We develop a theoretical framework explaining how the evolving uncertainty imperatives of the nascent, emerging, and mature stages of a market category influence the entrepreneurial stories that audiences judge as legitimately distinct. Our focus is on the sensemaking role of different story components in shaping these judgments, both independently and through their holistic interplay. We also relate these story components to the broader issues that audiences seek to resolve at each stage, which affects their potential resonance. This framework provides a contextualized understanding of legitimate distinctiveness and identifies unique tensions in each stage of an evolving market category, offering a valuable integration and advancement of existing scholarship.

中文翻译：

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不断变化的市场类别中合法独特的创业故事


我们开发了一个理论框架，解释市场类别的新生、新兴和成熟阶段不断变化的不确定性需求如何影响受众认为合理独特的创业故事。我们的重点是不同故事成分在形成这些判断时的意义建构作用，无论是独立的还是通过它们的整体相互作用。我们还将这些故事组成部分与观众在每个阶段寻求解决的更广泛的问题联系起来，这会影响他们的潜在共鸣。该框架提供了对合法独特性的情境化理解，并识别了不断发展的市场类别的每个阶段的独特张力，为现有学术提供了有价值的整合和进步。