PhD thesis on institutional change processes

Integrating the learning and institutional building blocks Markova’s study aims to capture the complexity of institutional transformation. Institutional change is defined as an incremental and highly consequential process with a specific focus on the behavioral micro-foundations.

Examining institutional change which takes place because of internationalization, her research takes into account the macro-level institutions, defined as the national formal and informal frameworks and the micro-level institutions, comprising organizational routines, which are nested within local organizations. The process of change is studied in local organizations of transition economies under the collective impact of national governments and the multinational.

Based on empirical cases set in Romanian and Ukrainian subsidiaries of Western European MNCs two scenarios of change are identified. The scenario followed in the Romanian case is triggered by the macro-institutions, while the Ukrainian scenario is triggered by the micro-institutional processes. The difference between these scenarios is then explained based on an integration of multiple factors that are held to influence the change process.

The implications of the research are two-fold. First, by having a much wider scope than other studies, this research further conceptualizes and integrates the theory on institutional change. Secondly, it provides empirical evidence for how institutional change occurs looking at multiple factors. It explores the interplay between different levels of institutions, seeks to explain variable paces of institutional change, studies the interaction between firms and their environment, and adds to the understanding of the persistence of institutions in a changing environment.

Curriculum vitae
Tamara Markova (Soviet Union, 1981) studied Business Administration at Linköping University. She conducted her PhD research at research school SOM of the faculty. She will be awarded her PhD in economics and Business on 9 November 2009 (4.15pm). Her supervisor is prof.dr. A.M. Sorge and the thesis is titled: Institutional change processes under the joined impact of government, multinationals and local practices. Markova currently teaches marketing at the NHTV in Breda.