Brian Barry

Bio: Brian Barry is an academic researcher from University of Wisconsin–Platteville. The author has contributed to research in topics: Economic Justice & Democracy. The author has an hindex of 29, co-authored 79 publications receiving 5936 citations. Previous affiliations of Brian Barry include University of New Mexico & University of Chicago.

Culture and Equality: An Egalitarian Critique of Multiculturalism

Abstract: All major Western countries contain groups that differ from the mainstream and from each other in religious beliefs, customary practices, or cultural ideas. How should public policy respond to this diversity? Brian Barry challenges the currently orthodox answer and develops a powerful restatement of an egalitarian liberalism for the twenty-first century.

Justice As Impartiality

Abstract: Almost every country today contains adherents of different religions and different secular conceptions of the good life. Is there any alternative to a power struggle among them, leading most probably to either civil war or oppression? The argument of this book is that justice as impartiality offers a solution. According to the theory of justice as impartiality, principles of justice are those principles that provide a reasonable basis for the unforced assent of those subject to them. The object of this book is to set out the theory, explain its rationale, and respond to the variety of criticisms that have been made of it. This is the second volume of A Treatise on Social Justice. The first, Theories of Justice, explored alternative theories and concluded by asserting the superiority of justice as impartiality. This conclusion is built on in Justoce as Impartiality, but it does not presuppose acquaintance with Theories of Justice.

Sociologists, Economists, and Democracy

Abstract: "Rationalist theories of political behavior have recently risen in status to that of a new or, more accurately, rediscovered paradigm in the systematic study of politics. Brian Barry's short, provocative book played no small part in the debate that precipitated this shift. . . . Without reservation, Barry's treatise is the most lucid and most influential critique of two important, competing perspectives in political analysis: the 'sociological' school of Talcott Parsons, Gabriel Almond, and other so-called functionalists; and the 'economic' school of Anthony Downs and Mancur Olson, among others." Dennis J. Encarnation, "American Journal of Sociology""

Why Social Justice Matters

Abstract: Preface. Part I. Social Justice: The Basics. Why We Need a Theory. The Machinery of Social Injustice. The Scope of Social Justice. Part II: Equality of Opportunity. Why Equal Opportunity?. Education. Health. The Making of the Black Gulag. Part III. What's Wrong with Meritocracy?. The Idea of Meritocracy. The Abuse of Science. Part IV. The Cult of Personal Responsibility. Responsibility versus Equality?. Rights and Responsibilities. Irresponsible Societies. Part V. The Demands of Social Justice. Pathologies of Inequality. Wealth. Jobs and Incomes. Can We Afford Social Justice?. Part VI. The Future of Social Justice. The Power of Ideas. How Change Happens. Meltdown?. Justice or Bust. Notes. Index.

Behavioral intention formation in knowledge sharing: examining the roles of extrinsic motivators, social-psychological factors, and organizational climate

Abstract: Individuals' knowledge does not transform easily into organizational knowledge even with the implementation of knowledge repositories. Rather, individuals tend to hoard knowledge for various reasons. The aim of this study is to develop an integrative understanding of the factors supporting or inhibiting individuals' knowledge-sharing intentions. We employ as our theoretical framework the theory of reasoned action (TRA), and augment it with extrinsic motivators, social-psychological forces and organizational climate factors that are believed to influence individuals' knowledge- sharing intentions. Through a field survey of 154 managers from 27 Korean organizations, we confirm our hypothesis that attitudes toward and subjective norms with regard to knowledge sharing as well as organizational climate affect individuals' intentions to share knowledge. Additionally, we find that anticipated reciprocal relationships affect individuals' attitudes toward knowledge sharing while both sense of self-worth and organizational climate affect subjective norms. Contrary to common belief, we find anticipated extrinsic rewards exert a negative effect on individuals' knowledge-sharing attitudes.

Rethinking Multiculturalism: Cultural Diversity and Political Theory

Abstract: Acknowledgements - Introduction - Moral Monism - Forms of Pluralism - Contemporary Liberal Responses to Diversity - Conceptualising Human Beings - Understanding Culture - Reconstituting the Modern State - The Political Structure of Multicultural Society - Equality in a Multicultural Society - Logic of Intercultural Evaluation - Politics, Religion and Free Speech - Conclusion - Endnotes - Bibliography

The Paradox of Redistribution and Strategies of Equality: Welfare State Institutions, Inequality and Poverty in the Western Countries

Abstract: the structure of welfare state institutions. (2) A trade-off exists between the degree of low-income targeting and the size of redistributive budgets. (3) Outcomes of market-based distribution are often more unequal than those of earnings-related social insurance programs. We argue that social insurance institutions are of central importance for redistributive outcomes. Using new data, our comparative analyses of the effects of different institutional types of welfare states on poverty and inequality indicate that institutional differences lead to unexpected outcomes and generate the paradox of redistribution: The more we target benefits at the poor and the more concerned we are with creating equality via equal public transfers to all, the less likely we are to reduce poverty and inequality. Social scientists and social reformers have long debated how the welfare state and social policies should be designed so as to best reduce poverty and inequality. This debate involves two different issues. One question concerns whether social policies should be targeted or universal, that is, should they be organized for the poor only or should the welfare state include all citizens? In the context of nontargeted programs, another question concerns the level of benefits: Should benefits be equal for all, or should they be related to previous earnings and in

Equality of Opportunity

Abstract: The modern formulation of equality of opportunity emerges from discussions in political philosophy from the second half of the twentieth century beginning with Rawls (1971) and Dworkin, 1981a , Dworkin, 1981b . Equality of opportunity exists when policies compensate individuals with disadvantageous circumstances so that outcomes experienced by a population depend only on factors for which persons can be considered to be responsible. Importantly, inequality of opportunity for income exists when individuals’ incomes are in some important part determined by the educational achievement and income of the families that raised them. We review the philosophical debates referred to, commenting upon them from an economist's viewpoint. We propose several ways of modeling equality (or inequality) of opportunity, pointing out that an equal-opportunity ethic implies a non-welfarist way of ranking social outcomes. We propose that economic development should be conceived of as the equalization of opportunities for income in a country. We consider equalization of opportunity from a dynamic viewpoint, and we review popular attitudes with regard to distributive justice, showing that there is substantial popular support for an equal-opportunity ethic. We discuss the empirical issues that emerge in measuring inequality of opportunity and provide a review of the empirical literature that measures degrees of inequality of opportunity for the achievement of various objectives, in various countries.

Quality of Government

Abstract: The authors argue that the concept of quality of government should be best understood as that of having impartial government institutions. This definition avoids functionalism, ignores the contents of specific policies in favor of the procedures for how they are implemented, and pertain to the output side of the political system. They discuss this concept in relation to several proposed alternative definitions.