Abstract:

The main purpose of this study is to determine the level of institutional isomorphism of Guidance Research Centers (GRS), which are public education organizations. The concept of institutional isomorphism means that organizations that are similar according to the type, level and characteristics of environmental conditions can survive. In the study, coercive and normative dimensions of institutional isomorphism were analyzed by textual analysis and the mimetic isomorphism dimension was analyzed by the social network analysis method. The study was carried out in the 2019-2020 academic year. Thirty-eight top managers from six different geographical regions across Turkey participated. The participants of the study were selected by snowball sampling and the data generator method. The data of the study were collected by documentation and semi-structured interview techniques. The qualitative data of the study on coercive and normative isomorphism were analyzed by descriptive and content analysis; Social network analysis data on mimetic isomorphism were analyzed with UCINET 6.647 software, network structural features and inter-actor relations. According to the findings obtained in the research, GRCs, which are affiliated to the same top-institution, assigned to the same legal infrastructure, working in the same occupational field, as expected theoretically, are highly coercive and normative isomorphic organizations. However, according to the social network analysis data obtained in the mimetic dimension and the network analysis diagrams created by 79 actors. It is essential to consider the factors of institutional isomorphism in determining what improvements are to be made to develop the capacities of GRCs and disseminate new practices and successful studies.

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