"In the past few years, organizational researchers have found a renewed interest in categorization and its consequences. Most research focuses on the consequences of categorization for the categorized items, arguing that a clear identity is important for users to understand (and thus value) an item. In my dissertation, I shift the perspective from the users and the categorized items to focus on the creator of the classification scheme. I question the commonly held assumption that categories are created to reduce ambiguity and structure the world for users. In the first part of my dissertation, I suggest conditions under which a categorizer might create an ambiguous classification scheme rather than an unambiguous one. I argue that the ambiguity of the classification scheme depends on the categorizer’s relationship with the items it rates, its relationship with many different types of users, and its status relative to other categorizers within the industry. By doing so, I move the focus away from the results of categorization to the antecedent of it. Users frequently question whether an item has been correctly placed in a classification scheme, but they must also question whether the scheme itself has been created strategically by the categorizer.

In the second part of my dissertation, I examine the performance of classification schemes. While strategic behavior may help an organization achieve its objectives, in the long run, there may be negative consequences for a categorizer when the meaning of a classification scheme cannot be understood. I argue that overly ambiguous classification schemes perform poorly, leading to the eventual discard of the scheme, unless a categorizer can use its network position to compensate for the reduced understanding. In addition, I measure the linguistic position of the individual scheme to illuminate how the usage of the scheme within an organizational field affects its longevity. I use equity rating systems (for example, “buy, sell, hold”) in the United States during the years 1992-1999 as a setting in which to test my hypotheses."