Their paper After the Collapse: Spontaneous Institutionalization and the Emergence of Market Institutions, was recently published in Academy of Management Review (Volume 50, Issue 4). This is the world’s top journal for conceptual research in management.
Professor Haxhi, together with professors Miguel Rivera-Santos and Carlos Rufín, present a new framework. The framework explains how institutions can form on their own after a collapse of formal rules. Refugee camps are used as an example to illustrate the different paths the model identifies.

The paper draws attention to a largely overlooked factor: spontaneity. It shows how institutions can develop through spontaneous processes, alongside structure and human action. The study also explains how legitimacy and power can emerge without deliberate planning. In addition, it shows how institutional infrastructures can form naturally.

Natural development

Using emergence theory, the authors explain how order can grow step by step from many small actions. The basic idea is simple. People want to trade, reduce costs and build trust. When many small transactions take place, patterns begin to appear.

In the first stage, at the individual level, repeated interactions strengthen some institutional rules while others fade away. This happens through everyday shared activities and compatible cultural norms.
In the second stage, at the group level, these patterns lead to growing trust, authority and legitimacy. Groups and organisations start to form. Some actors try to steer these new rules in their favor. At the same time, transaction features - such as how exchanges are organised - become commonly accepted.
In the third and final stage, at the system level, these shared rules come together, leading to the emergence of institutional infrastructures that can support markets. Depending on the starting conditions, nine different types of institutional infrastructures can develop.

Spontaneous systems

The study contributes to research by showing that institutions do not always need powerful actors to be intentionally created. They can also spontaneously grow out of everyday interactions by actors seeking to decrease costs and increase trust. A key practical insight is that actors with limited resources can still succeed if they understand and influence spontaneous processes. In refugee camps, this can help aid organisations support self-reliance and entrepreneurship. At the same time, it can help recognise early signs of harmful systems in time.