The Federation as an Interorganizational Linkage Network

Although federations sometimes have been the focus of organizational research, a comprehensive discussion of the subject has yet to emerge.This paper is an in-depth examination of the federation as a type of interorganizational linkage network.Conditions conducive to federation formation are examined, three general types of federations focusing on differences in their network structure are identified, and the implications of federation affiliation for strategic level decision making autonomy are discussed.