"Scholars and managers in the marketing field have been looking for ways to identify and explain why their business partners act a certain way, how they can influence the business partners' actions or decisions, and how to instill a value system within the organization that would allow for such influence. Although not labeled as "legitimacy," most of the studies within the marketing literature look for an answer that can satisfy the questions of how to control the exchange partner (either supplier or buyer), how to influence the exchange partner, how to overcome opportunistic behavior, how to communicate effectively within an exchange relationship, how to create trust, how to maintain trust, and many more questions that allow scholars and managers alike to ask and find a solution that benefits the firms. Legitimacy helps firms establish credibility. Once established, it will allow others in the institutional environment to expect certain behavior patterns from the focal firm. Throughout the exchanges, the focal firm is likely to use different reference points in order to communicate why a certain action needs to be taken, which in turn will shape the expectations of the exchange partners. This concept becomes even more critical when the presence of trust comes into the play. Trust will likely emerge when firms act in accordance with the norms and expectations of their exchange partners however legitimizing actions will not likely create trust but presence of trust will strengthen the legitimacy and performance outcomes. Thus, Essay 1 aims to uncover the link among the purpose values of organizations and how they lead to legitimacy strategy creation. Later, it links organizations' legitimacy strategies to the market verification activities of the firm and consequently, firm performance. In order to provide a holistic picture, two dimensions of competitive environment have been introduced as moderating factors. In other words, six purpose values (dignity, plurality, solidarity, subsidiarity, reciprocity, and sustainability), four legitimacy strategies (authorization, rationalization, moralization, mythopoesis), two commonly studied verification actions (interfirm and market monitoring), and two competitive environment dimensions (competitive intensity and competitive hostility) have been identified and included in the conceptual model. Secondly, Essay 2 focuses on the moderating effect of trust on the link between legitimacy actions and firm performance. By turning legitimacy strategies into actions, Essay 2 aims to uncover how interfirm trust can help strengthen or weaken the link between legitimizing behavior implemented by the firms and the consequent impact on the performance. In order to provide a complete picture, five different types of trust (affect-based, institutionalization-based, deterrence-based, competence-based, and intentional trust) have been identified between exchange partners in institutional environments. Inclusion of the different types of trust allows for a more complete picture on the legitimacy actions and firm performance because legitimacy actions are a collective approval of the behavior by exchange partners and trust will likely have an impact on the approval of the behavior and performance linkage."--Pages ii-iii.
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