketing 85(4). 1–20).
Findings
The research findings show that Gen Z considers SMIs to be highly educated friends with whom they can seek advice and opinions, while Millennials see social media influencer as a profession that needs to be done in an ethical and transparent manner.
Practical implications
These findings are useful in understanding the psychology between both Gen Z and Millennials so appropriate producer messaging can be used to reach them.
Originality/value
As the concept of authenticity has been defined differently by multiple entities, this research seeks to fill the current research gap in the literature analyzing generational definitions of perceived authenticity, specifically between the two largest online consumer cohorts, Gen Z and Millennials.
Purpose
The growth in social content such as video facilitates consumer exposure to social information at e-tail settings. Research has recommended enhancing the e-store socialness. Focusing on focal consumer outcomes (flow and purchase intentions), the current research delineates a boundary condition, proposing that e-tail socialness improves outcomes when the consumer interdependent self, rather than the independent self, is activated.
Design/methodology/approach
The experimental approach is employed to test the research thesis. Two experiments (N1 = 303 Females 42.4%; N2 = 387 Females 51.4%) that used different manipulation for socialness and sample frames (USA and Canadian) are performed. Analysis of variance was applied.
Findings
The results generally support the research thesis, suggesting that e-tail socialness enhances consumer flow and purchase intentions when the interdependent self is activated. The effect, however, is marginal for segments with high brand preference.
Practical implications
As more information increase overload and reduce decision quality, e-tail practitioners should focus on providing social information predominately for consumers whose interdependent self is activated. This recommendation is particularly relevant for segments with low brand preference.
Originality/value
So far, studies recommend enhancing the e-store socialness, or increasing the social volume, to achieve better outcomes. Such research stream is giving rise to the “social is better in e-tail” conventional wisdom. The current work contributes by delineating a boundary condition based on consumer self-construal. This work suggests that the use of online socialness is fruitful predominantly for interdependent consumers.
This article examines the strategies used by individuals within cultural fields to make a transition from previously low-status categories to high-status categories, in order to rise in the status hierarchy. Using the case of gastronomy in the global cities of London and New York, we investigate how the once strict boundary between high-end and ethnic restaurants is being breached, leading to field transformations. An analysis of the process of recategorization undertaken by chefs and restaurateurs reveals how strategies of category detachment and emulation are employed simultaneously: on the one side, to achieve a distancing from those held to be lower in the culinary hierarchy (ethnic restaurants/chefs) and, on the other side, to emulate those perceived to be above them in status (high-end restaurants). A third strategy identified is horizontal differentiation within the category – initiated by newcomers to ensure distinction and further secure their membership to the higher status category. Our analysis reveals the agency of producers in enacting status change by a focus on mainly material practices, while showing that recategorization is made possible by external societal and cultural transformations.
This chapter explores the politics of performance, a critical strategic tool embraced by the different movements in this study and their drive to bring about social change. The chapter argues that the different social movements of #OurMumuDonDo, #BringBackOurGirls, #FeessMustFall and #OccupyGhana adopted ‘politics of performance’ as part of their strategies and tools of engagement, as evident in their speeches, songs, dance, and other visual forms. Therefore, making the spectacle of rhetoric and ideology pivotal in the struggle for the human mind—to be conscious of their society and demand sociopolitical, economic and cultural developments of their societies—in the process of pushing and achieving social change. This chapter argues that this performance is invaluable in the communication of the counter ideology of the movements, and that this performance is not a new kind of politics, as social movements and protest groups have always used performance. However, the usage of new media technologies has enabled social movements and activists to amplify these performances in different and new ways to build and communicate their moral authenticity to both state and non-state actors. The chapter concludes that these movements’ moral authenticity can easily be lost if the vested self-interests of the founders/leaders and some members supersede the collective interest of the movement.KeywordsIdeologyPoliticsPerformanceRhetoricSocial movementsActivismNigeriaGhanaSouth Africa
Using comparative analysis to examine if there are common patterns within the different movements across Nigeria, Ghana and South Africa, the chapter argues that there are some common patterns among the movements, i.e., personalisation of movements, brand image and elitism, which have significantly impacted the movements and their goals. The chapter concludes that in reading about social movements in Sub-Saharan Africa, there is the need to recognise the unique context of each movement, their actors and ideologies, as these factors will largely determine and influence the success of the movements. The study critiques the notion of a one size fits all approach that tends to characterise social movements in Africa and that promotes the technologically deterministic view of social movements. The study acknowledges that while the different movements widely used social media technologies, their effectiveness is largely dependent on the context and agency of the movements.KeywordsSocial mediaTechnologyElitismIdeologySocial movementSocial change
How do omnivorous consumers perceive co-creation in cultural consumption? In this article, we combine observation data on co-created cultural productions, focus groups and field interviews to investigate omnivorous consumers’ perceptions of artistic experiences characterized by different degrees of co-creation. We explored this topic in the context of co-creative theatre, an emergent theatrical genre that provides for the active involvement of omnivorous consumers in the staging of a theatrical performance. Our findings reveal new dimensions of what it means for omnivorous consumers to be culturally open by showing their perceptions of interactive and participatory art, two distinct co-creative artistic experiences. While interactive art encourages consumers to intervene in the artistic experience by following the precise direction of the professional artists on stage, participatory art entails an even more active and autonomous role of consumers in the design of the experience. Our findings indicate that there are differences between the way in which consumers perceive interactive art and participatory art and that two distinct dimensions of cultural consumption – novelty and authenticity – emerge from different co-creative dynamics. The observed co-creation experiences portray the transformation of the omnivorous consumers from spectators or visitors to co-authors of the experience and mark the dissolution of the existing boundaries between production and consumption.
This chapter reviews the broader literature on authenticity and includes a discussion of the non-business areas which have more direct relevance to the marketing issues, namely arts, philosophy, sociology, and psychology. The first usage of the word “authenticity” is in the arts context, specifically in the museum where experts in test whether artworks are what they appear to be or are claimed to be. The chapter outlines two main perspectives on authenticity, i.e., modernist and constructivist approaches. On the one hand, modernist (or essentialist) approaches are rooted in positivism and assume that there exists only one version of authenticity. On the other hand, constructivist approaches are based on relativist ontology and assume that authenticity is socially constructed.KeywordsMuseum authenticityConstructivismModernismExistentialism
Platform economy politics reflect a trend of corporations working with civic actors to achieve shared political goals, reconfiguring once adversarial relationships (e.g., management vs. labor, homeowners vs. tenants). Yet theories on urban politics and policymaking often do not account for such “Baptist-Bootlegger” coalitions (Smith and Yandle 2014; Yandle 1983). This article analyzes how the efforts of two competing Baptist-Bootlegger coalitions shaped the 2018 short-term rental (i.e., Airbnb, HomeAway) ordinance in Los Angeles, CA, USA. I argue that a subtly coordinated partnership of housing groups, neighborhood activists, and hotel market incumbents leveraged their individual authenticity and resources to successfully articulate a shared vision with policymakers. Conversely, an opposing coalition of short-term rental platforms and hosts more explicitly combined their efforts under an organizational framework that conflated economic and moral claims; this hybrid organizational identity was perceived as less authentic by policymaking audiences and precluded potentially more strategic forms of organizing.
Purpose
Equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) policies have proliferated in recent decades, but studies have repeatedly noted their inefficacy and adverse effects. To understand the potential root causes of the inefficiency of EDI policies, this study examines how they are inhabited by individuals at the ground level.
Design/methodology/approach
This study draws on data gathered through 23 in-depth interviews with instructors at Progressive U , a large research-intensive Canadian university.
Findings
The data gathered/analyzed suggest that the implementation of EDI policies at Progressive U is hindered by the absence of coercive enforcement mechanisms, skepticism about their authenticity, the over-regulation of work and unresponsive bureaucratic structures.
Originality/value
This study examines the implementation of EDI policies through the prism of the inhabited institutions perspective in organizational sociology, producing insights that help to explain why EDI policies typically fail. In doing so, it produces insights relevant to both academic researchers and practitioners in the field.
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PURPOSE This study aimed to identify the dimensions of sport brand authenticity and to develop a valid and reliable scale for measuring such dimensions. METHODS Along with a sequential mixed method design, qualitative researches were conducted (a literature review on brand authenticity and the inherent value of sport, 5 one-to-one expert interviews, and a Delphi survey of 10 researchers). Based on the qualitative research results, an EFA (n=304), 2 times CFA (1st: n=304, 2nd: n=311), and correlation analysis using the other scale (brand relationship quality, brand attachment, brand credibility) were conducted to test reliability, construct validity, and criterion-related validity. RESULTS In the qualitative research results, 8 dimensions with 36 items were extracted; however 6 dimensions (originality, connectedness, legitimacy, authority, sport spirit, and expertise) with 28 items were identified as appropriate structures from EFA and CFA, and the relations between all the dimensions and other scales related to consumer attitude were statistically significant in the correlation analysis. CONCLUSIONS The findings suggest that the scale in this study could provide a new and specific perspective on sport brand authenticity, which is constructed using a general aspect and a sport specific aspect, and an understanding of the concept of sport brand authenticity in other sport industries.
Oriental carpets have been recognized as prestigious furnishing in the West since the Middle Ages. In many ways, they represent the epitome of Western concern with alien things - especially utilitarian alien things. Carpets entered the Western cultural arena as a rare alien item of interest and eventually became a commodity. But commoditization does not adequately explain their continuing success in the market or the special attention they receive from collectors.
Can the existential notion of "authenticity" developed by Heidegger and Sartre be applied to works of art? Can a work of art be authentic in the way in which Dasein or a human individual can be authentic? Is the attribution of "authenticity" to a work of art an aesthetic valuation?
What happens to authenticity in the age of global markets? Rather than enforce such sharp dichotomies as ‘authentic/inauthentic’ (object) or ‘exploited/not-exploited’ (artisan), this article recognizes that the notion of authenticity evolves and gains strength through a process of differentiation that largely relies on the social situations that the artisans, the sellers and the buyers inhabit. This article documents how the Thai artisans of the Hang Dong district have diversified their notions of authenticity in producing and marketing their ethnic and tourist arts. Handicraft artisans and entrepreneurs sometimes create multiple meanings of authenticity to accommodate, modify, and at times resist, the effects of globalization on local culture and local economic life. These different understandings of authenticity initially direct the course of production and exchange; but new, sometimes unexpected, understandings emerge in the course of action. The four social sources of authenticity are reactive identity, reluctant engagement, complicit appropriation, and transcendental values. Each source has a different effect on how much local control artisans exert in production and exchange and how long traditional motifs and production processes endure in the commercial market for crafts.
The number of small specialty brewers in the U.S. beer brewing industry has increased dramatically in recent decades, even as the market for beer became increasingly dominated by mass-production brewing companies. Using the resource-partitioning model of organizational ecology, this article shows that these two apparently contradictory trends are fundamentally interrelated. Hypotheses developed here refine the way scale competition among generalist organizations is modeled and improve the theoretical development of the sociological bases for the appeal of specialist organizations' products, especially those related to organizational identity. Evidence drawn from qualitative and quantitative research provides strong support for the theory. The article offers a brief discussion of the theoretical and substantive issues involved in application of the model to other industries and to other cultures.
This study illuminates how new markets emerge and how social movements can effect cultural change through market creation. We suggest that social movements can fuel solutions to three challenges in creating new market segments: entrepreneurial production, the creation of collective producer identities, and the establishment of regular exchange between producers and consumers. We use qualitative data on the grassroots coalition movement that has spurred a market for grass-fed meat and dairy products in the United States since the early 1990s. Our analysis shows that the movement's participants mobilized broad cultural codes and that these codes motivated producers to enter and persist in a nascent market, shaped their choices about production and exchange technologies, enabled a collective identity, and formed the basis of the products' exchange value.
This article introduces a new ecological approach to the study of form emergence based on the notion of an organizational community—a bounded set of forms with related identities. Applying the approach to 48 organizational forms in the health care sector, this study suggests that the development of novel forms is affected by the positioning of their identities with respect to existing form identities in the community, by the aggregate density and size of organizations matching those existing identities, and by the amount of attention directed at identity attributes by sector participants. Findings show that the process of form emergence is subject to population‐dependent effects akin to those noted previously for organizational entries within established populations. The aggregate density and size of organizations with similar identities increase the probability of form emergence to a point (cross‐form legitimation), but highly saturated regions of the identity space tend to be uninviting to new forms (cross‐form competition).
Considers structural inertia in organizational populations as an outcome of an ecological-evolutionary process. Structural inertia is considered to be a consequence of selection as opposed to a precondition. The focus of this analysis is on the timing of organizational change. Structural inertia is defined to be a correspondence between a class of organizations and their environments. Reliably producing collective action and accounting rationally for their activities are identified as important organizational competencies. This reliability and accountability are achieved when the organization has the capacity to reproduce structure with high fidelity. Organizations are composed of various hierarchical layers that vary in their ability to respond and change. Organizational goals, forms of authority, core technology, and marketing strategy are the four organizational properties used to classify organizations in the proposed theory. Older organizations are found to have more inertia than younger ones. The effect of size on inertia is more difficult to determine. The variance in inertia with respect to the complexity of organizational arrangements is also explored. (SRD)
This paper argues for greater attention to employment-based organizational identities in ecological theory and research. I define and explore three dimensions of particular relevance to labor market identities: sharpness/resonance, focus and authenticity. The paper offers some speculations regarding: (i) when labor market identities are most decisive for organizations; (ii) how product market and labor market identities interact; (iii) how employment-based organizational identities might be operationalized; and (iv) how greater attention to such identities would illuminate key issues in organizational ecology. Copyright 2004, Oxford University Press.
Consumer willingness to pay for a mandatory country-of-origin labeling program is assessed. A consumer survey was conducted during 2002 in several grocery stores in Boulder, Denver, and Fort Collins, Colorado. Econometric results indicate that surveyed consumers are willing to pay an average of 1.53 and $0.70 per pound more for steak and hamburger labeled as "U.S. Certified Steak" and "U.S. Certified Hamburger," which is equivalent to an increase of 38% and 58%, respectively, over the initial given price.
A framework is proposed to analyze the relationships between social structure, patterns of artistic consumption and production, and the ways in which artistic genres are classified. This framework helps to integrate findings of consumption surveys and to explain the emergence of new artistic genres as a form of ritual classification. Societies' artistic classification systems vary along four dimensions: differentiation, hierarchy, universality, and boundary strength. These dimensions are affected by formal characteristics of social structure, the organization of educational systems, and internal relations among cultural dimensions. The dynamics of ritual classification are mediated according to whether artistic production is carried out through commercial, professional, or bureaucratic means.
Although consumer demand for authentic market offerings has often been mentioned in consumer research, the meaning of the term "authentic" has not been sufficiently specified. Thus, some important differences among authentic market offerings have not been recognized or examined. This article uses Peirce's semiotic framework to distinguish between two kinds of authenticity - indexical and iconic. We identify the cues that lead to the assessment of each kind, and, based on data collected at two tourist attractions, we show that these cues can have a different influence on the benefits of consuming authenticity. Our results also contribute to an understanding of the negotiation of reality and fantasy as a part of consumption.
Argues that the formal structure of many organizations in post-industrial society dramatically reflect the myths of their institutional environment instead of the demands of their work activities. The authors review prevailing theories of the origins of formal structures and the main problem which those theories confront -- namely, that their assumption that successful coordination and control of activity are responsible for the rise of modern formal organization is not substantiated by empirical evidence. Rather, there is a great gap between the formal structure and the informal practices that govern actual work activities. The authors present an alternative source for formal structures by suggesting that myths embedded in the institutional environment help to explain the adoption of formal structures. Earlier sources understood bureaucratization as emanating from the rationalization of the workplace. Nevertheless, the observation that some formal practices are not followed in favor of other unofficial ones indicates that not all formal structures advance efficiency as a rationalized system would require. Therefore another source of legitimacy is required. This is found in conforming the organization's structure to that of the powerful myths that institutionalized products, services, techniques, policies, and programs become. (CAR)
The issue of corporate control is examined through an analysis of the de-diversification activity of publicly held American firms from 1985 to 1994. Prominent accounts of such behavior depict newly powerful shareholders as having demanded a dismantling of the inefficient, highly diversified corporate strategies that arose in the late 1950s and the 1960s. This paper highlights an additional factor that spurred such divestiture: the need to present a coherent product identity in the stock market. It is argued that because they straddle the industry categories that investors—and securities analysts, who specialize by industry—use to compare like assets, diversified firms hinder efforts at valuing their shares. As a result, managers of such firms face pressure from analysts to dediversify so that their stock is more easily understood. Results indicate that, in addition to such factors as weak economic performance, de-diversification is more likely when a firm's stock price is low and there is a significant mismatch between its corporate strategy and the identity attributed to the firm by analysts.
Sociological researchers have studied the consequences of strong categorical boundaries, but have devoted little attention to the causes and consequences of boundary erosion. This study analyzes the erosion of categorical boundaries in the case of opposing category pairs. The authors propose that categorical boundaries weaken when the borrowing of elements from a rival category by high-status actors triggers emulation such that the mean number of elements borrowed by others increases and the variance in the number of elements borrowed declines. It is suggested that penalties to borrowing in the form of downgraded evaluations by critics exist, but decline as the number of peers who borrow increases. The research setting is French gastronomy during the period from 1970 to 1997, when classical and nouvelle cuisines were rival categories competing for the allegiance of chefs. The results broadly support the authors' hypotheses, indicating that chefs redrew the boundaries of culinary categories, which critics eventually recognized. Implications for research on blending and segregating processes are outlined.
Talk is poetry: sociological poetry - rhythmic webs of connotative meaning bound together within a social structural matrix. Meaning depends upon a community of shared understanding in which strings of lexical items are interpreted. When we talk about things" we do not directly refer to the whole of our thought - our language is necessarily imprecise and capable of variable interpretations. Garfinkel's recognition of the presence of the "etc. rule" underlines that much of what we know we must leave unstated - full explication is a never-ending process. 1 In practice, however, speakers hope to draw from each other similar evocations. In Isenberg's terms we strive "to induce a sameness of vision, of experienced contentY 2 When this shared understanding occurs, it is because we have had similar experiences and have been taught to understand them in similar ways. Symbols are but marginally precise. This circumstance was nicely captured by George Herbert Mead in Mind, Self and Society: It is the task not only of the actor but of the artist as well to find the sort of expression that will arouse in others what is going on in himself. The lyric poet has an experience of beauty with an emotional thrill to it, and as an artist using words he is seeking for those words which will answer to his emotional attitude, and which will call out in others the attitude he himself has?
Authentic objects are those that have an historical link to a person, event, time, or place of some significance (e.g., original Picasso painting; gown worn by Princess Diana; your favorite baby blanket). The current study examines everyday beliefs about authentic objects, with three primary goals: to determine the scope of adults' evaluation of authentic objects, to examine such evaluation in two distinct cultural settings, and to determine whether a person's attachment history (i.e., whether or not they owned an attachment object as a child) predicts evaluation of authentic objects. We found that college students in the U.K. (N = 125) and U.S. (N = 119) consistently evaluate a broad range of authentic items as more valuable than matched control (inauthentic) objects, more desirable to keep, and more desirable to touch, though only non-personal authentic items were judged to be more appropriate for display in a museum. These patterns were remarkably similar across the two cultural contexts. Additionally, those who had an attachment object as a child evaluated objects more favorably, and in particular judged authentic objects to be more valuable. Altogether, these results demonstrate broad endorsement of "positive contagion" among college-educated adults.
In this paper we introduce a conceptual distinction between a hedonic and transcendent conception of value. We posit three linguistic earmarks by which one can distinguish these conceptions of value. We seek validation for the conceptual distinctions by examining the language contained in reviews of cars and reviews of paintings. In undertaking the empirical examination, we draw on the work of Halliday to identify clauses as fundamental units of meaning and to specify process types that can be mapped onto theoretical distinctions between the two conceptions of value. Extensions of this research are discussed. Copyright 2004, Oxford University Press.