By: Andrew Hoffman and P. Devereaux Jennings
Published in Organization & Environment, March 2015
Abstract: This review article summarizes some of the main tenets of institutional theory as they apply to the domain of organization and the natural environment (O&NE). But it is distinctive from other reviews for two reasons: first, it is focused on providing avenues for research in the Anthropocene Era. Second, while based on the trajectory of current, accumulated theory and research, this paper is forward-looking in its orientation, guiding future work to explore the emergence of a new social reality in Anthropocene Society. We begin with a summary of scientific research on the Anthropocene Era, then move to its implications for grand and mid-range institutional theory principles. We then discuss how institutional research might be used to inform societal recognition, transition and response to the Anthropocene shift, and conclude with a call to re-energize and re-radicalize the O&NE field to properly address the magnitude and scope of this shift.
Institutional Theory and the National Environment: Research in (and on) the Anthropocene (pdf).