Women In or Out of American Economic History?

This viewpoint discusses the absence of women from the economic history of the USA. During the past 25 years American economic historians have been so concerned with conceptual and methodological arguments within the discipline that they have failed to examine the female factor. Though many practitioners might consider that women have had little input into marketplace activities in the past, their attitudes stem from conventional ways of examining both issues and data. A more balanced and realistic approach to writing American economic history will entail seeing women as an integral part of past economic change. To do this will involve asking different questions of the past ‐ both of new and existing sources. American economic history could greatly benefit from looking at changes in both history and economics.     

Social Competence in Late Elementary School: Relationships to Parenting and Neighborhood Context

Despite evidence that neighborhoods confer both risk and resilience for youth development, the existing neighborhood research has a number of methodological limitations including lack of diversity in neighborhoods sampled and neighborhood characteristics assessed. The purpose of this study was to address these methodological limitations of existing research and to examine the relationship of neighborhood structural and social characteristics to family-level social processes and teacher-reported social competence during early adolescence. The study sample of 3,624 fifth graders (51?% girls) was ethnically diverse, including roughly even proportions of non-Hispanic White, non-Hispanic Black, and Hispanic youth. Neighborhood measures included economic disadvantage derived from the U.S. Census, physical and social disorder obtained by direct observation, and social capital from parental reports. Family-level social processes included parent reported family cohesion and youth reported maternal and paternal nurturance. We found that neighborhood factors significantly associated with youth social aggression and social competence but not social withdrawal, after controlling for individual demographic characteristics and parenting factors. There was limited evidence of moderation of family influences by neighborhood characteristics as well as the moderation of neighborhood effects by children’s gender. Neighborhood physical disorder was associated with increased social aggression among boys but with increased social withdrawal among girls. Implications of the study’s findings for research on neighborhoods and adolescent development and the development of preventive interventions are discussed.     

Invisible cities,hidden agendas

The Invisible City. Monetary, Administrative and Popular Infrastures in Asia and Europe, 1500–1900, by Frank Perlin. Aldershot: Variorum, 1993. Pp.xii + 366. £49.50. ISBN 086 078 342 1

This review article examines briefly the recent publication by Frank Perlin of a series of revised articles dealing with theoretical and methodological issues in South Asian history, in particular the period from the sixteenth to nineteenth centuries. Perlin's approach to the problems he perceives is to analyse the ways in which the process of state formation is based on concentric and intersecting sets of social and economic relationships, which both establish the space for the evolution of state‐like political power and which can at the same time be themselves destroyed, transformed, constituted or reproduced by the existence of such powers. This approach also underlies his interest in the patterns and functions of local, inter‐local and international exchange of money‐media for roughly the same period. His purpose is at the same time to challenge the ‘substantivising’ assumptions about the bounded nature of both the historiographical problem and the object of study made by much modern historiography.     

The detention of asylum seekers in the UK: bail for immigration detainees

Feminist economics draws increasing attention from professional mainstream economists. In this paper, we discuss methodological issues, some theoretical developments – notably on the household – and issues of economic policy. We point to parallels between feminist economics and institutional economics, and argue that these relations might be strengthened to the benefit of both.     

Farm size ‐ farm productivity re‐examined: Evidence from rural Egypt

A major component of the economic rationale for redistributive land reform is the empirically observed inverse relation between farm size and farm productivity. A major policy implication of this statistical relationship, frequently suggested, is for a small farm bias in agricultural development strategy. This article examines the hypothesis that while the above inverse relation may hold in the static context of a relatively backward agriculture, it breaks down with advancing levels of technological innovation, and to show, using primary data from village surveys, that this latter process has indeed been taking place in the context of rural Egypt. The article points out some of the conceptual and methodological confusion of earlier studies.     

工会理论政策研究的地位与作用论纲--兼论全国总工会理论政策研究的方向与方法

工会理论政策研究性质,首先是政治理论政策研究,又是经济理论政策研究,同时也是社会理论政策研究.改革开放以来,尽管中国工会理论政策研究已有相当成就,但就不断深化的改革事业以及工会运动的客观需求而言,其作用还是相当的不足或滞后.加强和改善工会理论政策研究,是实现工会工作市场化的基础和前提.全总的理论政策研究应该具有实践的前导性和理论政策的敏锐性,还应该实现学科化和社会化.     

Peasant classes and primordial loyalties

To establish a theoretical framework for the analysis of the social contexts of peasant political action, this article examines critically various approaches in social anthropology and Marxism. In the context of peasant societies, it considers the problematics comprehended in a distinction between a class‐in‐itself (an economic category) and a class‐for‐itself (a political group) recognising that the process of transformation of the one into the other is mediated by primordial ties such as those of kinship. For the analysis of such ties various approaches in social anthropology are examined, and emphasis is given to underlying conceptual problems in structural‐functional holism and methodological individualism in the light of a Marxist conception of the dialectical unity of man and society. It outlines an approach which seeks to extend the framework of class analysis.     

Ascertaining the economic characteristics of peasant classes‐in‐themselves in rural India: A methodological and empirical exercise

In 1976 the author developed a simple labour‐use index for the empirical identification of classes‐in‐themselves within a cultivating population. This index was subsequently applied, along with other conventional grouping methods, to farm economics data relating to Haryana, India. This analysis was complete by 1981. Part I of this article summarises some results of this methodological exercise in ascertaining the economic characteristics of classes‐in‐themselves. Part II is a critical discussion of an article on a similar theme by Athreya, Böklin, Djurfeldt and Lindberg in a recent issue of this journal.     

The combined and uneven development of working-class capacities in Turkey, 1960–2016

ABSTRACT

How have Turkey’s working-class capacities been evolving since the 1960s? What have been the peculiarities of Turkey’s import-substitutionalist model and later integration into the neoliberal economic landscape, as they pertain to the transformation of the Turkish working class? Our aim here is two-fold: (i) to contribute to a systematic understanding of the historical development of Turkey’s working class; and (ii) to develop a new conceptual lens for class-capacity analysis from a combined and uneven development perspective. By class capacities, we refer to the ability of the working class to develop an awareness of its long-term interests and organize to struggle for these collective interests. We employ theory-guided process tracing as the main methodological guideline to study the historical development of Turkey’s working-class capacities.     

Capitalist development,peasant differentiation and the state: Survey findings from West Bengal

The analysis which follows examines the structure of investment and production taking place in West Bengal, the reference point being the debate between Marxism and populism about peasant differentiation. The process of socio‐economic differentiation has not stopped, but in methodological terms farm size alone fails to register its extent. The main claim advanced by populism — Chayanov's argument concerning demographic differentiation, that rising consumer/worker ratios are accompanied by higher family labour input — was found to be inapplicable. Of particular interest is the role during the last quarter century of the Left Front government in the process of agrarian transformation, and the extent to which its pro‐poor policy interventions have stabilized smallholding peasant production. Among the effects of state intervention in the agrarian sector have been declines in (a) the number of holdings above ten acres (b) in the extent of sharecropping contracts, and (c) in the incidence of absolute landlessness. Although producers under 2.5 acres have been the main beneficiaries of institutional credit provision by the state, distress sales (in the form of marketed surplus) by poorer farmers are still evident.     

The method of usury and accumulation in backward agriculture: A methodological discussion of Bhaduri's thesis

Amit Bhaduri, The Economic Structure of Backward Agriculture, London: Academic Press, 1983. Pp. xi+151. £19.50.

Certain methodological issues relating to the central propositions and the form of explanation implicit in Amit Bhaduri's book, The Economic Structure of Backward Agriculture are identified and discussed. Bharduri's emphasis upon the relations of production relative to the forces of production in describing the economic structure of backward agriculture is seen to be illuminating. But his arguments concerning (a) the ‘barrier to innovation’ inherent in existing relations of production, and (b) primitive accumulation through land alienation in backward agriculture are seen to be problematic. Some of the relevant problems are examined.     

Do Mothers and Teens Disagree About Sexual Communication? A Methodological Reappraisal

This study investigated whether parent–teen disagreement in reports of sexual discussions is due to methodological factors. Forty-four mothers and their 12- to 15-year-old daughters (n = 18) and sons (n = 26) completed parallel questionnaires including measures of communication about 18 different sexual topics during the teen's entire life and during the past year. Analyses examined whether congruence rates were influenced by the use of global as compared to specific items, assessment of conversations during the teen's entire life as compared to the past year, and use of forced-choice as opposed to continuous-response categories. Taken as a whole, results support the notion that methodological limitations are partly responsible for lack of congruence in parent–teen reports. Suggestions for methodological improvements in future research are discussed.     

Peasants,the state and policy constraints: The political economy of rural development in peninsular Malaysia 1957–69

This article draws attention to two propositions concerning the analysis of public policy formation. First, such analysis should take account of inherent constraints that the state faces in the formulation and implementation of its economic policies. Second, policy analysis must necessarily deal with specific historical contexts within which constraints on state policy formation operate. The main purpose of this article is to apply these two propositions to a study of the rural development strategy pursued by the Alliance government in Peninsular Malaysia. A second purpose is to derive from the empirical case certain theoretical implications which can be relevant for the analysis of the role of the state in economic development.     

Approaching the socialist factory and its workforce: considerations from fieldwork in (former) Yugoslavia

The socialist factory, as the ‘incubator’ of the new socialist (wo)man, is a productive entry point for the study of socialist modernization and its contradictions. By outlining some theoretical and methodological insights gathered through field-research in factories in former Yugoslavia, we seek to connect the state of labour history in the Balkans to recent breakthroughs made by labour historians of other socialist countries. The first part of this article sketches some of the specificities of the Yugoslav self-managed factory and its heterogeneous workforce. It presents the ambiguous relationship between workers and the factory and demonstrates the variety of life trajectories for workers in Yugoslav state-socialism (from model communists to alienated workers). The second part engages with the available sources for conducting research inside and outside the factory advocating an approach which combines factory and local archives, print media and oral history.     

发展新时代的和谐劳动关系

劳动关系不仅是新型工业化和产业升级中需要探索的重大理论课题,更是新发展理念指导下共享发展成果中需要解决的重大现实问题。本研究探讨了和谐劳动关系的意义、劳动关系调整中的政府干预、我 国劳动关系治理的历史、和谐劳动关系构建中政府的作用等问题,可为新时代和谐劳动关系的构建等提供参考。 研究认为,从推进我国经济转型的实际出发,借鉴市场经济国家的经验,吸取国外劳资冲突的教训,深刻认识 和把握新时代劳动关系发展的规律,对于我国探索发展和谐劳动关系的有效途径具有重要的借鉴作用。对于中 国劳动关系的研究,应立足国情,从实践走向理论,并将理论回归实践,理性、客观地分析劳动实践需要解决 的深层根本性问题,从而为中国和谐劳动关系的构建作出重大贡献。     

Variable-Centered and Person-Centered Approaches to Studying Mexican-Origin Mother–Daughter Cultural Orientation Dissonance

The overall aim of the current study was to identify the methodological approach and corresponding analytic procedure that best elucidated the associations among Mexican-origin mother–daughter cultural orientation dissonance, family functioning, and adolescent adjustment. To do so, we employed, and compared, two methodological approaches (i.e., variable-centered and person-centered) via four analytic procedures (i.e., difference score, interactive, matched/mismatched grouping, and latent profiles). The sample consisted of 319 girls in the 7th or 10th grade and their mother or mother figure from a large Southwestern, metropolitan area in the US. Family factors were found to be important predictors of adolescent adjustment in all models. Although some findings were similar across all models, overall, findings suggested that the latent profile procedure best elucidated the associations among the variables examined in this study. In addition, associations were present across early and middle adolescents, with a few findings being only present for one group. Implications for using these analytic procedures in studying cultural and family processes are discussed.     

Does Adolescent Bullying Distinguish Between Male Offending Trajectories in Late Middle Age?

The perpetration of bullying is a significant issue among researchers, policymakers, and the general public. Although researchers have examined the link between bullying and subsequent antisocial behavior, data and methodological limitations have hampered firm conclusions. This study uses longitudinal data from 411 males in the Cambridge Study in Delinquent Development from ages 8 to 56 in order to examine the relationship between adolescent bullying and distinct late middle adulthood trajectories of offending, in which different groups of males follow different offending pathways. Results show that self-reported bullying predicts only certain adult offending trajectories but that the effect becomes insignificant once controls are introduced for childhood risk factors, although this may be due to the small number of the most chronic offenders. Study implications and directions for future research are noted.     

A project for research on the peasant revolution of our time

Up to the present my work has centred on economic aspects of the peasantry. Starting from an analysis of the nature of collective farms (kolkhoz), which I found to consist of peasant agricultural units agglomerated rather than really structured, I was led to the study of peasant economy itself: its internal organisation, its specific rationality, its relations with the surrounding economy. The results of my enquiries brought home to me, on the one hand, the capacity of the peasant unit to adapt to the different economic systems in which it exists, and on the other hand, the pervasive stamp the peasantry impresses upon these systems. Accordingly, I believe it would be valuable at this point to study the consequences of the peasant imprint in the social and political as well as economic spheres, particularly in the socialist countries. Of course I myself could undertake only a small part of the research programme sketched in the following pages.     

Demographic and social differentiation among Northern Peruvian peasants

In this paper, we apply the concepts of demographic and social differentiation to the analysis of inequality among rural households in the northern Peruvian department of Cajamarca. While we demonstrate that social rather than demographic differentiation is the more important process in this area, we illustrate the complementarity of Chayanov's methodological analysis of the family life cycle with a Marxist class‐theoretic framework. Both enrich the study of patterns in the agricultural sector of household labor use, family structure and composition, and income inequality.     

‘talk about a cunt with too much idle time’: trolling feminist research

Given the growing popularity of online methods for researchers and the increasing awareness of the levels of harassment and abuse directed at women online—especially women expressing feminist views—it is critical that we address the implications of online abuse for feminist researchers. Focussing on an often hidden yet significant part of our methodological decisions and recruitment, this paper details the online abuse levelled by men’s rights activists against a research project on women’s experiences of men’s stranger intrusions in public space. It argues for the need to locate such experiences within a violence-against-women frame, extending the concept of a continuum of sexual violence. Such an extension renders visible the added labour of ‘safety work’, which forms an invisible backdrop to the methodological decisions of many feminist researchers.