"Doctoral Dissertation Research: Organizational Legitimacy Processes in the southern California Tuna Industry."
Despite the attention organizational scholars have given to the role of organizational legitimacy in the success and survival of industries and organizations, little research has been devoted to the actual mechanisms and processes by which industries and organizations gain and lose legitimacy. This dissertation will examine the southern California tuna industry from its inception until the present in light of the legitimacy processes that have characterized the industry's different stages. One of the contributions of the research is the use of a multidimensional concept of organizational legitimacy (constituted by moral legitimacy and cognitive legitimacy from the producers' and consumers' perspective), measured at three distinct levels of analysis (organizational, population, and community levels). Furthermore, the case of the tuna industry provides the empirical advantage of examining the mechanisms conducive to legitimacy loss, since the industry's moral legitimacy was severely questioned by environmental organizations and the general public due to high levels of dolphin mortality caused by the industry's production routines. The dissertation addresses the following research questions: (1) what are the consequences of the different types of legitimacy in organizational foundings and disbandings? (2) What is the impact of moral legitimacy loss on the industry's levels of cognitive legitimacy? (3) What was the industry's response to declining legitimacy and how successful were the industry's strategies in reversing legitimacy loss? The present dissertation measures the different types of legitimacy on the basis of a content analysis of news articles published in two trade publications (Pacific Fisherman and National Fisherman) and in a national newspaper (The New York Times). The data for the tuna fleet population derive from two datasets of the National Marine Fisheries Service and the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission. The data will be analyzed using event history analysis methods and time series regression analysis. Among the broader impacts resulting from this research is the design and offering of an undergraduate course on the social consequences of corporate action. The research findings hold practical relevance for broader audiences such as consumers and civil society organizations with an interest in the interplay between consumer activism and corporate and regulatory policies. Furthermore, the findings will appeal to the tuna industry and industry stakeholders in general, particularly in regards to the costs of a corporate socially tainted image and potentially successful measures taken to counteract spoiled images. Research findings will be disseminated through scientific and broader audiences.
