| Legitimization of Social Enterprises Across Developmental Stages: Two Case Studies |
Received:October 16, 2017 Revised:October 16, 2017 |
Key Words: Legitimacy; social enterprises; developmental stages; case study; socialization |
| Author Name | Affiliation | | Yuanqiong He0 | Huazhong University of Science and Technology | | Xin Chen0 | Huazhong University of Science and Technology | | Lihua Wang* | San Francisco State University |
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Abstract: |
| This paper integrates the legitimization theory and the socialization theory to examine how social enterprises gain legitimacy across different developmental stages. The findings from two case studies indicate that social enterprises adopt strategies of group socialization, task socialization, and organization socialization to initiate economic and social interactions with various stakeholders. During the founding stage, relational legitimacy is a primary goal. During the growth stage, social enterprises focus on achieving market legitimacy. At the mature stage, the primary focus shifts to social legitimacy. |
