Interlocking Theorizations

Our project enhances existing research on the translation of global management concepts into local contexts in various respects: First, existing studies tend to focus on the dissemination of individual management concept; interdependencies of intertwined concepts have, thus, been neglected. Second, the divergent local variations of global concepts and the ongoing dynamics of translations have been understudied. Third, there is a lack of investigations of field level mechanisms. The proposed project builds on a combined and integrated application of both quantitative and qualitative research methods. It addresses different "bundles" of management concepts that are intertwined on the normative or programmatic level - intertwined insofar as their theorizations (i.e., meaning assignments and framings) either support each other or point in opposing directions. A first "bundle" has been identified based on extensive and detailed prior work (shareholder value, corporate social responsibility, and corporate governance). Additional combinations both for private and public/nonprofit sector will be identified in the course of the project. Cross- sectional and longitudinal design of the study will enable to reconstruct both structural patterns and dynamics over time. Our study analyzes in greater depth, on the one hand, the modified theorizations of globally available management concepts when they are adopted and adapted in specific local contexts. Genres of external corporate communication will be contrasted with public media discourse as the "resonance chamber" for divergent meaning assignment. Alongside such questions that are mainly concerned with patterns of adoption and translation on the level of the organizational field, we are interested - on the level of the individual organization - to explore factors that might explain how and why organizations choose one or several management concepts from an existing "bundle" as well as which of the local variations is applied. By coupling the analysis of organizational and institutional factors with the respective discourses that accompany the simultaneous processes of adoption and adaptation of multiple concepts, this project clearly moves far beyond existing research.

The project at hand extends existing scientific research on the translation and re-contextualization of management concepts in a number of ways. On the one hand, existing work almost exclusively focuses on the diffusion of single concepts, and potential interdependencies between concepts remain underexplored. On the other hand, divergent local variants of global concepts, as well as the dynamics of their translation, have of yet not received sufficient attention. Accordingly, at the core of the project lies the question of how the meaning of management concepts emerges against the background of their interdependencies with each other and their embeddedness in broader meaning structures. Such relational and cultural aspects of the topic have been considered both conceptually (e.g., institutional theory, network theory) and methodologically (e.g., correspondence analysis, network analysis). The translation of global ideas into local practices is discursively conducted in manifold ways. For this reason, the project foregrounds multimodal rhetoric (i.e., the combination of verbal, visual, and other forms of communication) and explores its relevance for organization and management. The first focus of the project on interdependent 'bundles' of management concepts generates novel and in-depth insights into the complementary, neutral, and/or contradictory relationships between simultaneously diffusing ideas of organization and management as well as into the consequences of such relationships and the underlying interlocking theorization. It is found, for instance, that the simultaneous diffusion and theorization of multiple, apparently contradictory management concepts facilitated the obfuscation of normative ruptures within the field. Another study shows how complex organizations may successfully enact a broad variety of often contradictory role identities simultaneously. The second focus explores in detail how the diffusion and the many-faceted understanding of societal or organizational ideas are enabled through the use of multimodal rhetoric. A study shows how visual artifacts can reduce complexity and represent the unknown through the familiar. Due to their emotional and metaphoric language, they are extraordinarily useful for communicating novel ideas, linking them to broader discourses and contexts, and translating them for local environments, cultures, and understandings. The project, as well as the substantial number of publications that constitute its output, contribute substantially to the scientific discourse in organization and management theory - particularly in the area of theorization, translation, and diffusion of global ideas in local contexts. In addition, it has central ample implications for consulting and management practice.