Opportunity Structures Research Articles

The Europeanization of Wage Policy and Its Consequences for Labor Politics: The Case of Ireland

This article investigates the transnational labor politics associated with the Europeanization of wage policy, based on process tracing of Irish minimum wage regulation reforms over the past two decades. The policy struggle in Ireland started as an employer-led domestic challenge to market-embedding regulation and was then affected by two EU interventions on wage policy: one with a de-regulatory orientation (during EU-IMF conditionality) and one with a re-regulatory one (with the approval of the EU minimum wage directive). Findings show that differences in collective action undertaken by employers and trade unions to influence wage policy at the national level can be explained by the intersection of each actor’s preferences toward market-constraining or liberalizing labor regulation and their access to supranational (EU-level) institutions and support. This analysis contributes to debates on how transnational opportunity structures can alter labor’s and employers’ local power resources and strategies.

Living with parents or attaining residential independence? A comparative study of young adults’ living arrangements in China and South Korea

This study examines the living arrangements of never-married urban young adults in China and South Korea from 2003 to 2018. Using data from the Chinese General Social Survey and the Korean General Social Survey, we investigate the relationship between socioeconomic status and young adults’ living arrangements. Our findings show that a majority of Korean young adults lived with their parents during the observed time period, while Chinese young adults experienced large shifts in their living arrangements. Findings from weighted logistic models demonstrate that employed or high-income young adults were more likely to leave the parental home than those who were not working, suggesting the important role of economic security in independent living. Highly educated young adults in China tended to have residential independence, while education was not significantly associated with Korean young adults’ living arrangements. Korean young adults with highly educated fathers were more likely to stay with parents. The interconnection between family socioeconomic characteristics at the micro level and variations in opportunity structures at the macro level results in country-specific patterns of living arrangements.

When and how the ‘Neighbours’ matter: ‘Immediate’ opportunity structures in the Eastern neighbourhood and policy frame-alignment by the EU

ABSTRACT The paper examines the external opportunity structures of the EU’s eastern neighbours during times of high security threat. The research investigates when and to what extent opportunities in the neighbourhood affect EU engagement and shape policy-frame alignment. The study introduces the concept of an ‘immediate’ opportunity structure and concludes that the EU’s decisions to initiate or alter policy frames towards countries in the Eastern neighbourhood are driven by immediate security-related opportunity structures that exist at the moment of decision-making. Furthermore, the EU’s decision to engage depends on whether the security threat in the region and the neighbourhood directly affects the Union’s security architecture. As the political environment in the neighbourhood becomes more open and concessions towards the EU increase, the EU boosts its engagement, reflected in its policy alignment. The paper claims that the EU strategy prioritises immediate opportunity structures over indicators of long-term achievements in target countries. This focus on immediate opportunities aims to address, create, and further expand long-term opportunity structures.

A dual summit of power? Career movements and multilevel circulation in the Spanish executive elite

ABSTRACT Drawing from the literature on political ambition, this article examines whether politicians holding executive offices exhibit similar patterns of movement between different levels of government as parliamentary elites. It also tests the influence of various institutional and political variables typical of federal systems. Focusing on Spain, the study classifies career movements based on the initial position and the direction of advancement, analyzing their variations depending on the availability, accessibility, and attractiveness of the structure of opportunities. The article particularly aims to elucidate why certain regions are more advantaged to provide decision-makers with more opportunities to circulate across political layers. Our sample includes cabinet members (prime ministers and ministers) and regional chief executives in Spanish regions from 1980 to 2021. The findings suggest that the status of regions, the availability of parliamentary seats, and the regional party system, among other factors, contribute to understanding regional variations in opportunities for executive level-hoppers.

Opportunity structures for user acceptance of news recommender systems (NRS): A multi-country survey study of relationships between individual-level factors and evaluations of NRS

Opportunity structures for user acceptance of news recommender systems (NRS): A multi-country survey study of relationships between individual-level factors and evaluations of NRS

Theological Opportunity Structures and Christian Right Resistance Against the Liberalization of Family Laws in Norway

This article is a qualitative study of a Christian Right Party in Norway and its origin and growth as a reaction against the liberalization of laws pertaining to same-sex marriage, the adoption of children by same-sex couples, and other family-related matters. In order to analyze the contribution of religion in this political party, and in the movement from which it developed, the article introduces the concept of theological opportunity structures, which is a specific type of discursive opportunity structure. The concept of theological opportunity structures foregrounds the role of religious beliefs, doctrines, and narratives in politics as opposed to the institutional dimensions of religion. It is offered as a theoretical construct to improve analysis of the role of religion in politics.

The (De‐)Europeanization of the Political Class in the European Parliament: A Longitudinal Analysis of Members of the European Parliament's Career Patterns (1979–2019)

AbstractThis article presents a systematic empirical analysis of the career patterns of all 3634 members of the European Parliament (MEPs) who served in the European Parliament (EP) over the last 40 years (1979–2019). It explains how changes in the EP's structure of opportunities have shaped the development of MEPs' career patterns. First, we show that the development of a European political class is not a recent trend but that this process took place in the early days of the EP (as soon as in the 1984–1989 term), albeit with variance across political groups of the European Parliament (EPGs) and Member States. Second, we observe that the transformation of party systems and electoral volatility have been questioning the existence of the European political class. Overall, we conclude that legislative institutions are only as strong as the individuals who are called to serve them. Recent rises in the EP's turnover could ultimately undermine the EP's formal policy‐making capacity in the middle and long terms.

Social Opportunity Structures in Hacktivism: Exploring Online and Offline Social Ties and the Role of Offender Convergence Settings in Hacktivist Networks

ABSTRACT Hacktivism represents the promotion in the cyber landscape of ideologically motivated agendas using hacking techniques. Despite research on the topic has provided some clues on how hacktivist networks develop, the processes behind their evolution remain mostly unknown. This gap in the literature prompted us to research the role of online/offline social relationships and of the offender convergence settings in the creation, recruitment process and development of hacktivist networks. This study is based on 30 interviews with hacktivists, and it uses the social opportunity structures framework to analyze the development of 21 hacktivist networks. The results show that said networks can be divided in sub-categories based on the type of connections used to create them. Online social relationships and online convergence settings (particularly social media platforms and IRC channels) seem to play a key role in the development of hacktivist networks, while offline contacts are limited. For the recruitment process, hacktivists use comparable strategies to any organization, but three different categories were identified when discussing the level of sophistication applied to the selection of new candidates.

Firm Value Ditinjau Dari Pengaruh Kebijakan Dividen dan Growth Opportunity Serta Peran Moderasi Struktur Modal

Company value plays an important role, especially in the eyes of investors, because company value reflects company performance which can influence investors' behavior and investment desires in a company. This research was conducted with the aim of finding out how debt policy and growth opportunity influence company value which is moderated by capital structure. This research uses a quantitative approach using secondary data in the form of company financial reports. The population in this research is coal sub-sector companies listed on the IDX in 2019-2023. The sampling technique used was purposive sampling to obtain 39 research samples. The analysis in this research uses the analytical technique of Descriptive Statistical Test, Classical Assumption Test and Moderated Regression Analysis (MRA) which is processed using SPSS software. The research results show that partially dividend policy, growth opportunity and capital structure have an influence on company value, while capital structure is able to moderate the relationship between growth opportunity and company value and capital structure is able to moderate the relationship between debt policy and company value.

New Social Movement on Jokowi’s Impeachment Action in Indonesia

The elections in Indonesia in 2024 have ended and confirmed the candidate pair Prabowo Subianto and Gibran Rakabuming Raka as the elected president and vice president to lead Indonesia. One of the controversies in 2024 election that occurred was President Jokowi's abuse of power with the aim of winning certain candidate pairs in the elections. Therefore, some people created a group called Petisi 100 to carry out a social movement, namely the impeachment of Jokowi. This movement can be categorized as New Social Movements (NSMs). This research aims to explore the Jokowi impeachment movement as NSMs which includes what is behind it, who is involved in the pros and cons, how the development process is, what activities mark it, the opportunity structure, mobilization and framing, and what impact it has on political dynamics in Indonesia. The research results show that the movement to impeach Jokowi was carried out due to dissatisfaction with Jokowi who was considered too involved in the 2024 elections. This movement developed through five stages, namely identity formation, escalation, mobilization, polarization, and actor formation. This movement could have an impact on challenges to political parties in channeling their aspirations and the results of the 2024 Election.

Indigenous rights, social media and protest movements in Sápmi

AbstractFollowing the rush to minerals that would enable the shift towards green economies, the Sámi homeland is quickly becoming a crucible for the rising tensions surrounding the potential for new mining projects and large-scale infrastructure projects. The roots of these conflicts date back to the colonization of the north and continue in the present with the ongoing fight to maintain the Sámi heritage, language and culture, and increasingly to gain ownership of their lands. What initially began as activism within the legal system has, on occasions, transformed into outright protests. Social media increasingly plays a key role in disseminating the message of Indigenous protest among the protesters themselves and feeding into the national and international mainstream media. This shift occurs simultaneously with the construction of a dual narrative, constituted of both land-use protest and intensified demands for Indigenous rights, including, first and foremost, the right to self-determination. Drawing from Social media theory literature and the concepts of political opportunity structures (POS) and legal opportunity structures (LOS), this study argues that social media is one of the most essential tools used by Sámi activists to raise awareness about issue-based protests as well as to communicate demands for the right to self-determination when legal and political opportunity structures are not enough to support the cause. The power of social media lies in its accessibility, immediacy and visuality, which is illustrated in the article via specific examples of mining and railway construction protests in Finland and Sweden. Social media does not replace older tools, such as international human rights litigation, but their use can complement existing strategies for defending and advancing Indigenous rights.

Ignited by the Qur’an

The Danish lawyer and politician Rasmus Paludan has gained notoriety for filming and uploading footage of demonstrations and burning copies of the Qur’an, first in 2019 in Denmark and later in Sweden. Based on videos and material from social and conventional media, this article investigates the background and political and legal opportunity structures of Paludan’s activism. It argues that Paludan’s actions are situated in reference to broader debates on freedom of expression in general and understanding of blasphemy in particular. Paludan’s treatment of the Qur’an resembles a global injustice symbol (Olesen 2015; 2016). The symbol becomes global in nature when it resonates cross-nationally and cross-culturally. In 2023, as the symbol spread to the global public sphere, the Danish government decided to introduce a blasphemy clause that had been repealed five years previously. This underlines Sherwood’s argument that blasphemy has made a paradoxical return as a contested global category in the twenty-first century.

Do languages open doors? A theoretical model of linguistic capital and (im)mobility and its application in Spanish youth migration

ABSTRACT Language skills have demonstrated their significance in migration decisions; however, their role as a potential cause of immobility has been largely overlooked. In this paper, I first propose a theoretical model that seeks to explain decisions regarding mobility and immobility based on the instrumental returns generated by an individual's linguistic capital within a given opportunity structure. Secondly, I apply this model utilizing data from university and vocational training graduates in Spain. Leveraging its particularity as a case study, which encompasses five regions where a minority's co-official language is an integral part of ethnic identification and shares a similar institutional environment that encourages its use, I find that bilingualism is primarily linked to internal immobility. Simultaneously, it affects the direction of internal migration, since bilinguals are more inclined to relocate to areas with similar language conditions. Bilingualism also presents indirect effects. The results indicate that bilingualism influences international migration by facilitating the acquisition of a foreign language, which becomes increasingly attainable as the cost of language acquisition decreases, though the effect remains relatively small.

Онтология институционального дизайна современных общественных движений

The article offers an ontological conceptualization of the institutional design of social movements and outlines its func-tioning mechanism in modern society. The purpose of the article is to identify the specifics of the institutional design of contemporary social movements. Institutional design is described as an integrated unity of virtual and real practices, incorporating a technological component. The core of this design is the project activity of social movement partici-pants, and the construction of the reality through their participation in social and political life in both online and offline spaces. An ecosystem of design is presented, which includes a structure of opportunities and conditions for the creation, functioning, and institutionalization of social movements. Within this ecosystem, participants interact with an institu-tional environment that contains rules and regulations, as well as opportunities for participation in socio-political life. In a digital society, social movement participants have tools to create new algorithms for constructing reality using mobile applications and social networks. The ecosystem of institutional design expands as social movements gain political opportunities and organize both offline and online interactions with government authorities to address social issues.

Adapting During Unrest: How International Businesses Navigate the Social Movement Landscape

This study investigated the strategic responses of multinational enterprises (MNEs) during the 2019 Hong Kong social movement, employing a more nuanced framework of economic opportunity structure (EOS). Our study analyzed the economic impacts and adaptive strategies of MNEs in response to social unrest. Our findings highlight the strategic rationale behind MNE decisions and provide actionable insights for navigating complex socio-political landscapes. Our findings emphasize the crucial need for MNEs to maintain a careful balance of optimizing local engagement and global imperatives. The insights are pivotal for enhancing the strategic adaptability of businesses operating in volatile environments.

How Do Turkish Grocers Respond to Changes in the German Retail Market?

AbstractAlthough widely employed, mixed embeddedness analysis in ethnic entrepreneurship has some limitations in its political, dual and spatial understanding and assessment of opportunity structures. To address this, we propose an alternative framework that combines Hess' categorisation of embeddedness with Katz's resilience framework. Using this combination, this study examines the responses of Turkish grocery retailers to structural changes in the German retail market. Despite extensive research on these changes, the responses of ethnic retailers have been neglected in the general literature on structural change in the retail sector. Drawing on data from 23 interviews with retailers, experts, intermediaries and producers, this study aims to fill this gap. The findings underline the impact of embeddedness on Turkish retailers' responses to market changes. The proposed analytical framework provides a comprehensive analysis of the competitive strategies of ethnic businesses and overcomes the limitations of the mixed embeddedness concept.

Destinations after higher education non-completion: the role of social background and pre-tertiary vocational qualifications

Prior research has shown that students from lower socio-economic backgrounds are less likely to graduate. We examine if this can be explained by background-specific pathways into higher education. Many students in Germany enter higher education with a vocational qualification and prior vocational qualifications occur more often among students from lower socio-economic backgrounds. We argue that vocational qualifications shift opportunity structures and opportunity costs of students who have to decide between continuing higher education and alternative options. We therefore examine if parental background and vocational qualifications are associated with the destinations after non-completion. We distinguish the destinations “re-entering higher education”, “vocational training” and “skilled employment”. Using the German Educational Panel Study (NEPS starting cohort 6), we apply competing risks models. Our results show that non-completers from higher socio-economic backgrounds are more likely to re-enter higher education than non-completers from lower socio-economic backgrounds. The higher rates of transfer to skilled employment among non-completers from lower backgrounds are mainly due to the fact that they more often hold a vocational qualification and have good chances to enter the skilled labour market without additional educational investments. Our results hence shed some new light on the question how vocational training “diverts” lower background students from higher education.

Inequality Within the Family: A Comparative Analysis of Gendered Working Time Preferences Among Dual-Earner Couples

The preference for reduced work hours is well-known to be associated with various social ramifications, but research on the determinants of workers’ preference is generally limited to investigating individual and job characteristics. Building on the paradigm of the social construction of gender, the life-course perspective, and scholarship on welfare policy, we examine the relationships between heterosexual dual-earner couples’ work hour arrangements and men’s and women’s own preferences for reduced work hours, as well as their desire for their spouses’ reduced work hours in 19 countries. This study contributes to the literature on gendered work hour preferences by theorizing and analyzing two gendered family-centered contexts: couples' adaptive strategies and work-family policy regimes as two main theoretical frameworks. Thus, our approach allows examining which couple-level strategies and policies can combat hours’ mismatch, given the gendered structure of work opportunities and gender norms. Second, we offer the first examination of the role that defamilization policies play in shaping preferences for reduced hours at the couple level. Using the 2010 European Social Survey, this study documents a pervasive preference for reduced work hours for men and women in dual-earner couples. Multilevel models indicate that, regardless of dual-earner couples’ work hour arrangements, individuals generally report preferences for working hours for themselves and their spouses that conform to a modified male breadwinner-female homemaker model. Moreover, individuals in dual-earner couples in countries with less developed work-family policies feel more pressed for time.

Two tales of Kushtau Hill movement: ethnic environmental mobilisation and perceived costs of neopatrimonialism

In recent years the number of environmental protests in Russian regions has been on the rise, despite the shrinking political opportunity structure. In the Bashkortostan republic, the Bashkir Soda Company's (BSC) decision to develop the Kushtau Hill for soda ash provoked an environmental campaign to save the mountain. The Kushtau Hill movement succeeded, despite the highly repressive response from regional government and its tight patrimonial link to the BSC - two conditions identified in the literature as unfavorable to protesters. How is environmental discontent successfully mobilised under a repressive government and embedded extractive practices? Drawing on semi-structured interviews with activists, I trace two interlinked pathways to successful mobilisation. The first one testifies to the role played by national organisations in sustaining environmental collective action. Under a shrinking opportunity structure for formal ENGOs, the Bashkir national organisation “Bashkort” provided the emerging movement with its experience of informal organisation. Its leadership successfully linked ethnic grievances to environmental mobilisation byclaiming the Bashkirs' special relation to the mountain. However, ethnic and neighbour ties did not prevent a repressive response from the regional government due to a limited scale of the mobilisation. The second story deals with framing processes that expand the scope of potential supporters beyond particularistic ties. Protesters highlighted the perceived costs of neopatrimonialism to justify their demands. This framing put the republic head as a scapegoat who secured interests of the federal centre and BSC, compromising the residents' ecological well-being. Therefore, Kushtau Hill activists attracted new members, not putting themselves into danger of being perceived as extremists that targeted a regime-dimension.

Crowds and Smiles: Visual Opportunity Structures and the Communication of European Political Leaders During the COVID-19 Pandemic

ABSTRACT The growing interest in political leaders’ visual communication often emphasizes specific visual features without focusing on the driving factors behind these strategies. Our study introduces the Visual Opportunity Structure (VOS) theory, aiming to explain the use of specific visual elements based on their suitability within the socio-political context. We examined the COVID-19 pandemic, analyzing a large dataset (N = 73,379) of Instagram posts by 28 European national party leaders coded through automatic facial and emotional recognition algorithms. The findings reveal a negative link between the use of inappropriate visual features during pandemic waves, like depicting happiness and groups of people, and the severity of the pandemic’s impact. Political leaders significantly reduce these inappropriate visuals during severe waves, reintroducing them in calmer periods. This trend is particularly pronounced among government party leaders. Our research not only unveils a pattern in the visual communication tactics used by political figures during the pandemic but also provides deeper insights into how visual strategies align with the broader context. By shedding light on these nuances, the study contributes to a more comprehensive understanding of visual political communication online.