Survival of alternative logics in mature fields:The case of alternative schools in India

Abstract

This dissertation examines how alternative organizations in highly institutionalized and mature fields can deviate from institutions. Institutions are socially constructed rules, norms, and beliefs that result in taken-for-granted practices and routine-like behavior. Mature institutions, characterized by strong rules and norms and highly taken-for-granted practices, are particularly more powerful making it extremely difficult for organizations to deviate from institutionalized practices. In such highly institutionalized and mature fields, can organizations deviate from institutions? I explore this theme through new-institutionalism theory, particularly through the concepts of institutional logics and institutional work.