Is resilience a unique extension rather than a rejection of neoliberalism? A critical reading of David Chandler’s writings on resilience

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
H. Unnathi S. Samaraweera
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Michel Foucault ◽  
Paradigm Shift ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Classical Liberalism ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Academic Literature ◽  
Academic Texts ◽  
Central Argument

Purpose This paper aims to engage with the concept of resilience as theorized by David Chandler in his book Resilience: The Governance of Complexity by drawing from the theory of governmentality presented by Michel Foucault and Jonathan Joseph. Design/methodology/approach Evolving from classical liberalism to neoliberalism and from natural sciences to social sciences, the term “resilience” raises many questions about its sustainability in terms of its meaning and complexity. While most scholars tend to underscore the significance and practicality of the term, a few scholars argue that it is a failed dogma with neoliberal characteristics. As this is a theory-based study, its methodology involves close readings of academic texts produced mainly by David Chandler, Michel Foucault and Jonathan Joseph. Findings The central argument in this paper is though Chandler convincingly explains the paradigm shift of the term resilience from classical to neoliberal, his theorizing lacks the understanding that the type of power and governmentality involved in individual freedom, autonomy and complexity are actually parts of the neoliberal state. Hence, the buzzword resilience today is actually an extension of the same neoliberal thought. Originality/value First, the author attempts to critically engage with the term resilience from a sociological point of view using purposively selected academic literature. Second, the paper attempts to bring Chandler’s conceptualization on resilience into the disaster context and evaluates its practicality within the tenets of neoliberalism by drawing on Joseph’s and Foucault’s theorizations.

Problematizing Goldman Sachs: indoctrination, paradigm shift and revolving doors

2014 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 98-105 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yoann Bazin
Keyword(s):  
Paradigm Shift ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Revolving Door ◽  
Investment Bank ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Public ◽  
Academic Literature ◽  
Cultural Paradigm ◽  
Revolving Doors ◽  
New Employee

Purpose – The aim of this article is to open a dialogue between several books written on Goldman Sachs and the academic literature. Design/methodology/approach – Greg Smith's “Why I Left Goldman Sachs” and the French investigation of Marc Roche entitled “THE Bank: How Goldman Sachs Rules the World” are closely studied to identify recurring topics regarding the investment bank. Findings – Three major dynamics are identified: the intense socialisation that every new employee encounters (almost an indoctrination), the cultural paradigm shift that Goldman Sachs underwent during the 1990s and 2000s and the intensity of the revolving doors between Goldman Sachs' managers and the public regulatory sector. Originality/value – Focusing on revolving door dynamics, this article opens a dialogue with the academic literature allowing for a problematization: the constant circulation of personnel between regulatory institutions and regulated organisations generates a convergence of actors' habitus that weakens regulation as a whole.

Paradigm shift in higher education?

2017 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 103-108 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vesa Taatila
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Empirical Research ◽  
Paradigm Shift ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Social Implications ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Future Developments ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
Short Time

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to widen the discussion about the ongoing paradigm shift in global higher education. Design/methodology/approach The paper discusses and gives examples on several major changes and potential future developments within higher education. Findings Several major changes have taken place within higher education in a short time. Financial restraints leading to shorter accountability periods, mass education and research, as well as increased competition through e-enhanced globalization, have changed the field of higher education profoundly. It simultaneously faces requirements to produce a higher level of competence, shorten the implementation periods and to offer this to an increasing number of participants with fewer resources. Thus, it should be considered if the mission of higher education institutions has changed and what that mission should be. Research limitations/implications The paper is written from a culturally limited point of view (Finland/Nordic countries/Europe) and does not rely on empirical research findings. Social implications The potential paradigm shift has major social implications globally. It may change the way we understand and operate higher education during the next few decades. Originality/value A lot of the presented ideas have been discussed before in other articles. However, the potential implications as a whole have not yet been adequately discussed in scientific processes.

PCCs, neo-liberal hegemony and democratic policing

2014 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-21 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liz Turner
Keyword(s):  
Public Service ◽  
Service Provision ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Positive Contribution ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Academic Literature ◽  
Democratic Policing ◽  
Police Accountability ◽  
Central Argument ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose – This paper aims to explore the recent introduction of directly elected police and crime commissioners (PCCs) in England and Wales, and to consider to what extent this new innovation should be considered as a positive contribution to the achievement of democratic policing. Design/methodology/approach – The paper draws on a range of key sources of academic literature on police accountability and the sociology of policing, as well as considering the content of government pronouncements and legislation. Findings – The central argument of the paper is that the introduction of PCCs needs to be examined within the context of the hegemony of neo-liberal logic in public services reform. It is argued that some enduring myths of policing, including the myth that the police impartially uphold an impartial law, lend themselves to the depoliticisation of policing which is necessary in order to facilitate neo-liberal colonisation of the service, which is inimical to democratic policing. Originality/value – The paper builds upon and contests some of the early critiques of the introduction of PCCs which have emerged and proposes a new direction for the development of critique in this area. It will be of interest to policing scholars as well as anyone concerned about the relationship between democracy and policing under current conditions of deep public service cuts and the colonisation of service provision by neo-liberal values.

Rethinking bibliographic utilities for library consortia

2020 ◽  
Vol 37 (8) ◽  
pp. 7-9
Author(s):  
Israel Odede
Keyword(s):  
Literature Review ◽  
Paradigm Shift ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Distributed Network ◽  
Network Resources ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Library Consortia ◽  
Individual Ownership ◽  
Insight Into

Purpose The paper aims to critically examine the bibliographic utility as a roadmap to increase library consortia and provide an insight into a new library consortia strategy that integrates librarians into a system of sharing both resources and knowledge. Design/methodology/approach This study adopted a literature review approach with a focus on bibliographic utility as a necessary prerequisite for effective library consortia, which is a paradigm shift from the concept of individual ownership to a collective access of distributed network resources and knowledge. Findings The reviewed literature indicated that significant bibliographic utilities and integrated library systems are factors that shaped and developed consortia activities in libraries. Originality/value The bibliographic utility has limited literature, and a few published scholarly studies have combined bibliographic utility and library consortia as strategies to share resources and knowledge

Comparison of the reluctance laminated and solid rotor synchronous machine operating at high temperatures

2019 ◽  
Vol 38 (4) ◽  
pp. 1111-1119 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marcin Lefik ◽  
Krzysztof Komeza ◽  
Ewa Napieralska-Juszczak ◽  
Daniel Roger ◽  
Piotr Andrzej Napieralski
Keyword(s):  
High Speed ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Synchronous Machine ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Heat Sources ◽  
Model Calculations ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Thermal Phenomenon ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to present a comparison between reluctance synchronous machine-enabling work at high internal temperature (HT° machine) with laminated and solid rotor. Design/methodology/approach To obtain heat sources for the thermal model, calculations of the electromagnetic field were made using the Opera 3D program including effect of rotation and the resulting eddy current losses. To analyse the thermal phenomenon, the 3D coupled thermal-fluid (CFD) model is used. Findings The presented results show clearly that laminated construction is much better from a point of view of efficiency and temperature. However, solid construction can be interesting for high speed machines due to their mechanical robustness. Research limitations/implications The main problem, despite the use of parallel calculations, is the long calculation time. Practical implications The obtained simulation and experimental results show the possibility of building a machine operating at a much higher ambient temperature than it was previously produced for example in the vicinity of the aircraft turbines. Originality/value The paper presents the application of fully three-dimensional coupled electromagnetic and thermal analysis of new machine constructions designed for elevated temperature.

Exploring the boundaries of rhetoric

2014 ◽  
Vol 27 (5) ◽  
pp. 793-806 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eduard Bonet
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Conceptual Framework ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
The Self ◽  
History Of Rhetoric ◽  
Content Type ◽  
History Of ◽  
Practical Development ◽  
The Subject

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine how the boundaries of rhetoric have excluded important theoretical and practical subjects and how these subjects are recuperated and extended since the twentieth century. Its purpose is to foster the awareness on emerging new trends of rhetoric. Design/methodology/approach – The methodology is based on an interpretation of the history of rhetoric and on the construction of a conceptual framework of the rhetoric of judgment, which is introduced in this paper. Findings – On the subject of the extension of rhetoric from public speeches to any kinds of persuasive situations, the paper emphasizes some stimulating relationships between the theory of communication and rhetoric. On the exclusion and recuperation of the subject of rhetorical arguments, it presents the changing relationships between rhetoric and dialectics and emphasizes the role of rhetoric in scientific research. On the introduction of rhetoric of judgment and meanings it creates a conceptual framework based on a re-examination of the concept of judgment and the phenomenological foundations of the interpretative methods of social sciences by Alfred Schutz, relating them to symbolic interactionism and theories of the self. Originality/value – The study on the changing boundaries of rhetoric and the introduction of the rhetoric of judgment offers a new view on the present theoretical and practical development of rhetoric, which opens new subjects of research and new fields of applications.

scholarly journals Measuring resource efficiency and resource effectiveness in manufacturing

2018 ◽  
Vol 67 (9) ◽  
pp. 1854-1881 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mangesh Gharfalkar ◽  
Zulfiqur Ali ◽  
Graham Hillier
Keyword(s):  
Design Methodology ◽  
Inverse Correlation ◽  
Resource Efficiency ◽  
Waste Generation ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Academic Literature ◽  
Shared Data ◽  
Resource Intensity ◽  
Three Stages ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose The purpose of this paper is twofold: first, to identify and analyse existing resource efficiency (RE) and resource effectiveness measures and indicators (REMIs); and second, to identify gaps and develop a new indicator of “operational resource effectiveness” (OREft) suitable for manufacturing units. Design/methodology/approach Research methodology consists of three stages: gap identification, development and testing. Through review of academic literature, 40 REMIs are identified and analysed. A survey of manufacturers is carried out to validate the hypothesis and seek inputs on the development of the new indicator. The proposed indicator is tested by comparing OREft index of two manufacturing units with each other, with resource intensity per unit (RIPU), waste intensity per unit (WIPU) and with four other REMIs. Findings Analysis of 40 REMIs clearly points towards the absence of a hypothesised REMI. In total, 78 per cent of manufacturers surveyed in north England substantiate the hypothesis. Inverse correlation established between the proposed OREft indicator, RIPU, WIPU and other comparisons is likely to validate the output generated by the proposed indicator. Research limitations/implications Testing of this indicator is limited to two dissimilar manufacturing units that shared data. Practical implications The proposed indicator is useful for comparing the operational resource effectiveness of individual factories over a period as well as with other factories. RIPU and WIPU captured in this indicator also represent operational RE that can be used to initiate improvement action. Originality/value Inclusion of both, the resource consumption and the waste generation along with discount/multiplying factors that capture the circularity aspects is likely to be the distinguishing feature of this indicator.

Reasons, motives and motivations for completing a PhD: a typology of doctoral studies as a quest

2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 197-212 ◽  
Author(s):  
Isabelle Skakni
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Doctoral Studies ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Academic Context ◽  
Instrumental Case Study ◽  
Institutional Conditions ◽  
Theory Of Structuration

Purpose This study aims to examine how PhD students with diverse profiles, intentions and expectations manage to navigate their doctoral paths within the same academic context under similar institutional conditions. Drawing on Giddens’ theory of structuration, this study explores how their primary reasons, motives and motivations for engaging in doctoral studies influence what they perceive as facilitating or constraining to progress, their strategies to face the challenges they encounter and their expectations regarding supervision. Design/methodology/approach Using a qualitative design, the analysis was conducted on a data subset from an instrumental case study (Stake, 2013) about PhD students’ persistence and progression. The focus is placed on semi-structured interviews carried out with 36 PhD students from six faculties in humanities and social sciences fields at a large Canadian university. Findings The analysis reveals three distinct scenarios regarding how these PhD students navigate their doctoral paths: the quest for the self; the intellectual quest; and the professional quest. Depending on their quest type, the nature and intensity of PhD students’ concerns and challenges, as well as their strategies and the support they expected, differed. Originality/value This study contributes to the discussion about PhD students’ challenges and persistence by offering a unique portrait of how diverse students’ profiles, intentions and expectations can concretely shape a doctoral experience.

China in Africa: a critical literature review

2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 40-60 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abdoulkadre Ado ◽  
Zhan Su
Keyword(s):  
Literature Review ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Empirical Support ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Academic Literature ◽  
Current State ◽  
Comprehensive Literature Review ◽  
Critical Literature

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to critically assesses the major contributions to the academic literature on China’s increased focus on Africa, from 2001 to 2011. It discusses the key trends concerning China’s presence in Africa and draws conclusions on the significance of the studies by emphasizing and contrasting the prevailing positions. Design/methodology/approach – Based on a qualitative approach using an integrative and comprehensive literature review, the authors performed a content analysis of high-impact, peer-reviewed papers. Findings – The paper questions and repositions some of the existing controversies. The results from existing studies remain questionable, requiring further clarification and more theoretical backing. It, moreover, highlights the notion that behind the explicit neutrality views of China’s presence in Africa, implicit assumptions may exist. These are often the differences in narratives conveyed by Western and Southern stakeholders. Research limitations/implications – Most of the conclusions drawn from this paper need to be re-explored and supported by additional research. This could be done by widening the scope of the analysis. Studies need to provide more empirical support for their assertions through quantitative data and evidence-based qualitative analyses – all within a framework that considers more cultural, social and historical dimensions. The paper also suggests that an institutionally based view appears most relevant in better explaining China in Africa. Originality/value – This paper reviews a decade of research on China in Africa and presents a snapshot of the current state of knowledge. It also raises concerns to be analyzed by future research and proposes new avenues for better understanding China’s presence in Africa.

Secondary analysis in the social sciences and its relation to futures studies

2015 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 128-139 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cristiano Vezzoni
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Secondary Analysis ◽  
Sociology Of Religion ◽  
Future Scenarios ◽  
Futures Studies ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Research And Teaching ◽  
The Social ◽  
Definition Of

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to show the importance of secondary analysis to social sciences and to futures studies, both for research and teaching purposes. Design/methodology/approach – An illustration of the main characteristics of secondary analysis, presenting it as a theory-driven activity where the definition of the research design plays a fundamental role. Findings – This paper extends the secondary analysis approach to the study of the future. The utility of secondary analysis for futures studies is illustrated by means of the presentation of two examples developed in the field of the sociology of religion. Originality/value – The results are useful for those who want to develop sound and robust approaches to the study of social change, taking into consideration the simulation of possible future scenarios.

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