The Emergence and Evolution of Organizational Fields: Toward a Theory of a Place Based Field

Building on the idea of organizational field, this article examines the emergence, evolution, and stabilization of the smart cities field. By drawing examples from Barcelona theoretical case, we argue that the initial field emergence is coupled with the promotion of corporate logic, which failed to take the ‘place’ into account. The ‘means’ in which the field emerged gained enormous critical exposure, attracting resistance from a key stakeholder group. This process led to field level negotiations and change in logic prioritization. We theorize this process and propose a theory of place-based field to emphasize that the field emergence needs to focus on the means, by which it engages different actors that would offer prescription for legitimacy and survival.