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Institutional Logics, Extended Rationality, and the Effects of Military Background of Business Leaders Institutional Logics, Extended Rationality, and the Effects of Military Background of Business Leaders Item Type text; Electronic Dissertation Authors Han, Yi Publisher The University of Arizona. Rights Copyright © is held by the author. Digital access to this material is made possible by the University Libraries, University of Arizona. Further transmission, reproduction or presentation (such as public display or performance) of protected items is prohibited except with permission of the author. Download date 27/09/2021 06:08:54 Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/10150/195973 INSTITUTIONAL LOGICS, EXTENDED RATIONALITY, AND THE EFFECTS OF MILITARY BACKGROUND OF BUSINESS LEADERS by Yi Han A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of the DEPARTMENT OF SOCIOLOGY In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY In the Graduate College THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA 2008 2 THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA GRADUATE COLLEGE As members of the Dissertation Committee, we certify that we have read the dissertation prepared by Yi Han entitled Institutional Logics, Extended Rationality, and the Effects of Military Background of Business Leaders and recommend that it be accepted as fulfilling the dissertation requirement for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Data: October 27, 2008 Albert Bergesen Data: October 27, 2008 Joseph Galaskiewicz Data: October 27, 2008 Ronald Breiger Final approval and acceptance of this dissertation is contingent upon the candidate’s submission of the final copies of the dissertation to the Graduate College I hereby certify that I have read this dissertation prepared under my direction and recommend that it be accepted as fulfilling the dissertation requirement. Data: October 27, 2008 Dissertation Director: Albert Bergesen 3 STATEMENT BY AUTHOR This dissertation has been submitted in partial fulfillment of requirement for an advanced degree at the University of Arizona and is deposited in the University Library to be made available to borrowers under rules of the Library. Brief quotations from this dissertation are allowable without special permission, provided that accurate acknowledgement of source is made. Requests for permission for extended quotation from or reproduction of this manuscript in whole or in part may be granted by the head of the major department or the Dean of the Graduate College when in his or her judgment the proposed use of the material is in the interests of scholarship. In all other instances, however, permission must be obtained from the author. SIGNED: Yi Han 4 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I am grateful to the members of my dissertation committee for their advice on this research and other studies. Thanks to Ron Breiger for teaching me theory, network and cultural analysis. Thanks to Joe Galaskiewicz for teaching almost everything I know about the sociology of organizations. Thanks to Al Bergesen for teaching me the crafts of sociology. Other professors in the department have been inspiring in my research too. I feel thankful to Erin Leahey, Jeff Sallaz, and especially to Charles Ragin for teaching me QCA and helping with this dissertation. And thanks to Patricia Thornton at Duke University for helping me with emails. Conversations with many graduate students in the department have been both helpful and delightful: thanks to Omar Lizardo, Jeff Larson, Samantha Kwan, Scott Savage, Joy Inouye, Matt Greens, Brayden King, Alexander Ibsen, and many other graduates. Thanks to researchers of Leadership Initiative Program at Harvard Business School for providing their database. A small grant from the University of Arizona’s Social and Behavioral Sciences Research Institute was also helpful. Special thanks to my family, to my wife Wang Li for everything. This dissertation is dedicated to my parents, in grateful memory. 5 TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES…….………………………….…………………………………….7 LIST OF TABLES……………………………………………………………………….7 ABSTRACT……………………………………………………………………………...8 CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION: TOWARDS A SOCIOLOGY OF LEADERSHIP...10 Psychological Studies of Leadership……………………………………………12 Economic and Business Theories of Leadership…..…………………………....19 Classical Sociological Theories of Leadership………………………………….24 System Theory……………………………………………………………….….32 Field Theory……………………………………………………………………..38 Institutional Theory……………………………………………………………...44 The Importance of Social Background………………………………………….50 A Sociology of Leadership………………………………………………...…....54 Summary of Chapter One……………………………………………………….59 CHAPTER 2: BUSINESS AND THE MILITARY..........................................................62 Institutions and Environment…............................................................................64 Military Profession and the Organization of Military……...................................69 Personal Network: Elites and Power……….........................................................77 Organizational Network: Military Industrial Complex……….............................81 Military Cultural Logics and Business……...................................................…...88 Summary of Chapter Two……………….............................................................99 CHAPTER 3: THE COMPETITION OF INSTITUTIONAL LOGICS: RISE OF MILITARY PERSONNEL TO GREAT BUSINESS LEADERSHIP...........………….103 Introduction……………………..........................................................................103 Research Background…………………………………………………………..107 Data………………………………………………………………………….….118 Hypotheses…………………………………………………………...…………121 Methods…………………………………………………………………………126 Results…………………………………………………………….…………….130 Discussion………………………………………………………..……………..136 CHAPTER 4: THE EFFECTS OF MILITARY BACKGROUND ON BUSINESS......150 Introduction……………………………………………...……………………..150 Research Background………………………………………………………….154 Data…………………………………………………………………………….162 Hypotheses………………………….…………………………………….……164 Methods……………………………..…………………………………….……167 Results…………………………….…………………………………..………..172 Discussion…………………………………………………………….………..174 6 TABLE OF CONTENTS—Continued CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION: INSTITUTIONAL LEADERSHIP AND EXTENDED RATIONALITY……………………………………………………………………....185 Summary of Theories and Findings…………………………………………..186 Theoretical Implications………………………………………………...…….191 Empirical Implications………………………………………………………..202 Limitations to Study………………………………………………………..…204 Suggestions for Future Research…………………………………….………..205 APPENDIX A: Correlation of Variables Used in Chapter Three …………………….209 APPENDIX B: Correlation of Variables Used in Chapter Four………………………211 APPENDIX C: Truth Table for Data on Profitability in fsQCA Analysis…………….212 REFERENCES………………………………………………………………………...213 7 LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1.1 A System Model of Organization………………………………………….60 Figure 1.2 Overlapping Fields of Capitals (Adopted from Bourdieu, 1993, p.38)..…..60 Figure 1.3 Relations of Institutions as Sources for Leadership……………………..…61 Figure 2.1 A Model for Relationship between Military and Business………….…….102 Figure 3.1 Proportion of Social Background of Business Leaders over Decades….....141 Figure 3.2 Correspondence Analysis Graph for Military and Industry…………….…142 Figure 4.1 Comparison of Profitability of Companies without Ex-military Leaders and with Ex-military Leaders (1950-2000)………………………………………………..179 LIST OF TABLES Table 2.1 Institutional Logics of Capitalist Society and their Relations…………...….101 Table 3.1 Basic Statistics of Variables………………………………………….….….143 Table 3.2 Social Background Origin of CEOs at Each Decade……………………….144 Table 3.3 Results of Logit Models Predicting a CEO with military Social Background………………………………………………..…………………………..145 Table 3.4 Results of Logit Models Predicting Being Associated with Rational Years…………………………………………………………………………………..146 Table 3.5 Cross-tabulation of Militaries by Industries……………………….……….147 Table 3.6 Results of OLS Models Predicting Years towards CEO and Years in CEO…………………………………………………………………………………...148 Table 3.7 Results of OLS Models Predicting Age at First CEO Position…………….149 Table 4.1 Basic Statistics of Variables Used………………………………………….180 Table 4.2 Results of HLM Models Predicting Net Sales and Operating Income……..181 Table 4.3 Results of HLM Models Predicting Profitability (Log)…………………….182 Table 4.4 Results of HLM Models Predicting Profitability with Military Years and Ranks………………………………………………………………………….……..…183 Table 4.5 Results of HLM Models Predicting Number of Employees and Total Assets…………………………………………………………………………………..184 Table 5.1 Theories and Models of Decision-Making…………………………………..208 8 ABSTRACT This is a theoretical and empirical study of leadership. Although sociologists have contributed important theories and research on authority and power, there is not yet a developed leadership theory in sociology. On the other hand, leadership studies in other disciplines are not satisfying, and they will not be satisfying in the foreseeable future if they adhere to their basic theoretical orientations, e.g. focusing on leadership personal traits and characteristics. I elaborate the important sociological theories that can be used in the study of leadership. I also intend to link sociological theories of leadership to social background analysis. The social backgrounds considered are family status, education, religion, military service, and more. Particular attention is paid to military background and its impact on business, because military has always been such an important social phenomenon but the theories of it have been controversial. The study of leadership inevitably involves both individuals and
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