The notion of legitimacy answers an important question for institutional theorists: Why is there so much homogeneity in the forms and practices of established organizations? For example, visit banks, high schools, hospitals, government departments, or business firms in a similar industry, in any part of the country, and they will look strikingly similar. When an organizational field is just getting started, such as in Internet-related businesses, diversity is the norm. New organizations fill emerging niches. Once an industry becomes established, however, there is an invisible push toward similarity. Isomorphism is the term used to describe this move toward similarity.