Institutional work, accountability and corruption: evidence from a social business organization in Bangladesh

Mohammad Istiaq Azim, Mokhtarul Wadud, Sarod Khandaker and Tarek Rana

Journal of Accounting & Organizational Change, 2026, vol. 22, issue 7, 160-186

Abstract: PurposeThis study aims to investigate how organizational actors engage in institutional work to shape and sustain intra-organizational accountability mechanisms and identifies which forms of institutional work are most effective in combating corruption and fostering accountability within a social business organization.Design/methodology/approachDrawing on institutional work theory, this study uses a survey-based methodology using primary data from 250 Grameen Bank employees across different organizational levels. Boundary work, practice work and relational work are operationalized through validated survey constructs. Probit and logit models are used to examine how these forms of institutional work, alongside employee characteristics, predict perceptions of organizational transparency and corruption.FindingsResults show that punitive measures and enforcement mechanisms (boundary work) are the most effective institutional practices for promoting transparency and reducing corruption. In contrast, corruption-prevention measures and anti-corruption training have limited impact, pointing to gaps in practice. Employee experience also plays a significant role, with longer-tenured employees reporting higher perceptions of corruption. These findings underscore the need for adaptive institutional work to maintain and refine accountability mechanisms over time.Research limitations/implicationsThis study focuses on a single social business in a developing country, which may limit generalizability. Future research could adopt comparative or longitudinal designs to examine how accountability mechanisms evolve across different contexts.Practical implicationsOrganizations should strengthen enforcement-led accountability (boundary work) while rethinking the design and delivery of ethics training to ensure contextual relevance. Interventions targeting experienced staff are critical to prevent the normalization of deviance.Originality/valueThis study contributes to institutional work literature by highlighting the role of micro-level practices in shaping intra-organizational accountability. It expands research on organizational governance by demonstrating how different forms of institutional work interact to influence transparency and corruption prevention in a complex organizational setting.

Keywords: Institutional work; Boundary work; Accountability; Corruption prevention; Social business organizations; Grameen Bank (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eme:jaocpp:jaoc-03-2025-0067

DOI: 10.1108/JAOC-03-2025-0067

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