Compliance and Agency

Hans Gruber: Who are you then?

John McClane: Just a fly in the ointment, Hans. The monkey in the wrench. The pain in the ass.
--Die Hard

In authoritarian states, a crucial attribute of human behavior is compliance. A compliant person obeys rules and commands--ideally without question or protest.

As authoritarian states grow, demand for compliance extends beyond the ruling class. Obedient followers exert exert pressure on other citizens to be compliant as well. 

What stops growing isomorphic pressure from creating a completely compliant state? In the language of institutional theory, the word is agency. Agency occurs when individuals act strategically to advance their own personal interests in manners that defy status quo institutional demands. 

Agents almost always constitute minorities in strong institutional fields. But when agency becomes active, they can, much to the authoritarians' chagrin, muck up the best laid plans for compliance.