TERMIN „INTEGRACJA” JAKO NARZĘDZIE LEGITYMIZACJI. NEOINSTYTUCJONALNA ANALIZA UPRAWOMOCNIANIA DZIAŁAŃ W POLU ORGANIZACYJNYM OBSŁUGI I POMOCY IMIGRANTOM W POLSCE

As a consequence of the presence of immigrants in Poland various types of organizations provide them with services, assist them or supervise their integration process. Together those organizations constitute an organizational field. The actions of the actors must be legitimized according to the regulations, norms and cognitive mechanisms binding in the given organizational field. Therefore, legitimization is a process of acquiring legitimacy, which can be understood as a generalized perception or assumption that the actions of an entity are desirable, proper or appropriate within some socially constructed system of norms, values, beliefs and definitions. The actors carrying out the „integration” define the term in many different ways, and often consider it to denote different actions. This is not only because the concept of „integration” is open, but also because organizations and their officials use the term in a manner strikingly contrary to its academic definitions. The paper examines three cases of the legitimizing usage of the term „integration;” firstly, how the members of the organizations in the field refer to the literature about „integration” to name their practices; secondly, how the terms „integration” and „assimilation” are used in order to legitimize or delegitimize; and finally, how the formal requirements of the European funds exert coercive pressure for isomorphism on the organizations applying for resources and legitimization of their actions under the term „integration”.