Premium
Agency, Institutional Change, and Continuity: The Case of the Finnish Civil War
Author(s) -
Lamberg JuhaAntti,
Pajunen Kalle
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
journal of management studies
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 4.398
H-Index - 184
eISSN - 1467-6486
pISSN - 0022-2380
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-6486.2010.00925.x
Subject(s) - agency (philosophy) , institutional change , ambiguity , politics , power (physics) , face (sociological concept) , political change , field (mathematics) , civil society , spanish civil war , institutional theory , political science , political economy , sociology , public administration , social science , law , linguistics , philosophy , physics , mathematics , quantum mechanics , pure mathematics
The purpose of this paper is to study the role of individual agency in the process of institutional change. We conducted a historical study to explore the motivations and activities of two prominent individuals in business and politics before, during, and after the Finnish Civil War. Our most important finding is that the improvised actions of individuals with complex interests were causally related to long‐term institutional changes. Specifically, our study contributes to theory development in the field of institutional analysis by showing how individual actors can be a mechanism for both institutional continuity and change. On the practical side, our account can help managers understand the power of improvised activities in the face of ambiguity and uncertainty, especially if there is the possibility of acting in concert.