Neoliberal Changes Research Articles

Globalisation in-Between Homogenisation and Heterogenisation: An Institutionalist Analysis on Türkiye

ABSTRACT While neoliberal globalisation exerts both homogenising and heterogenising forces on a global scale, an excessive emphasis on its homogenising effects can lead to overly optimistic and unrealistic future projections. This study, instead, directs its focus towards the heterogenising impact of neoliberal principles and norms on Türkiye through an institutionalist lens. Beginning with a historical analysis and subsequently conducting an empirical examination using World Values Survey (WVS) data, the research reveals that the divergent evolution of Türkiye and the West created structural differentiation preventing Türkiye’s homogeneous integration into the West. A process tracing analysis spanning from 1990 to 2017 further demonstrates that Türkiye's historically evolved social institutions exhibit resilience against the pressures of neoliberal change, despite its widespread diffusion throughout the country since 1980. As a result, this paper posits that heterogenisation and its inherent unpredictability are destined to shape the future global landscape, challenging the optimistic assumptions of pro-globalisation advocates.

Governing street trading in post-apartheid Cape Town: neo-colonial or neo-liberal order?

ABSTRACT This article addresses the issue of the temporalities of public action in Cape Town, using the example of the governing of street trading since the early twentieth century. Our main argument lies in a discussion of the current understanding of the governance of street trading as a product of a neo-liberal regime reproducing the colonial order. Using the genealogical method of Foucault and his conceptualisation of neo-liberalism as a rationality of government, we show that although the instruments of control may remain the same (limitation of permits, spatial zoning and identification of traders), their political meaning has changed over time, reflecting a shift from coercion and repression to neo-liberal governmentality. We demonstrate empirically how neo-liberalisation operates through a transformation of the very rationality of these instruments. We conclude by emphasising that using Foucault’s definition of neo-liberalisation and method helps to build a theory of neo-liberal change for post-colonial contexts.

Neoliberalization elementary and high school education in Serbia from 2012 to 2022

The paper demonstrates and analyses the process of neoliberalising elementary and high school education in Serbia, focused on the period from 2012 and the beginning of Serbian Progressive Party government to today. Before the empirical analysis itself, a theoretical contribution to the debate surrounding the elusiveness of the concept of neoliberalism is given. The paper recommends that the different conceptualizations of this term should be described as aspects of a broader process of class rule through disempowerment. Following Harvey?s approach, this meta-process is defined as neoliberalization. Harvey?s elements of neoliberalization (privatization and commodification; financialization; the management and manipulation of crises; state redistribution) are thus expanded by three further elements: the neoliberal intellectual project, ideology and the cultural regime. In based on this theoretical framework neoliberal changes in education and relationships between them are analyzed. Ways in which these changes contribute towards the restoration of class power is shown.

URBAN PROTESTS UNDER NEOLIBERAL TRANSFORMATIONS IN CENTRAL ASIA: FRAMING ANALYSIS

The advent of neoliberal reforms in Central Asia resulted in variegated economic, social, and political transformations. Although meant to encourage fast marketization of economy and empower the population, their adverse consequences seem to have spurred social mobilizations in the region. This paper seeks to provide an overview of theoretic frameworks for the analysis of urban protests as a form of activism in the region. Authoritarian neoliberalism accurately captures the roots of social activity in the cities which provide and reveal the scope and of neoliberal changes. Unlike those described in mainstream literature, local social mobilizations are grassroot in nature, occurring without the support of institutionalized actors.

The 1997 Financial Crisis and Changes of the Economy and Society in Korea : Neoliberal Changes and the State’s Regional Strategies

1997년 외환위기 이후 국내의 경제와 사회 각 부문에서는 변화들을 발견할 수 있다. 먼저 금융 부문에서는 국내 자본시장이 외국자본의 커다란 보유지분으로 인해 글로벌 경제에 더욱 강하게 통합되었고, 기업 역시 이러한 변화 가운데 비용 절감과 수익성 확대에 대해 더 큰 압력을 받게 되었다. 이 와중에 국내경제는 세계경제에 통합된 국내 자본시장의 변동성 증대, 증가된 노동생산성과 비정규직 증대 등에 의해 정체된 실질임금 사이의 괴리, 초국적 자본에 의한 시세차익 취득 및 기업수익 배당 등에 의한 부의 국외유출, 소버린이나 론스타, 엘리엇 사태 등 기업에 대한 투기적이고 직접적인 약탈 등을 경험하게 되었다. 또한 실질임금의 정체에도 불구하고 국내에서는 막대한 유동성이 주택 등 부동산 자산가격을 폭등시켜, 다시 부채를 통한 투기열을 부추기기도 하는 모습도 최근 관찰되고 있다. 자산가격 폭등과 실질임금 정체, 제조업과 정규직 고용 축소 등은 현재 부동산 투기열과 가계부채 폭증, 소득 및 사회적 양극화라는 새로운 위기의 회로로 이어지고 있다. 저출산 초고령사회화로 인한 사회 재생산의 위기도 이러한 문제들의 소산으로 볼 수 있다. 외환위기 이후 국가의 지역전략 및 정책으로서 등장한 ‘경제특구’, ‘경제자유구역’은 이러한 신자유주의적 경제 사회의 변화가 산출한 문제들을 가장 전면화한 공간으로서, 초국적 스케일과 맞물리는 국가적/지역적 스케일의 새로운 공간적 선택성의 결과 ‘혼종적 공간’으로서 등장하게 되었다.

3 Academic Activism inHigherEducation: A Dialectic of Resistance and Surrender in a Time of Neoliberalism

Abstract: The historical, cultural, political, and economic contexts of academic activism have been marked by the structural crises of capitalism, which, along with the emergence of neoliberalism, have sought to change the Academy and disciplines. The disciplinary impacts of neoliberal policies outside and within the academy have all influenced students, academics, and management in differing ways. Furthermore, academic activism in higher education requires a debate on the function of education, the role of the university along with disciplines, and exploration of the importance of ideology in relation to human emancipation or alienation. So too this debate should consider whether academia and activism occupy separate worlds in a discursive strategy to disqualify the legitimacy, cogency, or efficacy of academic activism. The economic and managerial consolidation of the neoliberal university has intensified the challenges of activism and resistance within academic disciplines as well as for individuals. This paper aims to explore the legacy of neoliberal change within academia, identifying the opportunities and need for activism within the Academy. Using an argumentative literature review supported by the critical reflection of the authors’ experiences within the academy in Brazil and the UK, we explore the contemporary challenge and the need to utilise the contradictions of the current system to work collaboratively and to be engaged as public intellectuals.

Dialing for Change: Organizing Call Center Workers in the 1990s

Abstract This article contrasts two Communications Workers of America (CWA) strategic organizing campaigns at Sprint and Southwestern Bell wireless in the 1990s. In the first case, the NLRA failed to protect Sprint workers after their employer closed the call center to avoid a union election, despite a complaint filed by a Mexican union under labor provisions of the North American Free Trade Agreement. In the second case, the CWA's “bargain to organize” strategy neutralized Southwestern Bell's opposition, and 40,000 wireless workers chose CWA representation under a negotiated neutrality/card-check recognition process. This article demonstrates how neoliberal regulatory changes in the telecommunications sector in combination with weak labor laws fostered the decline in union representation in this vitally important and dynamic sector of the economy.

Negotiating a new Swedish model: Employment transition agreements and the struggle over redundancies

This article is aimed to contribute to our knowledge regarding employer and employee preferences about employment security and unemployment income protection as well as the degree of neoliberal change during the last decades through the lens of collective bargaining. It charts the institutional–historical development of an Employment Transition Agreement (ETA) between the bargaining cartel for white-collar unions, PTK, and the organisation for private employers, SAF/SN. ETAs are a form of institution through which Swedish trade unions and employer organisations give employees added protection in the event of redundancies, mostly in the form of added income protection but also matching services and shorter training programmes. Drawing from archival material and published statements in newspapers, the article engages with what the organisations wanted from such agreements during negotiations and how this shifted during the decades. The results show that the agreements have given employees added unemployment income protection while at the same time giving employees greater flexibility during collective lay-offs. It also shows how the agreement initially was more focused on employment security and proactive investments in skills. But when the balance of power shifted in favour of employers, PTK had to give up any such ambitions.

The entangled state: How state-business relations shaped the German corporate tax regime

Contemporary tax research is split into two camps: comparative approaches emphasize continuity and cross-country differences, while the globalization literature stresses similar changes across countries. Counter the continuity thesis, this paper finds that neoliberal dynamics were at play in a case considered largely resilient to such dynamics: German governments implemented a series of corporate tax reforms which radically curbed business taxes and added a short-term and cost-cutting component to investments and corporate finance. While these changes point towards neoliberal change, they were distinct from the trends we see in other economies: crucially, the German reforms did not follow the common trend of reducing taxes for individuals and entailed a particular emphasis on enhancing multinational’s access to international capital – but did not liberate financial incomes from tax in general. Based on archival documents from the Bundestagsarchiv, this paper traces the process of German tax reforms and finds that neoliberal dynamics were at play but received a local (export-oriented) colour through processes specific to the German polity. Because consensual institutions granted power to a specific business coalition, radical change was long blocked. Reforms could only be implemented once the state forged a new coalition. Making sense of the mediation of neoliberal dynamics through state institutions can contribute to a better understanding of the variegated nature of neoliberalism.

Janusz Homplewicz's pedagogical ethics in the light of changes in the contemporary world and its educational significance

This article synthetically presents the views of Janusz Homplewicz on pedagogical ethics expressed by him explicitly and implicitly, combined with their re-reading and interpretation in the context of contemporary neoliberal changes and trends in education as well as the increasingly presence of modern technologies and an infinitely expandable cyberspace. This raises many challenges and problems in the field of pedagogical ethics, which cannot be solved by the existing interpretations of ethical regulations. They concerned mainly the dualistic world order (good vs. evil, true vs. false, "white" vs. "black"), now replaced by interpretative relativism. Hence, attempts to reinterpret the existing reference points in the field of pedagogical ethics seem justified.

“Mummy is in a Call”: Digital Technology and Executive Women’s Work–Life Balance

Research findings confirm the contradictory impact of mobile technology on work–life balance, as these tools both guarantee greater flexibility and contribute to blurring boundaries between private and working spheres. Several articles have been published on women executives’ work–life balance in Western countries; however, their usage of mobile devices remained almost unexplored in the post-socialist region, where in the wake of the transformation not only the unquestioned neoliberal change of the corporate sector but also refamilisation took place. This article gives an overview on the issue of how women executives make use of mobile technology during their everyday activities in Hungary, where not only are the signs of ‘corporate colonization’ present, but also motherhood plays an important role. Based on twenty semi-structured interviews with Hungarian women in senior management positions carried out in 2014 and 2015, the article discusses the perceptions and narratives explained by these women. Results contribute to the ongoing debate on the paradoxical impacts of modern technology on work–life balance and its specificities in the post-socialist context.

Negotiating conflicts of interest: working with multiple stakeholders

PurposeThe purpose of this article is to examine conflicts of interest (COI) in qualitative social research with multiple and often powerful stakeholders such as organisations and funders.Design/methodology/approachThe article offers an explorative qualitative analysis of a selected group of Danish doctoral students' experiences and negotiations of COI in their qualitative, multiple stakeholder research. The point of departure is that while potential and readily identifiable sources of COI, such as funding institutions, are important to disclose this may provide inadequate insight into stakeholders' actual – and potentially undue – influence on the research during the research process. This calls for a focus on research practice. Finally, the current neoliberal policy changes affecting universities provide the backdrop for the study.FindingsFocusing on negotiations around COI in practice, the analysis illuminates the complex reality of negotiating different – and sometimes conflicting – expectations and interests when conducting long-term qualitative studies. It also shows examples of stakeholders' attempts to potentially, and unduly, influence doctoral students' research. Finally, it suggests that stakeholders and researchers alike can be both powerful and potentially vulnerable when engaging in qualitative research.Originality/valueThe article contributes to the existing literature by explicitly focusing on COI in qualitative social research, and by exploring experiences and negotiations of COI in practice.

DÜNYA BANKASI'NIN SAĞLIK REFORMLARI ÜZERİNE ETKİSİ ; TÜRKİYE’DE SAĞLIKTA DÖNÜŞÜM ÖRNEĞİ

There has been a neoliberal change taking place for 40 years in a lot of countries within the field of health. Beginning of the change was based on Washington Consensus made in 1978. In this review, it was aimed to assess the effect of the World Bank Group (WBG) on health reforms in the example of Turkey. In the review, WBG documents, Ministry of Health of Turkey documents and scientific literature related to health reforms belonging to 1978-2018 period were investigated, additionally related events and legislative regulations were tabularized chronologically. Health reform in Turkey has spread over a long term process during the rulerships of right-winger, left-right coalition or military coup governments and it has been structured in the form of interventions being in a specific order and supporting each other. The process has been accelerated substantially and legal regulations were completed to a great extent after the Justice and Development Party, which is a right conservative party, came into power in 2002 and remained in power for four terms. Within this period, many reports have been written by the WBG, Loan agreements have been signed and legislative regulations related to reform have been made. Particularly in recent years, health reform has been actualized as a result of decentralization of the WBG and establishment of second largest center of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) in Turkey. WBG's impact on the countries within the process of health reform should be observed and monitored; and the commercialization of health care services should be controlled.

Changing Contexts of Practice: Challenges for Social Work and Community Development

ABSTRACTIn a rapidly changing global environment, there have been renewed calls to position community development more centrally in social work, particularly in the face of contemporary practice challenges. This paper analyses the broad policy contexts of neoliberalism, globalisation, and governance change and discusses how these forces interact with social work and community development, drawing on examples from Australia and Ireland. The paper argues that sociopolitical forces both restrict and present opportunities for social work and community development practice and we seek to reactivate debate about the position of community development within changing and challenging contexts.IMPLICATIONSContextualises community development practice, policy, and research within contemporary environments of neoliberalism, globalisation, and governance change.Critically evaluates implications and new opportunities for social work and community development, drawing on examples from Australia and Ireland.Reactivates debate and analysis on the position of community development in contemporary social work as we move forward into the new decade, and the next global agenda for social work and social development.

Neoliberalising Education: New Geographies of Private Tuition, Class Privilege, and Minority Ethnic Advancement

AbstractGeographic research on neoliberalism has explored the restructuring of educational landscapes wrought through marketisation of preschool, school and higher‐education provision and considered the responsibilisation of parents and children for educational outcomes. This study develops understanding of the contingent emergence of neoliberal educational reform, and its progressive and regressive impacts, through an examination of the burgeoning private tuition market in England and Wales. The paper outlines the contours of the previously hidden supplementary education industry, demonstrating that it reinforces regional and classed inequalities, while opening possibilities for ethnic minority advancement. Conceptually, the paper advances debate about socio‐spatial specificity in neoliberal change, showing that the intersection of policy, free markets and consumer behaviour reshapes the educational landscape in ways that extend beyond state intention and control. Through these processes, contingent market forms are produced that offer social mobility for some, but ensure the social reproduction of enduring regimes of power.

International Youth Alienation and Disengagement: Are “Care-Less” Institutions to Blame?

The majority of voters in South Africa still do not take democratic elections for granted, but the decline in voting participation is a cause for concern in South Africa, as in other parts of the world. In addition, widespread student protests at higher education institutions during 2015 and 2016, including those at African and South African institutions, were alarming. The reasons for student discontent are diverse, and the authors propose in this article that the voter disengagement and student protests are symptoms of much more sinister underpinnings largely connected to neo-liberal changes in South Africa higher education. This article discusses these trends of voter disengagement and increased student unrest and proposes that the economically and individually focused neo-liberal trends in higher education are related to these. This article proposes the relevance of the ethics of care framework for universities to mitigate these changes in higher education. Specifically, for student affairs and services in universities, the adoption of ethics of care, not only as a practice but also as a framework for student development, is discussed. The authors propose that the ethics of care can be conceptualized as an antidote to the “care-less-ness” embedded in neo-liberal influences on higher education and can enable universities to re-claim their role in developing students who are caring and living a care-filled life. A care-filled life, which involves caring for others and for community while being cared-for, and giving and receiving care, is likely to generate engaged and participative citizens.

The Planetary

This essay analyzes Masao Miyoshi’s “turn to the planet” in his later work. In articulating this turn, Miyoshi critiques the logics of difference that has dominated comparative literary and area studies and offers the concept of “planetarianism” as a way of articulating the need for humanistic disciplines to address the global commons created by runaway consumption and environmental deterioration. In drawing on the visual images of photographer-artist Shimpei Takeda and the ecocritical work of Timothy Clark, this essay suggests how Miyoshi’s appeal for a new analytical approach to comparative and area studies might be implemented—one that would account for the totalities introduced by consumption, neoliberalism, and climate change. Suggested is a multifaceted approach that eschews parochialism in comparative studies, addresses geopolitical histories, and accounts for the material world.

The Perfect Pair or Strange Bedfellows? Neoliberal Social Change and Social Justice Philanthropy

This research examines how social justice foundations are employing concepts of neoliberal social change into their texts and grantmaking practices. Through a text analysis of the publicly available documents for the fifty largest foundations by asset size focused on social justice philanthropy, this research is specifically interested in how foundations understand neoliberal social change, and how this understanding impacts the foundations grantmaking strategies to address these problems.

Hating Skyler White: audience engagement, gender politics and celebrity culture

ABSTRACTSkyler White is a protagonist in the top-ranking television series Breaking Bad. She is also one of the most hated characters on television. This paper focuses on how the character of Skyler and Anna Gunn – the actor that plays her – are turned into a ‘composite celebrity’ in audience discussions. This is achieved by analysing threads on the social news website Reddit that specifically discuss Skyler. We discovered three main speaking positions: ‘savvy’ viewing; moral realism; and public shaming. This type of audience research may help further discussion on how celebrity culture is supported by neoliberal changes in the public sphere and caught up in the devaluation of professionalism and professional status – which, as will be shown, has especially dire consequences for professional women. Breaking Bad showcases predominantly masculine narratives. The derogation of its key female character therefore does not come as a surprise. However, a feminist defence of both the character and the actor – although a minority perspective – is also voiced. This article reveals how the interlinking fields of celebrity gossip and television criticism are a space of vibrant and sometimes frightening discussion in which a neo-conservative gender agenda is simultaneously asserted and contested.

The curious compatibility of consensus, corporatism, and neoliberalism: The Finnish business community and the retasking of a corporatist welfare state

This article addresses the apparent paradox of simultaneous neoliberal change and welfare-statist, corporatist continuity by presenting an empirical case study of the advent of neoliberal ideas in Finland in the 1970s and 1980s. The article focuses on the attempts of a free-market think tank, EVA, and the employers’ association, STK, to advance policies such as economic deregulation, international competitiveness, welfare retrenchment, and active social and labour market policies through the neoliberal retasking of the corporatist Finnish welfare state. EVA and the STK utilised seemingly non-neoliberal means, that is an economic policy consensus and tripartite corporatist arrangements, and reformulated their content to better correspond with business interests. Instead of demolition, the outcome has been the redefinition and incremental transformation of the state from a provider of welfare to a promoter of competitiveness, productivity, and employment.