ABSTRACT
As it originally emerged, neoinstitutional theory was a fragmented array of positions with some common ground, but many differences as well (Scott 1987). By far the most fully developed of these positions, and apparently the first, was that of John Meyer and Richard Scott, who were both at Stanford University. A second position in a somewhat similar vein was that of Lynne Zucker at the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA), which appeared at roughly the same time in the 1970s. Somewhat later a variant was developed
Meyer/Scott Variant
Importance rating ★ ★ ★ ★
Estimated validity ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Estimated usefulness ★ ★ ★
Decade of origin 1970s
Zucker Variant
Importance rating ★ ★ ★ ★
Estimated validity ★ ★ ★ ★
Estimated usefulness ★ ★
Decade of origin 1970s
DiMaggio/Powell Variant
Importance rating ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Estimated validity ★ ★ ★
Estimated usefulness ★ ★
Decade of origin 1980s
jointly by Paul DiMaggio and Walter Powell, then at Yale University. I will focus primarily on the Meyer/Scott approach, but devote some attention to the other two, to provide a feel for the diversity. These three are generally considered to be the major current neoinstitutional theories, although there are other versions as well.
