Does investing in identity work? An examination of the ethnocentric social capital theory from an oriental perspective

The central thrust of this paper questions the notion of ‘investing in identity’ in the current approach to social capital, and challenges the assumption that the poor can draw upon their identities as productive resources to alleviate poverty. This paper argues that the mainstream social capital model is largely based on the economic model of rationality, which assumes that individuals are rational, and consciously construct social identities with purposive reasons. This perspective, however, neglects agency, subjectivity and the power dimension in the process of identity building. This paper also questions the ethnocentric nature of social capital thinking which plays down the influences of culture and context. Drawing upon the structuration theory of Anthony Giddens, and based on my ethnographic research on Chinese migrants in Hong Kong, I challenge the ‘Hong Kong-derived Chinese identity model’ by Gregory Guldin. Using the concept of ‘acknowledgeable agents’, I argue that the construction of ethnic identity amongst migrants is far more complicated, and agents may use their hyphenated identities to seek room for manoeuvre. I also highlight the transformative, fluid and fragile nature of identity to suggest that he notion of ‘investing in identity’ is problematic because which and what identities, and where and how to invest, are not properly addressed. Taking agents’ subjectivity into account, disinvestment, rather than investment, in identity may be a more desirable livelihood strategy adopted by migrants. Finally, I draw attention to the dark sides of identity, and point out that without a clear understanding of the existing structures of interaction, investing in identity may result in poverty aggravation and further exclusion of the poor.The writer is currently an assistant lecturer at the University of Bradford, UK.     

Preventive diplomacy in historical perspective

The perils and difficulties of recent great power efforts to defuse and contain small power disputes have been much remarked upon. This paper justifies and operationalizes comparative investigation of eight nineteenth- and twentieth-century preventive diplomacy cases directed to small power ethnic conflict, to document the interplay between such conflict and great power behaviour under a variety of conditions. The purpose is to seek differentiated, historically grounded generalizations, and more sustainable foundations for contemporary policy. Similarities and divergences initially uncovered between the cases are described, and it is argued that these remain relevant despite apparently unique contemporary developments.     

India's secularism in comparative perspective

This review assesses whether Gary Jeffrey Jacobson's The Wheel of Law resolves the two major dilemmas besetting Indian secularism: first, how to reconcile the paradox of transforming formal equality into substantive equality for groups and individuals while also allowing religious freedom; and, no less importantly, with whom lies final authority for transforming religious practices. This review essay argues that the crisis of secularism, linked intimately with democracy and manifested in the rise of religious majoritarian (Hindu) nationalism, can be resolved only by confronting the question of power – in this case, the authority to alter religious practices.     

Chinese medicine in an occidental perspective

This article treats the relationship between the Westerners and Chinese medicine. Firstly, the purpose is to comprehend how young Westerners have come to practice Chinese medicine in their lives and, secondly, to learn the eventual consequences of that practice on their lives and attitudes towards this medicine.

---

The Northern Ireland crisis in perspective

Abstract

The urban guerrilla warfare that has been taking lives in Northern Ireland for the past sixteen years cannot be regarded as an anachronistic settling of scores between “papists” and “prods” in an inferior remake of Europe's seventeenth‐century wars of religion. It is a conflict of our time and its distinguishing features cannot quite conceal a problem common to most divided countries, especially those—like Cyprus and Lebanon—which are shaken by similar convulsions.     

Future societal perspective

The author takes a structural approach to current trends in the United States. The problems of the USA today are characterized as directly or indirectly the product of technology. Along with great problems, however, technology has provided us with the means of forecasting alternative futures and navigating in the direction of the better choices. The use of computer technology is seen as vastly increasing the ability of planners to make effective decisions.     

EU social policy studies in China

Over last twenty years, Chinese scholars have paid growing attention to the topics of European social policy and European welfare states. These researches have been motivated less by the learning of the Europe than to learn from Europe for the sake of Chinas reform. The intrinsic inward-looking drive on the part of Chinese researchers is attributable to distinctively different research approaches between the counterparts in China and in Europe. The paper discussed the main issues discussed by the Chinese researchers on European social policy during past twenty years while casting some lights on the most recent developments as well.The Chinese version has been published in the Chinese Journal of European Studies, no.1, 2003. Translated by Ma Jisen, edited by Zhou Mu     

Funding development in Rwanda: the survivors' perspective

Why has the humanitarian world already forgotten the people of Rwanda? And why do the survivors of the Rwandan genocide continue to be sidelined, particularly those women who were raped and deliberately infected with HIV/AIDS in a campaign of systematic sexual violence? The focus of humanitarian organisations shifted from Rwanda after 1994, and these women – most of whom have to maintain their households alone – are needlessly dying because they have no access to treatment. Humanitarian and development efforts will not achieve lasting benefits without better coordination and the ability to act on lessons learned.     

Political representation in India: Enlarging the perspective

ABSTRACT

Democratic theory has recently been marked by a renewed interest in political representation that is manifest in, and proceeds from, a series of theoretical works that radically open up the concept of representation. This introductory article briefly presents some of the key theoretical propositions that are brought forward by this body of literature, but also by anthropological works on South Asia, namely (i) the intrinsic plurality of the meanings and forms of political representation; (ii) the centrality and pervasiveness of representation processes in political life; and (iii) the constructivist dimension of political representation. As I introduce the four papers in this Special Issue, which collectively demonstrate the heuristic value of an engagement with such debates to understand contemporary Indian politics, I insist that what is at stake is not so much a “crisis” of political representation as a series of events and evolutions that question received knowledge about political representation in India.     

Publishing for social change

This is the text of a talk given at a conference for Publishing for Social Change in Oxford. It explores the effect of literature on political consciousness.     

Microfinance and social capital: Does social capital help create good practice?

The role of organising and disseminating knowledge as a global public good has become a major preoccupation of international development organisations. One area in which they are particularly active is support for microfinance programmes in developing countries. More recently, the microfinance 'best practices' deposited in, and disseminated by, these international organisations have been associated with social capital. This paper examines the ways in which the notion of social capital is employed to explain the success of microfinance programmes. It argues that various types of social interactions that are generated around successful microfinance operations are randomly called 'social capital'. This means that the presence of social capital does not tell us much about what sort of microfinance programmes, in terms of design and implementation, should be regarded as good practice.     

A Chinese perspective on Lisbon Strategy

The Chinese interpretations of the Lisbon Strategy fall mainly into two different aspects: one focuses on the more or less neo-liberal orientation of the Lisbon Strategy, the other tries to assess the implications of this orientation toward the norms of national social welfare states. This article focuses on one of the main tool deployed by the Lisbon Strategy, i.e., the “innovation”, discussed its definitions, contents, practices and constraints. The article concludes that the direction of the Lisbon Strategy is more important than the quantitative goals it has set up to achieve, and China can in many ways learn from European experiences reviewed in designing and implementing the Lisbon Strategy.

---

People's empowerment from the people's perspective

Empowerment of poor people is the declared aim of many NGOs and official development agencies. However, the failure to recognise the culture of poor people, and to use their own forms of organisation as a point of departure, means that many such programmes are in fact counter-productive. This article argues that NGOs which wish to support people's empowerment need to demonstrate their faith in poor people by respecting and supporting their own decisions.