Regulationist Perspective Research Articles

Disputed meanings about child labour, its consequences, and interventions: discussions based on ethnographic research in Argentina

ABSTRACT Based on ethnographies with working children and their families in low-income neighbourhoods in Argentina, this article explores the experiences constructed around child labour, its meanings, and consequences, taking into account the locations and social relations in which it takes place. In doing so, it offers a nuanced reading of child labour that distances it from the dualistic thinking, deeply rooted in social sciences, in which, on the one hand, researchers conclude that child labour should be eradicated (the work-free childhood discourse) and, on the other hand, it is recognised as a right (the regulationist perspective). Based on field studies, the article challenges this dualistic thinking and presents a nuanced, alternative narrative.

The variety and limits of dairy policies in a context of global market deregulation

Since the 1980s, agricultural markets have been gradually deregulated. The milk sectors of the main dairy-exporting countries have not been shielded from these changes, which has led to a deeper global integration of dairy markets. However, a historical comparison of policies in the United States, New Zealand, the European Union, and Canada, from both a rural economy and regulationist perspective, reveals that a variety of institutional frameworks exist. For instance, Canada’s dairy sector continues to be highly regulated by public authorities, unlike in the case of New Zealand. Both countries, though, along with the United States, guarantee farmers a minimum share of the added value from processing, contrary to what is practiced in France. Market deregulation in the European Union has also brought about different national forms of competition. Based on the dairy sector, this analysis supports the idea of a great diversity of national forms of state and regulation, adapting to the global capitalist and neo-liberal regime. However, the latter generates major contradictions, disputing the sustainability of each of these forms of national regulation.

The Global Political Economy of Green Finance: A Regulationist Perspective

The Global Political Economy of Green Finance: A Regulationist Perspective

Comparative analysis of capitalism from a regulationist perspective extended by neo-Gramscian IPE

Over time, the comparative analysis of capitalism has moved beyond the strict confines of the narrow varieties of capitalism (VoC) framework. In this sense, it is possible to observe an emergent post-VoC discussion that goes beyond the static design and methodological nationalism that can be found in a strictly comparative and institutionalist account of capitalism. So far, however, the post-VoC discussion has been barely able to address important politico-economic and societal themes and issues. For the most part, assertions about time-diagnostic characterisations of the current state of capitalism, the causes and processes of specific crisis dynamics inherent to this current form of capitalism, and the asymmetrical forms of international networks or formative transnational power relations, remain weak or chaotic. In order to overcome these existing deficiencies, this paper argues from an analytical perspective that situates itself in regulation theory and allows itself to be characterised as an extended neo-Gramscian international political economy (IPE) approach.

Die Finanzialisierungslücke der Varieties of Capitalism

While the Varieties of Capitalism (VoC) approach is strong on pointing out the complementarities among national modes of accumulation, it falls short on capturing the dynamics of finance. From a regulationist perspective, its simple dichotomy of bank based versus market based finance overlooks functional equivalences and thus overemphasizes differences. The market based systems are misrepresented; in reality they do not conform to the ideals of transparency and dispersed shareholding. According to VoC, financialization emanates from the liberal market economies. However, the export successes of the coordinated market economies brought about financialization in the market systems by eliminating some of their industries. Most importantly, the VoC focus on firms treats finance as a service to companiesand not as a profit driven sector on its own.

Integration in Crisis: A Regulationist Perspective on the Interaction of European Varieties of Capitalism

The whole pattern of European integration is in crisis and important institutional transformations can be observed. It is argued that traditional comparative approaches, such as the Varieties of Capitalism literature, fall short in providing an adequate analytical framework to deal with the European crisis. We propose applying a theoretical framework which allows us to focus on the specific and asymmetric linkages between national economies in combination with a systematic analysis of institutions at different spatial levels. This is provided by a modified and expanded regulation approach. We provide an empirical overview of the different regimes of accumulation and their interaction, and our analysis of the asymmetric interaction helps us to explain the crisis and its dynamics. In addition, we analyse the reactions to the crisis and the consequences in terms of institutional transformations at different spatial levels. Finally, conclusions regarding the dynamics of future political-economic developments in Europe are drawn.

Path Dependence: A Political Economy Perspective

AbstractIn this commentary, I endorse Ron Martin's thoughtful rethinking of the concept of path dependence in a successful attempt to improve our understanding of regional economic evolution. I take issue, however, with his quick dismissal of Marxist geographical political economy as an important reference point for understanding the evolution of the economic landscape. Taking inspiration from a spatialized reading of the regulationist perspective on socioeconomic development, I argue that Marxist geographical political economy is a key reference point for any theory of regional development because it points to the importance of capital accumulation, state restructuring and collective agency in shaping economic evolution.RésuméRon Martin a judicieusement revisité le concept des sentiers de dépendance. Si ce commentaire souscrit à sa tentative réussie d’améliorer notre compréhension de l’évolution économique régionale, il critique néanmoins la rapide mise à l’écart de l’économie politique géographique marxiste en tant que pôle de référence important pour appréhender l’évolution du paysage économique. À partir d’une lecture spatialisée de la perspective régulationniste sur le développement socio‐économique, on peut avancer que l’économie politique géographique marxiste constitue un repère essentiel pour toute théorie du développement régional puisqu’elle met en évidence l’importance de l’accumulation du capital, de la restructuration de l’État et de l’agence collective dans la configuration de l’évolution économique.

Fractures in Meta‐Narratives of Development: An Interpretive Institutionalist Account of Land Use Development in the Boston City‐Region

AbstractThis article explores economy‐environment relations in urban areas through a focus upon the reorientation of development in the Boston city‐region in Massachusetts around a vision of smart growth. The article draws upon the evolving tradition of critical economy‐environment research from a broadly regulationist perspective. However, to date research has tended to mask the politics and mediations of the development agenda by actors locked in struggle to shape their social, economic and environmental landscapes. It is argued that reducing institutions to their stylized forms ignores the real politics associated with institutional formation and outcome. A more fruitful approach, we suggest, is to draw upon recent work on institutions and institutional change. In particular the article utilizes a decentered institutional analysis put forth by political scientists Mark Bevir and Rod Rhodes and investigates empirical data from secondary sources and interviews in the Boston city‐region with reference to Bevir and Rhodes' three concepts of dilemmas, traditions and beliefs.RésuméCet article explore les relations entre économie et environnement dans les zones urbaines à travers le cas de la région métropolitaine de Boston (Massachusetts) dont le développement a été réorienté autour d’une perspective de croissance intelligente. L’article s’appuie sur la tradition évolutive des analyses critiques des rapports économie‐environnement selon un axe globalement régulationniste. Toutefois, les études à ce jour ont eu tendance à masquer la politique et les médiations du programme de développement par des acteurs prisonniers de luttes pour façonner leurs propres paysages social, économique et environnemental. Ramener les institutions à leur forme schématique néglige la politique réelle associée à la configuration institutionnelle et à ses conséquences. Une approche plus fructueuse devrait tirer parti des travaux récents sur les institutions et le changement institutionnel. En exploitant notamment l’analyse institutionnelle décentrée des politistes Mark Bevir et Rod Rhodes, l’article examine les données empiriques issues de sources secondaires ou d’entretiens dans la région métropolitaine de Boston, à la lumière des trois concepts élaborés par les deux scientifiques : dilemmes, traditions et croyances.

Peripheral Financialization and Vulnerability to Crisis: A Regulationist Perspective

The current crisis confirmed that highly financialized regimes of accumulation are extremely crisis-prone. Most of the literature on financialization is focused on the economies of the centre. This paper analyses the peculiarities of financialization in the periphery, which is characterized by a high degree of extraversion and/or by considerable socio-economic heterogeneity. The theory of regulation permits analysis of different forms of financialization and the social dynamics linked with them. In contrast to Keynesian approaches, the state, international organizations and social forces shaping norms and policies are an explicit part of the theory. This allows for looking at policy-making within the analysis. Such an analysis enables us to explain policy changes (or lack of them) that are crucial for the processes of financialization and de-financialization in the periphery.

Governance Arrangements from a Regulationist Perspective: The Case of Liverpool

This paper demonstrates the necessity of considering wider politicaleconomic circumstances when seeking to understand the institutional and governance arrangements in a particular locality. The paper analyses the case of Liverpool, UK, from the perspective of regulation theory and concludes that national government initiatives have permeated local governance arrangements in Liverpool in both direct and indirect ways over the past 35 years. These outcomes reflect a wider approach to the regulation of the economy by the national government. The paper also notes the importance of considering path-dependence in a locality, as well as its wider political-economic context, when undertaking such an analysis of governance arrangements.

Building Local Development Institutions in the Hinterland: A Regulationist Perspective from British Columbia, Canada

This article examines the process of local development within the context of restructuring in hinterland British Columbia, Canada. The role of local development in the reconstruction of hinterland space is attracting considerable research attention, building upon an existing body of work from Canada and elsewhere, which is steadily refining our understanding of the local development process. Through a case study of two communities, this article seeks to enhance the theory–practice coordination of this work by using a regulation approach to examine the process, organizational structures and relationships inherent in local development. The communities in this study used local development both to pursue economic diversification and also to offset the uncertainty caused by economic and political restructuring. The findings illustrate that the case communities responded to restructuring in a systematic manner. This shows that the practice of local development may be related to theoretical interpretations of institution‐building. Regulation theory provides a framework within which to forge a link between the practical dimensions of the local development process and the concept of building local institutions. Specifically, the development of a local mode of social regulation is dependent upon the stability and coordination of a locally based development institution.Cet article examine le processus de développement local parallèlement à la restructuration de l’arrière‐pays en Colombie britannique (Canada). Le rôle du processus dans la reconstruction de cet espace soulève l’intérêt manifeste de chercheurs qui, ajoutéà un corpus de travaux émanant du Canada ou d’ailleurs, affine régulièrement notre appréhension du développement local. A partir d’une étude de cas portant sur deux communautés, l’article tente d’améliorer la coordination entre théorie et pratique de ce travail en utilisant la régulation comme démarche d’investigation des processus, structures organisationnelles et relations propres au développement local. Les communautés concernées se sont servies du développement local pour mener une diversification économique, tout en compensant l’incertitude née de la restructuration économique et politique. D’après les résultats, elles ont réagi de manière systématique à la restructuration, ce qui montre que l’on peut lier l’exercice du développement local à des interprétations théoriques de la création d’institutions. La théorie de la régulation offre le cadre oùétablir un lien entre les dimensions pratiques du processus et le concept de création d’institutions locales. Plus précisément, le développement d’un mode local de régulation sociale dépend de la stabilité et de la coordination d’une institution de développement basée localement.

Urban land rent theory: a regulationist perspective

Whilst real estate capital became a driving force in analyses of urban development, urban land rent theory has made only very limited progress during the past decade. There are a number of reasons for this – such as a weak conceptualization of the role of political agency, for example. Hence, a way out of this relative stagnation, by attempting to systematically develop an integrated view on structure and agency in the context of urban land rent, is offered in this article. Advances in critical theory, thinking about space and dialectic reasoning contribute to the development of a new perspective on land rent. Land rent is conceptualized as a middle‐range theory. In order to bring together concrete urban phenomena with the general process of political‐economic development, a systematic link between land rent theory and the theoretical apparatus of the French Regulation School is developed. The reformulation of land rent theory from a regulationist perspective underlines the importance of the institutional context (and its changes) for an understanding of rent and its role in the urban context. In so doing, land rent theory proves to be a very useful tool for providing an integrated political‐economic perspective for analyses of urban phenomena. This is illustrated briefly in the cases of Vienna and Montevideo.Si le capital immobilier est devenu un point central des analyses du développement urbain, la théorie n'a guère progressé au cours de la dernière décennie. Plusieurs facteurs sont en cause, telle la faible conceptualisation du rôle politique d'agence. Cet article propose donc une porte de sortie à cette relative stagnation, en tentant de construire systématiquement une vision intégrée de la structure et l'agence dans le cadre de la rente urbaine. Les progrès en matière de théorie critique, réflexion en termes d'espace et raisonnement dialectique facilitent l'élaboration d'une nouvelle perspective sur la location foncière, laquelle est conceptualisée en tant que théorie intermédiaire. Afin de regrouper phénomènes urbains concrets et processus général d'aménagement politico‐économique, une relation systématique est établie entre la théorie sur la rente foncière et l'appareil théorique de l'École Française de Régulation. Reformuler la théorie sur la rente foncière d'un point de vue régulationiste souligne combien le contexte institutionnel (et ses changements) est important pour comprendre la rente et son rôle dans le cadre urbain. Ce faisant, la théorie sur la rente foncière se révèle un outil très utile pour créer une perspective politico‐économique intégrée permettant d'analyser les phénomènes urbains. Cet aspect est brièvement illustré dans les cas de Vienne et Montevideo.

Regulating Investment Abroad: The Political Economy of the Regionalization of Singaporean Firms

This paper attempts to understand the regionalization of national firms from Singapore within the methodological construct of the regulationist perspective. It aims to demonstrate the usefulness of some concepts in the regulationist perspective for explaining restructuring processes in developing countries, and to evaluate critically the role of some of these concepts—such as regimes of accumulation and modes of social regulation—in illuminating the internationalization of capital through transnational corporations and their associated foreign direct investment. In particular, the paper argues that Singapore's export‐led regime of accumulation manifests inherent contradictions in its dependence on foreign capital, the domination of the domestic economy by state‐owned enterprises, and the relative underdevelopment of indigenous entrepreneurship. While this accumulation process was embedded in an earlier set of social and institutional mechanisms, its contradictions and tensions were not appropriately regulated and contained. When Singapore experienced two major external economic crises in the mid‐1970s and 1985, these shocks and their internal tensions triggered a continuous process of economic restructuring regulated by a distinct combination of social and institutional mechanisms, or “fixes.” One such institutional fix in recent years has been the promotion of the regionalization of Singaporean firms through the social regulation of local labor markets and the state‐led establishment of institutions to facilitate the regionalization drive.

Divergence and Convergence of National and Local Regulation

From a regulationist perspective, this article analyses the conditions under which local and national modes of development can diverge. Taking the modern history of Vienna and Austria as an example, the article considers the dialectics of accumulation strategies and national and local state projects. Four relevant historical periods can be distinguished. The more general conclusion is that heterogeneous regional development is only a necessary (but not a sufficient) condition for a local state project to diverge from the national one. It seems that popular forces can only establish a counter-project at the local level if the national dominant bloc fails to gain mass acceptance for its ideological dispensation and an emerging counter-bloc is able to capitalize on this weakness by formulating its own social project.

Local modes of social regulation? Regulation theory, thatcherism and uneven development

This paper examines processes of local social regulation, critically deploying a regulationist perspective on the political economy of uneven development. It is argued that the key issue of social regulation has been neglected in much recent work on economic restructuring. This paper proposes a conceptual framework for analysing social regulation at the subnational scale, applying this in a preliminary investigation of uneven development under Thatcherism.