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Institutional Isomorphism

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Global Encyclopedia of Public Administration, Public Policy, and Governance

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Synonyms

Institutional homomorphism; Organizational homogeneity

Introduction

Institutional isomorphism can be defined as a mechanism where one organization went through some organizational transformation by initiating actions that are similar to other organization in terms of procedure and outlook, but not in the outcome. It becomes a buzz word as World Bank and much more organizations often referred to the term for successful policy implementation, especially in developing countries. The term “isomorphism” (or “isomorphic mimicry”) is drawn from biological evolution in which one animal gains survival skills by pretending to have characteristics of other animals in a way that provides that animal with survival value (Pritchett and de Weijer 2011). A central precept of institutional theory is the belief “that organisations sharing the same environment will employ similar practices and thus become ‘isomorphic’ with each other” (Kostova and Roth 2002). Therefore, the terminology...

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Government and Politics, Jahangirnagar University, Dhaka, Bangladesh

    Nurul Huda Sakib

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  1. Nurul Huda Sakib
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Correspondence to Nurul Huda Sakib .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, FL, USA

    Ali Farazmand

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Sakib, N.H. (2020). Institutional Isomorphism. In: Farazmand, A. (eds) Global Encyclopedia of Public Administration, Public Policy, and Governance. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-31816-5_3932-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-31816-5_3932-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-31816-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-31816-5

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