| This dissertation examines the legal, sociological and strategic dimensions of the illegitimate organizational field of cocaine from 1880 to 1930. Volume I includes a comprehensive interdisciplinary examination of the concepts of legitimacy and illegitimacy. Building on existing theories, I also suggest a modest perspective for bringing consumer demand more fully into discussions of the relationship between firm birth/survivability/growth and firm legitimacy/illegitimacy. Volume II includes a detailed examination of the cocaine organizational field. I also include a comparison to the alcohol organizational field. While cocaine, and alcohol to a lesser extent, serve as the research sites, this dissertation aims to contribute more general ideas to the large and growing literature on legitimacy and illegitimacy. |
