Socio-Economic Review - Advance Access

Introduction

Beckert, J. — 2008-04-15

Sociological studies of diffusion: is history relevant?

Djelic, M.-L. — 2008-04-15

The question of increasing similarity of forms and ideas is an important one in the social sciences in general. There are two main—and strikingly different—ways to account for increasing social similarity. The first is through an evolutionary or modernization type of argument, where increasing similarity reveals parallel but discrete processes of fit and adaptation. The second is through a diffusionist kind of argument, where forms and ideas circulate and spread across many different kinds of borders. Comparing three variants of the diffusionist argument, this article explores the different notions of time and history that these three variants reveal and express. While history always seems relevant, the way in which it is understood and plays out clearly varies across types. In conclusion, we suggest that recent developments in sociological studies of diffusion call, beyond history, to genealogical or archaeological research strategies.

The temporalities of capitalism

Sewell, W. H. — 2008-04-15

The temporalities of capitalism are in certain respects unique. The temporalities of social life in general are ‘eventful’, i.e. irreversible, contingent, uneven, discontinuous and transformational. Although capitalist social processes are in certain respects super-eventful, the extreme abstraction that is a signature of capitalist development enables core processes of capitalism to escape from the irreversibility of time and to sustain a recurrent logic at their core. This means that the temporality of capitalism is composite and contradictory, simultaneously still and hyper-eventful. Recognizing this contradiction at the core of capitalism poses important conceptual and methodological challenges for those who study it.

Local economic governance in hard times: the shadow economy and the textile and clothing industries around Lodz and Naples

Burroni, L., Crouch, C., Kaminska, M. E., Valzania, A. — 2008-03-30

Areas of industrial decline, with poor quality local government and poor infrastructure, frequently find a kind of economic success through the shadow economy. But illegality imposes constraints on the kind of success that can be achieved. The study of such areas in central Poland and southern Italy reveals considerable similarities, despite the fact that the former was part of the former state socialist bloc, the latter not. In both regions, small and medium-sized textile and clothing firms were flourishing within the limits of the shadow economy following the collapse of large corporations in the area. There were, however, important differences. Italian public policy has provided some possible routes out of the shadow economy, and its distinctive governance, which has been taken advantage of to a limited extent by firms, while Polish policy continues to deny that the problem exists. Also, because of the presence of leading clothing brands elsewhere in Italy, southern Italian firms have access to routes for upgrading their activities that are largely unavailable to their Polish counterparts.

Theoretical versus practical explanation in political economy and economic sociology: the case of Tocqueville

Swedberg, R. — 2008-03-17

This article represents an attempt to show the relevance of Tocqueville's analyses of economic phenomena to modern political economy and economic sociology. The entry point is his approach to explanation, which is midway between value neutrality (Weber) and the idea that explanations must lead to social change (Marx). Tocqueville instead argues that the analyst (here of economic phenomena) should focus on as well as encourage the actors' sense of freedom. This argument is illustrated with the help of Tocqueville's analysis of the economy in Democracy in America, Recollections and The Old Regime and the Revolution.

Transforming socio-economics with a new epistemology

Hollingsworth, R., Muller, K. — 2008-03-12

This paper argues that a new scientific framework (Science II) has been slowly emerging, rivaling the Descartes–Newtonian perspective (Science I) dominant for several hundred years. The Science II framework places a great deal of emphasis on evolution, dynamism, chance and/or pattern recognition. As both cause and effect of the new perspective, scholars in the physical, biological and social sciences are increasingly addressing common problems, borrowing insights from and interacting with each other. The epistemology of Science II has enormous potential for understanding problems of fundamental interest to socio-economists. The paper focuses on five useful concepts in the framework of Science II: self-organizing processes, complex networks, power-law distributions, the general binding problem and multi-level analysis.

Connecting the dots in social entrepreneurship through the capabilities approach

Yujuico, E. — 2008-03-07

Social entrepreneurship has received substantial general attention, though formal research interest in the concept has been more limited. I propose using the capabilities approach as a unifying theoretical framework in comprehending the concept. This approach is useful in evaluating and then linking the causal, motivational, behavioural and directive dimensions of social entrepreneurship. Consequently, an illustrative theoretical framework is developed to guide future research that is cognizant of the similarities and differences between conventional and social entrepreneurship.

The organizational governance of work relationships between employment and self-employment

Muehlberger, U., Bertolini, S. — 2007-12-21

This paper analyses work relationships on the border between employment and self-employment and the consequences of making use of these new forms of work, especially on the side of firms. We study the complexity and variety of dependent forms of outsourcing by comparing the firm-internal solutions adopted to solve the arising control–flexibility dilemma in two industries (insurance, business services) embedded in two different institutional contexts (Italy, Austria). This paper shows that employers have established informal relational contracts that, in combination with formal contracts, reduce the threat of opportunism while simultaneously allowing a certain amount of control over the worker. We highlight the fact that a hierarchal structure returns to the relationship between worker and employer through the mechanisms of control and dependency. Finally, we stress that social relationships complement the market mechanism through the creation of assurance and trust as well as the development of specific configurations of social networks (i.e. network and temporal embeddedness).