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Journal ArticleDOI

Power in Transition: An Interdisciplinary Framework to Study Power in Relation to Structural Change

01 Nov 2009-European Journal of Social Theory (SAGE Publications)-Vol. 12, Iss: 4, pp 543-569
TL;DR: In this article, a typology of different ways in which power can be exercised, explicitly including innovative power and transformative power, is presented, and applied to transition studies, redefining pivotal transition concepts in terms of power and formulating hypotheses on the role of power in transitions.
Abstract: This article conceptualizes power in the context of long-term process of structural change. First, it discusses the field of transition studies, which deals with processes of structural change in societal systems on the basis of certain presumptions about power relations, but still lacks an explicit conceptualization of power. Then the article discusses some prevailing points of contestation in debates on power. It is argued that for the context of transition studies, it is necessary to develop an interdisciplinary framework in which power is explicitly conceptualized in relation to change. Subsequently, such a framework is presented, with reference to existing literature on power. Starting with a philosophical and operational definition of power, a typology is developed of the different ways in which power can be exercised, explicitly including innovative power and transformative power. Finally, the presented power framework is applied to transition studies, redefining pivotal transition concepts in terms of power and formulating hypotheses on the role of power in transitions. By doing so, the article not only offers an interdisciplinary framework to study power in the context of transition studies, but also contributes to power debates more generally by including innovation and transformation as acts of power, and thereby proposes a re-conceptualization of the relation between power and structural change.
Citations
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors identify effective protection as having three properties in wider transition processes: shielding, nurturing and empowerment, and argue that analysis of these properties needs to be complemented with particular attention for the politics involved in their construction.

1,287 citations


Cites background from "Power in Transition: An Interdiscip..."

  • ...Reforming institutions or creating new institutions requires power, expressed through the mobilisation of material and nonmaterial resources, and collective action capable of shaping norms, standards and routines (Rhodes and Marsh, 1992; Smith et al., 2005; Avelino and Rotmans, 2009)....

    [...]

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors provide an extensive review and an updated research agenda for the field, classified into nine main themes: understanding transitions; power, agency and politics; governing transitions; civil society, culture and social movements; businesses and industries; transitions in practice and everyday life; geography of transitions; ethical aspects; and methodologies.
Abstract: Research on sustainability transitions has expanded rapidly in the last ten years, diversified in terms of topics and geographical applications, and deepened with respect to theories and methods. This article provides an extensive review and an updated research agenda for the field, classified into nine main themes: understanding transitions; power, agency and politics; governing transitions; civil society, culture and social movements; businesses and industries; transitions in practice and everyday life; geography of transitions; ethical aspects; and methodologies. The review shows that the scope of sustainability transitions research has broadened and connections to established disciplines have grown stronger. At the same time, we see that the grand challenges related to sustainability remain unsolved, calling for continued efforts and an acceleration of ongoing transitions. Transition studies can play a key role in this regard by creating new perspectives, approaches and understanding and helping to move society in the direction of sustainability.

1,099 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors introduce politics and power into the multi-level perspective of low-carbon transition and argue that the resistance and resilience of coal, gas and nuclear production regimes currently negates the benefits from increasing renewables deployment.
Abstract: While most studies of low-carbon transitions focus on green niche-innovations, this paper shifts attention to the resistance by incumbent regime actors to fundamental change. Drawing on insights from political economy, the paper introduces politics and power into the multi-level perspective. Instrumental, discursive, material and institutional forms of power and resistance are distinguished and illustrated with examples from the UK electricity system. The paper concludes that the resistance and resilience of coal, gas and nuclear production regimes currently negates the benefits from increasing renewables deployment. It further suggests that policymakers and many transition-scholars have too high hopes that ‘green’ innovation will be sufficient to bring about low-carbon transitions. Future agendas in research and policy should therefore pay much more attention to the destabilization and decline of existing fossil fuel regimes.

1,056 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present an analysis of the online sharing economy discourse, identifying that the sharing economy is framed as an economic opportunity; a more sustainable form of consumption; a pathway to a decentralised, equitable and sustainable economy; creating unregulated marketplaces; reinforcing the neoliberal paradigm; and, an incoherent field of innovation.

973 citations


Cites background from "Power in Transition: An Interdiscip..."

  • ...With regime reinforcement likely to be favoured by the uneven power relationships that characterise niche-regime interactions (Avelino and Rotmans, 2009, Smith and Raven, 2012)....

    [...]

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors propose a comprehensive framework that allows legitimizing and devising policies for transformative change that draws on a combination of market failures, structural system failures and transformational system failures.

783 citations

References
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Giddens as mentioned in this paper has been in the forefront of developments in social theory for the past decade and outlines the distinctive position he has evolved during that period and offers a full statement of a major new perspective in social thought, a synthesis and elaboration of ideas touched on in previous works but described here for the first time in an integrated and comprehensive form.
Abstract: Anthony Giddens has been in the forefront of developments in social theory for the past decade. In "The Constitution of Society" he outlines the distinctive position he has evolved during that period and offers a full statement of a major new perspective in social thought, a synthesis and elaboration of ideas touched on in previous works but described here for the first time in an integrated and comprehensive form. A particular feature is Giddens' concern to connect abstract problems of theory to an interpretation of the nature of empirical method in the social sciences. In presenting his own ideas, Giddens mounts a critical attack on some of the more orthodox sociological views. "The Constitution of Society" is an invaluable reference book for all those concerned with the basic issues in contemporary social theory.

16,208 citations

Book
01 Jan 1984
TL;DR: Giddens as discussed by the authors has been in the forefront of developments in social theory for the past decade and outlines the distinctive position he has evolved during that period and offers a full statement of a major new perspective in social thought, a synthesis and elaboration of ideas touched on in previous works but described here for the first time in an integrated and comprehensive form.
Abstract: Anthony Giddens has been in the forefront of developments in social theory for the past decade. In "The Constitution of Society" he outlines the distinctive position he has evolved during that period and offers a full statement of a major new perspective in social thought, a synthesis and elaboration of ideas touched on in previous works but described here for the first time in an integrated and comprehensive form. A particular feature is Giddens' concern to connect abstract problems of theory to an interpretation of the nature of empirical method in the social sciences. In presenting his own ideas, Giddens mounts a critical attack on some of the more orthodox sociological views. "The Constitution of Society" is an invaluable reference book for all those concerned with the basic issues in contemporary social theory.

13,552 citations

01 Jan 1983
TL;DR: The ideas which I would like to discuss here represent neither a theory nor a methodology as mentioned in this paper, but rather a history of different modes by which, in our culture, human beings are made subjects.
Abstract: The ideas which I would like to discuss here represent neither a theory nor a methodology. I would like to say, first of all, what has been the goal of my work during the last twenty years. It has not been to analyze the phenomena of power, nor to elaborate the foundations of such an analysis. My objective, instead, has been to create a history of the different modes by which, in our culture, human beings are made subjects. My work has dealt with three modes of objectification which transform human beings into subjects. The first is the modes of inquiry which try to give themselves the status of sciences; for example, the objectivizing of the speaking subject in grammaire generale, philology, and linguistics. Or again, in this first mode, the objectivizing of the productive subject, the subject who labors, in the analysis of wealth and of economics. Or, a third example, the objectivizing of the sheer fact of being alive in natural history or biology. In the second part of my work, I have studied the objectivizing of the subject in what I shall call "dividing practices." The subject is either

8,762 citations

Book
18 Jun 1974
TL;DR: The One-Dimensional view, the Two-dimensional view, and the three-dimensional views of power and interest were compared in this article, where the Underlying Concept of Power - Power and Interest - Three Views Compared
Abstract: The One-Dimensional View - The Two-Dimensional View - The Three-Dimensional View - The Underlying Concept of Power - Power and Interest - The Three Views Compared - Conclusion - Bibliography

5,337 citations


"Power in Transition: An Interdiscip..." refers background in this paper

  • ...In addition, Lukes (1974) introduced a ‘third face of power’ referring to processes of preference-shaping....

    [...]

Book
19 Apr 1956
TL;DR: The Power Elite can be read as a good account of what was taking place in America at the time it was written, but its underlying question of whether America is as democratic in practice as it is in theory continues to matter very much today.
Abstract: First published in 1956, The Power Elite stands as a contemporary classic of social science and social criticism. C. Wright Mills examines and critiques the organization of power in the United States, calling attention to three firmly interlocked prongs of power: the military, corporate, and political elite. The Power Elite can be read as a good account of what was taking place in America at the time it was written, but its underlying question of whether America is as democratic in practice as it is in theory continues to matter very much today. What The Power Elite informed readers of in 1956 was how much the organization of power in America had changed during their lifetimes, and Alan Wolfe's astute afterword to this new edition brings us up to date, illustrating how much more has changed since then. Wolfe sorts out what is helpful in Mills book and which of his predictions have not come to bear, laying out the radical changes in American capitalism, from intense global competition and the collapse of communism to rapid technological transformations and ever changing consumer tastes. The Power Elite has stimulated generations of readers to think about the kind of society they have and the kind of society they might want, and deserves to be read by every new generation.

3,801 citations