Actor legitimation in emerging markets: A network-embedded process

This study examines the legitimation of actors in international networks of emerging markets. Based on a network view of markets and literature on organizational legitimacy, we conceptualize actor legitimation as a process intertwined with the dynamics of international networks. We then draw on analyses of 78 legitimation episodes from interviews with actors involved in peacebuilding in Myanmar/Burma. We contribute to literature by defining the sources and targets of legitimation and by determining the related immediate network dynamics. Moreover, we depict actor legitimation processes regarding their network embeddedness in terms of salience, temporality, and longer term network architecture.