Conformity or Differentiation: Optimal distinctiveness through mediating channels

IF 10.5 1区管理学 Q1 BUSINESS

Journal of Business Research Pub Date : 2025-02-01 DOI:10.1016/j.jbusres.2024.115154

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

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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.

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来源期刊

Journal of Business Research BUSINESS-

CiteScore

20.30

自引率

10.60%

发文量

956

期刊介绍： The Journal of Business Research aims to publish research that is rigorous, relevant, and potentially impactful. It examines a wide variety of business decision contexts, processes, and activities, developing insights that are meaningful for theory, practice, and/or society at large. The research is intended to generate meaningful debates in academia and practice, that are thought provoking and have the potential to make a difference to conceptual thinking and/or practice. The Journal is published for a broad range of stakeholders, including scholars, researchers, executives, and policy makers. It aids the application of its research to practical situations and theoretical findings to the reality of the business world as well as to society. The Journal is abstracted and indexed in several databases, including Social Sciences Citation Index, ANBAR, Current Contents, Management Contents, Management Literature in Brief, PsycINFO, Information Service, RePEc, Academic Journal Guide, ABI/Inform, INSPEC, etc.