Work

Conformity or Differentiation: Optimal distinctiveness through mediating channels

Year: 2024

Type: article

Abstract: The ongoing discourse on optimal distinctiveness surrounding the tradeoff between conformity and differentiation for achieving legitimacy prompts a crucial question: while conformity is known to legitimate, can the converse—differentiation—also confer legitimacy? We propose that new ventures possess the strategic flexibility to choose names conveying conformity or differentiation, enabling them to be perceived as legitimate. Expanding existing paradigms that suggest a tradeoff between the two constructs, we advance a harmonious rather than dissonant role of conformity and differentiation, suggesting that both can lead to legitimacy. More specifically, we expand the theory of optimal distinctiveness by developing a model that elucidates the cognitive processes that culminate in legitimacy perceptions. We then empirically test this model by undertaking an examination of new venture names. The theoretical contribution in this study lies in identifying the mediating mechanisms which explain the relationships between conformity and differentiation and legitimacy perceptions.

Source: Journal of Business Research

DOI: 10.1016/j.jbusres.2024.115154

Authors: Duygu Phillips, Bryan D. Edwards, Matthew W. Rutherford

Institutions: University of Delaware, Oklahoma State University

Language: English

Topic: Corporate Identity and Reputation

Subfield: Strategy and Management

Field: Business, Management and Accounting

Domain: Social Sciences

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $3,820

Funders: National Science Foundation, U.S. Department of Defense