Contemporary Economic Sociology Research Articles

Digital-social construction of willingness to pay in online marketplace: Economic sociology of the digital functional food market in Indonesia

This study explores the phenomenon of digital-social construction in the form of anonymous transactions, asymmetric information, and unlimited access in online marketplace. The study was conducted by processing digital data of 5131 comments, descriptions, and rating records of 1988 IDs of functional food products sold at Bukalapak, one of the largest marketplaces in Indonesia. Using Python and Google Studio software, digital-social interactions are mapped and visualized based on four conceptual frameworks of economic sociology, namely social embeddedness of market, product standardization, intersubjective construction of symbolic value, and willingness to pay. This study marks a new chapter in the study of contemporary economic sociology, in which conventional conceptual frameworks are applied to uncover digital market phenomena using research methods that fully process and analyze big data in the business field.

The Problem of Defining the Essence of Money in Contemporary Economic Sociology: Between the State and Trust

The Problem of Defining the Essence of Money in Contemporary Economic Sociology: Between the State and Trust

O papel dos dispositivos de prescrição e julgamento no funcionamento dos mercados: o caso da certificação florestal

Um dos aspectos mais destacados pela sociologia econômica contemporânea é o papel desempenhado por relações sociais, dispositivos materiais, regras e significados culturais no proces- so de construção e funcionamento dos mercados. De acordo com essas abordagens, para que o intercâmbio mercantil funcione é necessário resolver algo que a teoria econômica convencional desconsidera, a questão da incerteza sobre a qualidade dos pro- dutos. Para responder essa questão, algumas abordagens cha- mam atenção para o papel desempenhado por dispositivos de julgamento ou de prescrição nos mercados. Esse artigo tem por objetivo a discussão do papel desempenhado por esses dispo- sitivos de julgamento no funcionamento dos mercados de ma- deiras certificadas, considerando o seu papel como prescritores, isto é, como dispositivos que atuam no sentido de definir as rela- ções entre vendedores e compradores e entre os diferentes com- petidores. Contudo, ao invés de supor que esses intermediários atuam para resolver a questão da opacidade da troca mercantil, adotamos a perspectiva de que estes prescritores atuam como parte interessada na construção do mercado, ou seja, apesar do dispositivo de certificação em análise se apresentar como uma terceira parte em relação aos diferentes interesses em jogo no campo da indústria florestal, dotado, portanto, de uma impar- cialidade relativa, ele finda por favorecer o sucesso de um determinado tipo de empresa florestal ou de uma determinada forma de coordenação da atividade florestal.

Economic Sociology as Disequilibrium Economics: A Contribution to the Critique of the New Economic Sociology

This paper analyses the problem of the asocial view of the market at the theoretical core of contemporary economic sociology. Despite much emphasis on the apparent interpenetration of society and the economy, contemporary economic sociology is rooted in an analytical distinction between the two spheres. The implicit reliance on the neoclassical economic conception of the market helps to explain why the ‘new economic sociology’ often collapses into disequilibrium economics, where disequilibrium becomes the central but unstated prediction of a good deal of the work in the paradigm. Using a sample of contributions from the field, I demonstrate that a strong tendency running through much of the new economic sociology tends to understand society as a fundamentally distortionary force. To resolve this problem, I argue that an independent field of economic sociology necessitates a distinction between social relationships and social relations.

John R. Commons and Max Weber: The Foundations of an Economic Sociology of Law

This article underlines contemporary economic sociology's lack of interest – until recently – in legal phenomena, unlike the close attention paid by two historic figures in ‘economic sociology’, Max Weber and John R. Commons, to the relationships between law and economy. It argues that to grasp fully the importance of the legal dimension in socio‐economic analysis, we must return to their foundational insights. However, they particularly stress differences between Weber and Commons as to the unity or heterogeneity of law and the economy, the role of ethics, the search for an all‐encompassing approach in the construction of ideal‐types, the various forms of constraint that characterize law (whether psychological, economic, or physical), and the distinction between state law and non‐state law. The latter element is why the authors argue that due consideration for legal plurality should be a central thread in any sociological analysis of the interplay between law and the economy.

Breaking up is hard to do: Irrational inconsistency in commitment to an industry peer network

This paper strengthens the basis for a key claim of contemporary economic sociology — that strong ties among capitalists cannot be reduced to rational considerations. Support for this claim has been limited by reliance on an external standard of rationality, whereby irrationality in commitment to a partner or network is based on an observer’s evaluation of an actor’s interests. In this article we address this limitation by developing an internal standard for assessing the rationality of an actor’s commitment, which is derived from Davidson’s (1980) definition of akrasia or ‘incontinence.’ In addition, we clarify the mechanisms that produce ‘akratic’ commitment among capitalists: (a) short-term emotions that overwhelm rational calculation; and (b) a sense of loyalty that leads one to incorporate others’ interests into one’s own. Finally, we provide systematic evidence of akratic commitment and the proposed mechanisms from studies of an industry peer network in the remodeling construction industry.

Что такое рынок: экономико-социологический подход

This paper focuses on the term of market and suggests a non-traditional variant of its consideration from the point of view of market sociology as the leading field of contemporary economic sociology. The proposed approach is not against or instead of the contemporary economic theory. The approach suggests new additional variants that let us discuss the current markets under new conditions.

On the state of the economic in sociology: A content analysis

This article explores contemporary economic sociology by means of a content analysis of the anthologies published in the field between 1993 and 2005, with attention given to four dimensions: the economic topics covered; the relative focus on economic conflict vs. cooperation; the methodologies employed; and the relationship to the field of economics. The content analysis reveals that economic sociology (1) most commonly studies markets and national institutions (2) tends to ignore issues of class conflict (3) relies primarily on interview-based and historical methodologies, and (4) only superficially incorporates a small number of concepts from economic theory. Of particular importance is the absence of sociological investions of important macroeconomic outcomes like unemployment and economic growth. It is suggested that the field can be strengthened by following Weber's (and Schumpeter's) formulation ofSozialokonomie a multidisciplinary approach that would conjoin economic theory and history to economic sociology.

The Relationship between Economics and Sociology: The Contribution of Economic Sociology, Setting out from the Problem of Embeddedness

This essay aims to analyse the most recent acquisitions in economic sociology, setting out from the problem of embeddedness. Firstly, the contribution offered by Mark Granovetter shall be illustrated, demonstrating how the interpretation proposed by this scholar is concentrated on a structural–relational perspective that tends to trace the explanation of economic phenomena to a theory of social networks. In order to enrich and integrate this approach, the contribution offered by the new-institutionalist perspective in contemporary economic sociology will be emphasised, which has focused on the social construction of economic institutions. This current has underlined, on the one hand, the cognitive dimension of embeddedness, related to the way in which the uniformities structured by mental processes limit economic reasoning, and, on the other, the cultural dimension of embeddedness, concerning the role of collectively shared representations in the formation of economic goals. It will be concluded by illustrating the acquisitions of some theoretical perspectives linked to the polanyian tradition that have developed a ‘plural’ conception of economy, founded on the emphasis of socio-regulative principles, such as those of exchange, redistribution and reciprocity, which, in becoming hybrid, give shape to variable and historically anchored economic worlds. The concept of embeddedness roots historically and transmits a vision of economic processes as inseparable from non-economic institutions.

Social networks: Networking of social actors in the sphere of economic activities

The article reviews one of the important fields of study in contemporary economic sociology - social networks in the sphere of economic activities. Besides basic theoretical and methodological conceptions in studying social networks that originate from general sociology and special sociological disciplines most important fields of study of social networks in economic sociology are presented. Some influential studies of social networks are analyzed; some key weaknesses of social network approach are pointed out, as well as possibility of their future development.

Principles of economic sociology

List of Tables and Figures ix Preface xi Chapter I. The Classics in Economic Sociology 1 Chapter II. Contemporary Economic Sociology 32 Chapter III. Economic Organization 53 Chapter IV. Firms 74 Chapter V. Economic and Sociological Approaches to Markets 104 Chapter VI. Markets in History 131 Chapter VII. Politics and the Economy 158 Chapter VIII. Law and the Economy 189 Chapter IX. Culture and Economic Development 218 Chapter X. Culture, Trust, and Consumption 241 Chapter XI. Gender and the Economy 259 Chapter XII. The Cat's Dilemma and Other Questions for Economic Sociologists 283 References 305 Index 357

Flexibility, Skill and Technical Change in UK Retailing

This article examines employment patterns in British retailing during the 1980s. It focuses on two debates central to contemporary economic sociology: the flexibility thesis and theories of skill and technical change. The data derive fiom the ESRC's Social Change and Economic Life Initiative and represent a sample of 72 retailing establishments fiom six localities in Britain. The article reveals that technological change had not produced much in the way of deskilling: rather, it had enskilled the work of already qualified and trained employees. Whilst part-time employment had increased in many stores, there was little evidence of any significant growth of other kinds of peripheral labour.

Socialization into Skilled Identities: An Analysis of a Neglected Phenomenon

This paper examines a neglected aspect of the debate about skill in contemporary economic sociology. It focuses on the processes of socialization whereby skilled workers acquire their social identities. It is suggested that apprenticeship relations between older and younger workers are of prime importance. It is also argued that skilled workers acquire a multiple set of identities—occupational, craft and class—which can be ranked hierarchically. These multiple identities act as resources for the interpretation of events. It is also argued that socialization into skilled identities is linked with forms of meaning acquired by apprentices prior to entry into paid employment.