The mortality problem of learning and mimetic practice in emerging industries: Dying to be legitimate
研究发现新兴专业服务行业存在高因果模糊性，不确定性干扰了制度理论中通过模仿降低死亡率的观点，反而导致迷信学习增加死亡率；创业者的教育和经验有助于发现机会，但高不确定性阻碍了机会的利用。
Abstract This study seeks to disentangle claims of institutional and organizational learning theories and to shed light on the impact of Knightian (environmental) uncertainty in discovery opportunities. This article suggests, and finds empirical support for, the concept that emerging professional service industries retain high levels of causal ambiguity. High uncertainty interferes with institutional theory's claim of mortality reduction through isomorphism, but leads to superstitious learning, increasing organizational mortality hazard. Education and experience of entrepreneurs help them identify discovery (exogenous) opportunities for entrepreneurial rents, while high (but untheorized) levels of uncertainty interfere in their ability to successfully exploit these same opportunities. Copyright © 2012 Strategic Management Society.