Foundations and Fault Lines: A Theorization of Certification Emergence Patterns and the Latent Hazards Facing New Ventures

Abstract

Certifications are powerful institutional mechanisms that shape markets and guide firm behavior. However, we know little about their emergence patterns or whether they truly benefit the firms that adopt them. In this dissertation, I theorize how market ambiguity and stakeholder pressure set the stage for institutional agents to construct certification schemes. This combination influences whether emergence occurs and the design of the measurement scheme. I then examine the counterperformative potential of certification through an embedded case study of ethical certifications in the cosmetic industry. I use interviews, archival data, and direct observation to trace how certifications cascade through value chains, embedding heuristics and processes that can later backfire. I contribute to certification research by theorizing patterns of emergence and how certifications embed and activate latent hazards. In doing so, I illuminate the institutional work of agents and the tensions entrepreneurs face between securing legitimacy and maintaining flexibility.