Showing papers in "International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy in 2007"
TL;DR: This paper reviewed definitions and applications of bridging and bonding social capital, classifies empirical studies according to each network type, and produces a further breakdown according to methodological approach, concluding that most studies make little distinction on the basis of methodology between qualitative and quantitative approaches to investigating social capital.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to show that numerous studies have advanced social capital research over the past decade. Most studies have accepted the theoretical distinction between bonding and bridging social capital networks. Many, however, tend to agglomerate empirical research under the one catch‐all social capital concept, rather than classifying it according to the bonding/bridging distinction. Furthermore, most studies make little distinction on the basis of methodology, between qualitative and quantitative approaches to investigating social capital. These omissions need to be addressed.Design/methodology/approach – This paper reviews definitions and applications of bridging and bonding social capital, classifies empirical studies according to each network type, and produces a further breakdown according to methodological approach.Findings – The result is a four‐part “grid” of social capital research, encompassing bonding and bridging, and quantitative and qualitative aspects. This paper ...
269 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a new multi-criteria evaluation tool is developed, from New Economics theory, to assess the effectiveness of community-based initiatives at achieving sustainable consumption objectives, including localisation, reducing ecological footprints, community building, collective action and creating new socioeconomic institutions.
Abstract: Purpose – Sustainable consumption is increasingly on the policy menu, and local organic food has been widely advocated as a practical tool to make changes to conventional production and consumption systems. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the effectiveness of community‐based initiatives at achieving sustainable consumption objectives.Design/methodology/approach – A new multi‐criteria evaluation tool is developed, from New Economics theory, to assess the effectiveness of initiatives at achieving sustainable consumption. The key indicators are: localisation, reducing ecological footprints, community building, collective action and creating new socio‐economic institutions. This evaluation framework is applied to an organic producer cooperative in Norfolk, UK, using a mixed‐method approach comprising site visits, semi‐structured interviews and a customer survey.Findings – The initiative was effective at achieving sustainable consumption in each of the dimensions of the appraisal tool, but nevertheles...
117 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors explore activation policy as a condensate for new forms of governance in respect of welfare institutions and in relation to welfare subjects, and highlight the tension between active, activist and activation conceptions of citizenship.
Abstract: Purpose – This paper aims to explore activation policy as a condensate for new forms of governance in respect of welfare institutions and in relation to welfare subjects. It asks how far apparently similar concepts – contractualisation, individuation, personalisation – can be applied to the governance of institutions and the governance of persons.Design/methodology/approach – The paper draws on a model of different governance regimes to trace different dynamics at stake in the shift to activation policy.Findings – Tensions in the dynamics of the transformation of welfare governance around notions of activation are highlighted. It is also argued that different reconfigurations of power are at stake in the governance of institutions and the governance of persons. Finally tensions between notions of active, activist and activation conceptions of citizenship are traced.Research limitations/implications – The paper challenges a govermentality perspective in which managerial discourses are assumed to have simil...
88 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors discuss the individualisation trend in the provision of social services, focusing on activation services specifically, and analyze three national case studies of individualised service provision in the context of activation: the UK, The Netherlands and Finland.
Abstract: Purpose – This article aims to discuss the individualisation trend in the provision of social services, focusing on activation services specifically.Design/methodology/approach – The individualisation trend in the provision of activation services is analysed against the background of public sector as well as social sector as well as social policy reforms: the introduction of new modes of governance and the rise of the active welfare state respectively.Findings – Concrete manifestations of individualised service provision are often based on various interpretations of individualisation and reflect different meanings of citizens’ participation, and refer to different modes – or rather, mixes of different modes – of governance. The general argument of the article is illustrated and elaborated by analysing three national case studies of individualised service provision in the context of activation: the UK, The Netherlands and Finland.Originality/value – The trend that is analysed in the article – individualise...
81 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examine the role that management style plays in retaining workers in a high labour turnover industry and find that positive actions by management promote worker attachment to leaders and the organization and are crucial in sustaining work values that diminish the likelihood of turnover.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the role that management style plays in retaining workers in a high labour turnover industry.Design/methodology/approach – Case study approach based upon extensive interviews with workers and managers derived from industry wide data set.Findings – Positive actions by management promote worker attachment to leaders and the organization and are crucial in sustaining work values that diminish the likelihood of turnover.Practical implications – Management style is a variable that is often overlooked in shaping worker attitudes and is crucial to understanding why workers stay in these firms.Originality/value – Whereas most studies of turnover focus upon individual attributes, we examine the structural characteristics of the workplace that permit workers of different ages and skill sets to maximise their efficiency and earnings and the role played by management style in decisively shaping that structure.
76 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors analyse the interconnections between formal policy reforms and operational policies, specifically between new governance and employment policy, and find that the new quasi-market models seem to have difficulties in living up to the preconditions for a wellfunctioning market, as well as political expectations.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of the article is to analyse the interconnections between formal policy reforms and operational policies, specifically between new governance and employment policy. The main question is what happens to public employment policies when they are contracted out to non‐public (for‐profit and not‐for‐profit) agencies?Design/methodology/approach – The case is the contracting out of the public employment services in Australia, Holland, and Denmark. The data consists of in‐depth interviews with key respondents in the three countries, observations at service delivery agencies, and desk studies of existing research.Findings – The new quasi‐market models seem to have difficulties in living up to the preconditions for a well‐functioning market, as well as political expectations. Contracted out employment systems do not seem to create higher efficiency, innovation, quality, and less bureaucracy than previous public bureaucracies. But a quasi‐market model, on the other hand, does seems to create a ...
65 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors investigate the concepts of subculture, subculture of consumption and brand community with a view to better understand these three groups and their distinct differences, and find that subcultures are completely different from brand communities and while they can be said to share certain common traits the broad philosophical foci of these two groups are vastly incommensurate with one another.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose is to investigate the concepts of subculture, subculture of consumption and brand community with a view to better understanding these three groups and their distinct differences.Design/methodology/approach – The method relies on a literature review and a case study of sporting subculture. Using commentary from the surfing community as an example of subcultural groups we see how they define themselves against consumption oriented groups.Findings – Subcultures are completely different from brand communities (or subcultures of consumption) and while they can be said to share certain common traits the broad philosophical foci of these two groups are vastly incommensurate with one another.Practical implications – Marketing discourse has perpetually conflated subculture with forms of consumption, i.e. brand communities, yet they are different. By acknowledging and interrogating the key differences marketers may better apprehend the needs, character and activities of subcultural participant...
62 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors explored consumer voting within competing theories of community and found that consumers adopted a voting metaphor in their approaches to ethical consumption. But their research was limited to a single country and location and focused on a specific consumer group.
Abstract: Purpose – Increasingly, reports of consumers are witnessed expressing their concerns regarding corporate practices through behaviours of boycotting, buycotting and voice. The theory of consumer votes suggests that such consumers may view their purchases as “votes” in the marketplace. The purpose of this paper is to explore consumer voting within competing theories of community.Design/methodology/approach – The study adopts an exploratory approach through semi‐structured in‐depth interviews with a purposive sample of ten ethical consumers.Findings – Findings reveal that consumers adopted a voting metaphor in their approaches to ethical consumption. While choices were mainly individual in nature they were characterised as part of a wider, largely imagined community of like‐minded consumers.Research limitations/implications – This research is limited to a single country and location and focused on a specific consumer group. Expansion of the research to a wider group would be valuable.Practical implications –...
56 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors explore the virtual consumption communities which cohere around the object of the car and reveal forms of connectivity and resistance within communities of car customization, and reveal that the question of aesthetics is a significant one for car aficionados.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the virtual consumption communities which cohere around the object of the car. Focusing upon the cultural practice of debadging, the paper intends to reveal forms of connectivity and resistance within communities of car customization.Design/methodology/approach – A netnography in the form of non‐participant observation is used to explore the talk of car aficionados around issues of customization and affiliation.Findings – The paper discusses the importance of internet discussion boards as forums for the exchange of information and advice, but also as a site to express their passion for cars and their affiliation with like‐minded others. The research reveals that the question of aesthetics is a significant one for car aficionados. This enables us to theorize such consumers as akin to designers for whom the discussion boards exist as key reference points.Research limitations/implications – This is an exploratory study and its primary limitation is one of sco...
56 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors introduce the first of a set of two special issues on new modes of governance in activation policies, and discuss three models of the provision of social services.
Abstract: Purpose – This editorial aims to introduce the first of a set of two special issues on New modes of governance in activation policies.Design/methodology/approach – The article explores the concept of governance, distinguishing a broad and more narrow use of the concept. Then, it argues that issues of governance should be an integral part of studies of welfare state transformations. Not in the last instance, because governance reforms do have an impact on the content of social policies and social services such as activation. The article continues by discussing three models of the provision of social services.Findings – The article states that the development of the modes of governance in activation in various countries reveals that a mix of service provision models is being used.Originality/value – The article introduces the articles of the special issue.
53 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the core characteristics of Nordic activation policies in the context of typologies of European activation governance are clarified in the light of the basic values and beliefs behind the formation of the Nordic social protection systems in the mid-20th century.
Abstract: Purpose – To clarify the core characteristics of Nordic activation policies in the context of typologies of European activation governance.Design/methodology/approach – The paper analyses activation governance in the light of the basic values and beliefs behind the formation of the Nordic social protection systems in the mid‐20th century. Recent model‐building efforts see the Nordic countries as being close to a “universalistic” and egalitarian type of activation policy that does not systematically submit citizens to work requirements. The authors ask whether this model captures the actual scope and contents of Nordic activation governance.Findings – The Nordic countries‐based relatively generous income security systems on a strong work ethic and ambitions to maximise labour market participation of the working‐age population. Citizens's rights to income security were generally linked to the fulfilment of work requirements. Although this active governance of unemployed citizens eroded in the 1970s and 1980...
TL;DR: Ove et al. as mentioned in this paper used a qualitative approach, using a two-stage research design consisting of semi-structured intercept interviews and focus group inquiry and generated a number of findings in regards to magazine loyalty, brand attachment, reader connections, community formation and use of traditional brand community support tools in the magazine industry context.
Abstract: Purpose – The magazine industry is currently experiencing a period of significant growth, resulting in increased competition in the marketplace As a consequence of these changes many magazine producers are being forced to look for fresh and innovative ways to attract and retain readers By broadening our understanding of how brand community relates to the consumption of products such as magazines, this paper aims to highlight the way in which the community concept offers opportunities to further bridge the gap between a product and the needs of the consumerDesign/methodology/approach – The study follows a qualitative approach, using a two‐stage research design consisting of semi‐structured intercept interviews and focus group inquiryFindings – The research generated a number of findings in regards to magazine loyalty, brand attachment, reader connections, community formation and the use of traditional brand community support tools in the magazine industry contextResearch limitations/implications – Ove
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors evaluate the EU's "active ageing" agenda as a governance strategy for the activation of older workers, and its impact on the regulation both of those who make, and those who are the objects of, policy.
Abstract: Purpose – This paper seeks to evaluate the EU's “active ageing” agenda as a governance strategy for the activation of older workers, and its impact on the regulation both of those who make, and those who are the objects of, policy. This case study is used to reflect more broadly on the implications of governance strategies for the regulation of social subjects in the European Union (EU).Design/methodology/approach – The paper adopts a model of governance comprising two dimensions, namely formal policy (policy aims) and operational policy (policy means). This model is used to explain how and to what effect, discourses and institutions interact in EU governance to produce particular forms of social subject regulation; in this case, activation.Findings – For the operational dimension, the paper explores how contradictions and tensions within and between employment, pensions and social inclusion policies are reflected in, and the products of, a re‐allocation of responsibilities between the EU, member states, ...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors focus on some of the more innovative projects that are being pursued in Europe that move beyond the conventional punitive approach and seek to provide positive incentives and new institutional arrangements to enable undeclared work to be transformed into legitimate employment.
Abstract: Purpose – The aim of this paper is to focus upon some of the more innovative projects that are being pursued in Europe that move beyond the conventional punitive approach and seek to provide positive incentives and new institutional arrangements to enable undeclared work to be transformed into legitimate employment.Design/methodology/approach – This paper evaluates the service vouchers policy initiative in Belgium and the Harz Committee policy recommendations, especially mini jobs, in Germany.Findings – The finding is that although significant numbers of declared jobs have been created by these schemes, sometimes at a relatively low cost compared with other options for creating new formal jobs, such initiatives have had a relatively minor impact on the overall level of undeclared work in these societies.Originality/value – This paper is one of the first to bring these innovative policy initiatives to the attention of an English‐speaking audience.
TL;DR: In this article, a critical sociological approach analyses and problematises notions of Welshness as it relates to the national sport of rugby, focusing upon the areas of language, geography and gender.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to critically reflect upon the place of rugby union in contemporary Wales where the game is used as an important tool to promote images of the nation. Using Benedict Anderson's conceptualisation of the nation as an “imagined community” the paper aims to locate and analyse the game within and around discourses of Cool Cymru, a term coined in the late twentieth century to promote images of a new vibrant Wales as popularised through its leading music bands.Design/methodology/approach – A critical sociological approach analyses and problematises notions of Welshness as it relates to the national sport of rugby.Findings – The nation is often (re)presented and conceptualised as a monolithic whole where rugby's assumed centrality is rarely questioned. This essay focuses upon the areas of language, geography and gender to demonstrate the situated limits of these (re)presentations. Rugby union and Cool Cymru are also located alongside devolution and are examined further with ...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors analyse the current transformations of public action in two main respects: on the one side the relationships between individuals and institutions and their recent evolutions, on the other, the new contractual or market-like ways of designing and implementing public action.
Abstract: Purpose – This article's purpose is to analyse the current transformations of public action in two main respects: on the one side the relationships between individuals and institutions and their recent evolutions, on the other, the new contractual or market‐like ways of designing and implementing public action. This twofold transformation and the extent to which it represents a deep‐seated revolution or a more limited recalibration of the public realm are to be investigated against the case of Swiss active labour market policies.Design/methodology/approach – This issue is examined through the design of a theoretical and normative typology, which is then applied to the case of active labour market policies in Switzerland, based on an in‐depth empirical investigation (more than 50 interviews with field actors).Findings – The emergence of new modes of governance coincides with the promotion of market solutions to unemployment, thus leading to a conception of welfare and its individual beneficiaries as subord...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors discuss the political traps of EU governance processes taking place in EU bodies in pursuit of a new institutionalisation of the Lisbon strategy, using EU institutions' legitimacy-seeking procedures as an analytical framework.
Abstract: Purpose – This contribution, using EU institutions' legitimacy‐seeking procedures as an analytical framework, aims to discuss the political traps of EU governance processes taking place in EU bodies in pursuit of a new institutionalisation of the Lisbon strategy.Design/methodology/approach – The approach is in the form of a discursive analysis.Findings – The discursive analysis shows the hegemony of two disciplines and approaches: economy and psychology. These will be shown to be interconnected, as they have together contributed to the depoliticisation of responses to current economic demands and social reforms and to the repoliticisation of individuals (contribution to an identity production policy). This “multi‐level governance process” which characterises the regulation of the EES by EU institutions might be transformed into a project of multi‐level governance without political government.Originality/value – The paper looks at the process of seeking responses to the labour market crisis within Europe.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors focus on social structures and national and international factors as they influence international adoption and special attention is paid to the impact of media, social welfare policies, legislation, and international monitoring groups on international adoption.
Abstract: Purpose – This article aims to focus on social structures and national and international factors as they influence international adoption. Special attention is paid to the impact of media, social welfare policies, legislation, and international monitoring groups on international adoption.Design/methodology/approach – The article reviews relevant literature in sociology, social work, and the media. Much of the focus is on adoption in the USA since it has the largest number of internationally adopted children.Findings – International adoption is becoming more common and is likely to continue to do so despite the concerns of some countries, some minority groups, and international monitoring agencies regarding trafficking in children, cultural genocide, and social justice issues related to transracial/intercultural adoption.Originality/value – Adoption has generally been studied by social workers, psychologists and others concerned with its impact on the individual adoptee, birth mother and adoptive family. T...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors explore the concept of risk in relation to old age and explore the extent to which it has become part of the organizing ground of how we define and organise the "personal" and "social spaces" in which to grow old in western modernity.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the concept of “risk” in relation to old age Ideas are explored linked with what has been termed as the “risk society” and the extent to which it has become part of the organizing ground of how we define and organise the “personal” and “social spaces” in which to grow old in western modernityDesign/methodology/approach – A theoretical paper in three parts, including: an introduction to the relevance and breakdown in trust relations; a mapping out of the key assumptions of risk society; and examples drawn from social welfarism to consolidate an understanding of the contructedness of old age in late modernityFindings – Part of this reflexive response to understanding risk and old age is the importance of recognising self‐subjective dimensions of emotions, trust, biographical knowledge and resourcesOriginality/value – This discussion provides a critical narrative to the importance and interrelatedness of the sociology of risk to the study of old age
TL;DR: In this paper, a conceptual framework for understanding the relationship between sexual dissidence, gender transgression and commercial hospitality is developed, which can be used to examine how ideological assumptions about lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender consumers are mobilised in the production and consumption of hospitality spaces.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop a conceptual framework for understanding the relationship between sexual dissidence, gender transgression and commercial hospitality. The paper aims to argue that this can be used to examine how ideological assumptions about lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) consumers are mobilised in the production and consumption of hospitality spaces.Design/methodology/approach – The paper synthesises three theoretical strands: first, Turner's concepts of the liminoid and communitas; second, anthropological and socio‐political conceptions of myth and myth‐making and third, Lefebvre's spatial dialectic in the production of material, abstract and symbolic space. It is argued that, when considered together, these theoretical approaches help to understand the consumer experience, the ideological assumptions that underpin the experience, and the processes through which the experience is constructed.Findings – The holistic nature of the approach helps to analyse t...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors aim to interpret the changes addressed by the concepts of governance and activation in their context, in order to grasp the larger picture of the societal transformation underlying them: the starting point is the assumption that new modes of governance in activation policies are a fruitful entry point for effectively understanding deep waves of change.
Abstract: Purpose – The first part of the paper aimed to interpret the changes addressed by the concepts of governance and activation in their context, in order to grasp the larger picture of the societal transformation underlying them: the starting point is the assumption that new modes of governance in activation policies are a fruitful entry point for effectively understanding deep waves of change of contemporary society. The second part aims to briefly introduce the papers included in this issue.Design/methodology/approach – The paper insists on a perspective according to which there are two main dimension characterising the context of addressed transformations: the paradoxical torsion of the historical process of individualisation in the new spirit of capitalism; the profound redesign of the institutional programme, implying a new horizon for the instances of publicness.Findings – Different and contradictory trends are pointed out in the actual pursuing of objectives of governance and activation, as far as the...
TL;DR: In this article, the symbolic and social roles of waste are explored through a small sample of UK and Brazilian consumers from urban and rural communities, highlighting the importance of considering socio-cultural differences in waste policies.
Abstract: Purpose – The symbolic and social roles of waste are explored through a small sample of UK and Brazilian consumers from urban and rural communities. These findings are relevant in highlighting the importance of considering socio‐cultural differences in waste policies.Design/methodology/approach – Following an ontologically realist and epistemologically interpretive perspective on waste a series of semi‐structured interviews was conducted in English and Portuguese.Findings – While Brazilian interviewees view waste as opportunity, their discourses reproduce the inequalities among and between their communities. UK participants view waste as burdensome, but demonstrate more awareness of their rights as citizens within their communities.Research limitations/implications – The study is exploratory and future work should address a broader range of respondents within communities across different cultures, demographic and socio‐economic circumstances.Practical implications – Ideas generated from the study have bot...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present a qualitative analysis of different types of contracts in the context of the individual job seeker on benefit, and map them using empirical metrics using qualitative research.
Abstract: Purpose – Activation policies in most Western countries have discovered the private tool of contract and in a short period of time the contract has penetrated the whole domain. Among the forerunner countries contracts in different forms, collective as well as individual, have become the central steering instrument. The purpose of this article is to shed some light on what this change can and does entail for the individual job seeker on benefit. Job seekers are no longer expected to passive undergo treatment but expected to contribute actively to one's own return into the labour market. The main rationale behind this shift is the idea that working with contracts increases the level of involvement and, therefore improves results over time: results in terms of better motivated clients, more focused policymakers, providers and frontline workers delivering client‐orientated services.Design/methodology/approach – Using qualitative research the article maps the different types of contracts using empirical materi...
TL;DR: The concept of periphery has evolved from being a purely spatial concept, to a functional concept, and during the crises of the 1980s it became a key social concept in France as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to seek to conribute to debates on disadvantage and social exclusion by examining the evolution of the concept of “periphery”, with specific reference to Paris.Design/methodology/approach – The paper draws on research undertaken on the “suburbs” of Paris in order to highlight some of the socio‐spatial dimensions of social exclusion.Findings – The notion of periphery has evolved from being a purely spatial concept, to a functional concept, and during the crises of the 1980s it became a key social concept in France.Originality/value – Today, it is the absence of employment, or common values which characterises those who make up a social periphery. It is the unwaged, or the poor (in waged work or retirees), and immigrants, who live in the Parisian socio‐suburban periphery.
TL;DR: In this article, the interplay between discourse, policy and practice in relation to aspects of organization and processes of organizing is considered, highlighting the need for an approach which treats discourses, policies and practices as connected and mutually implicated, rather than discrete, phenomena.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to consider the interplay between discourse, policy and practice in relation to aspects of organization and processes of organizing.Design/methodology/approach – Provides an introduction to the six contributions contained in this special issue and discusses how they relate to the core theme.Findings – Highlights the need for an approach which treats discourses, policies and practices as connected and mutually implicated, rather than discrete, phenomena.Originality/value – Presents an approach to discourse analysis which promotes an engagement with wider aspects of social activity.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examine the nature of market politics in a Latino/a community in Southern California, USA and highlight conflicts brought about by the burgeoning development of the consumer market for Mexican immigrants in the area.
Abstract: Purpose – This paper aims to examine the nature of market politics in a Latino/a community in Southern California, USA.Design/methodology/approach – Research methods combine orignial ethnographic and historical work with secondary sources on marketing and political activities in their relation to consumption.Findings – Findings highlight conflicts brought about by the burgeoning development of the consumer market for Mexican immigrants in the area, as proponents of conventional industrial and residential development projects clash with Latino/a consumers, Latino/a and Asian buisnessmen and women, and community activists.Research limitations/implications – A partial view of Latino community is provided that stems from the treatment of consumer culture as fragmented, contradictory, and increasingly mediated by marketing activity and social relations.Practical implications – Implications strive to re‐imagine Latino/a community and develop policy directives by considering the place of consumption, labor, and ...
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examine both utopian and dystopian discourses of offshoring and argue that neither dream nor nightmare is the adequate metaphor to capture what they have discerned through their research on offshore outsourcing.
Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine critically both utopian and dystopian discourses of offshoring so that a more considered, nonetheless theoretically informed, view of the global offshore phenomenon can be formed.Design/methodology/approach – Drawing upon some preliminary research on offshoring ventures from the UK to India, and the extant literature, the practice of business process outsourcing (BPO) via offshoring is explored and critiqued.Findings – It is argued that neither dream nor nightmare is the adequate discursive metaphor to capture what we have discerned through our research on offshore outsourcing.Originality/value – The primary contribution of this paper is that demonstrates that utopian and dystopian discourses fail to adequately explain the practice of offshore BPO and that in cultural, economical, ethical, and political terms, it is much more complex.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors explore and explain differences in reform of activation policies, comparing the shifts in governance in France and The Netherlands from the 1990s onwards, using documentary sources and interviews with several stakeholders.
Abstract: Purpose – To explore and explain differences in reform of activation policies, comparing the shifts in governance in France and The Netherlands from the 1990s onwardsDesign/methodology/approach – The paper is based on in‐depth case studies of the reform process in activation policies, using documentary sources and interviews with several stake‐holders The theoretical scope is the debate on institutional change, path‐dependency and convergenceFindings – Although both countries demonstrate converging tendencies in the transformation of their activation policies, there are remarkable differences in the new modes of governance Moving away from a traditionally hierarchical organisation, France is gradually developing a network model with more emphasis on decentralisation Alternatively, The Netherlands privatised their public employment services and explore principal – agent realtions in activation The institutional context of both nation, in particular the concept of path‐dependency, seems crucial in the
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors deal with the question to what extent implementation conditions influence the profile of activation policies in the Czech Republic, and how broader objectives of these policies are specified at the bottom level of implementation and why activation policies differ among countries, although guided by similar general objectives and principles.
Abstract: Purpose – The paper deals with the question to what extent implementation conditions influence the profile of activation policies in the Czech Republic. In this way, it helps to clarify more general questions: how are broader objectives of these policies specified at the bottom level of implementation and why activation policies differ among countries, although guided by similar general objectives and principles.Design/methodology/approach – The findings are based on implementation case studies carried out at several local labour offices during the pilot stage and later during the routine stage of implementation of Individual Action Plans (IAPs).Findings – The paper shows that in the pilot stage of IAPs, the employability approach of enforced activation originated from the top‐down and was adopted at the local level; however, in a fragmented way due to unfavourable implementation conditions (above all poor staffing and a lack of activation programmes). It follows from these very conditions that, in the ro...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors apply critical discourse analysis, within the framework of neo-institutional theory, to examine data from conversations with workers in community organisations, finding evidence of increased internal institutionalisation revealed some potential to st...
Abstract: Purpose – The institutionalisation of neo‐liberalist discourse has significantly changed the way in which the relationship between government and community organisations is described and regulated in Australia. These changes are most clearly articulated in government policy discourse as a move away from “funding” community service organisations to “purchasing” the delivery of community services. This research aims to explore institutionalisation in the community sector: how institutionalisation interplays with increased central control, the impact on practice and the continued relevance of community organisations.Design/methodology/approach – This research applies critical discourse analysis, within the framework of neo‐institutional theory, to examine data from “conversations” with workers in community organisations.Findings – Imposed institutionalisation, seen to threaten flexibility and autonomy, is spurned. However, some evidence of increased internal institutionalisation revealed some potential to st...