Between Adaptation and Accountability: An Organizational Perspective on Violent Conflict

War is an inherently social and organized phenomenon. Despite this, an organization-theoretic approach to violent conflicts and the actors therein remains underdeveloped. This thesis addresses this gap by examining organizations as actors in violent conflict both regarding their operations and regarding the moral challenges they face. Through a history-to-theory approach this thesis sheds light on the internal organizational processes that enable firms to operate in war zones. On the other hand, a micro -perspective is applied to investigate the external moral legitimacy judgements of home country stakeholders who hold firms accountable that become complicit in unjust wars. Through this mixed-methods approach, the thesis seeks to generate and test new theory on the relationship between organizations, their stakeholders and violent conflict.