Norm Diffusion and Reputation: The Rise of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative

Transparency in the extractives sector is widely seen as an important tool for improving accountability and deterring corruption. Yet for those very reasons, it is a puzzle that so many governments in corruption‐prone countries have voluntarily signed up to greater scrutiny in this area by joining the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI). We argue that EITI serves as a reputational intermediary, whereby reformers can signal good intentions and international actors can reward achievement. International and domestic actors thus utilize EITI to diffuse the norm of resource transparency and to advance reformist aims in a highly problematic policy area.     

„Outstanding universal value“. Die Arbeit an der Universalisierung des Wertvollen im UNESCO-Welterbe

The UNESCO World Heritage List is an international inventory of natural and cultural sites that are, according to the conception of its initiators and administrators, of importance for mankind as a whole. The evaluation of the list can be interpreted as a specific form of the social production of the valuable. Focusing on the cultural sites, the paper argues that the production of World Heritage renders a form of practical universalization of the value of particular goods. It centres on the questions of how a site is produced as culturally valuable, how its value is universalized, and what role is played by the concept of authenticity in the process. Two aspects of the evaluation practice are examined with regards to the production of universalization: working with and working on the assessment criteria. It is shown that universality and particularity are interwoven in this practice.     

Zur Europäisierung der Handlungs- und Einstellungshorizonte: Ein makrosoziologischer Vergleich der EU-Mitgliedstaaten

Building on the transactionalist paradigm in the tradition of Karl W. Deutsch as well as on Arndt Sorge’s theory of tiered social spaces, this study examines why everyday actions and attitudes are more centered on Europe (i.?e. “Europeanized”) in some EU member states than in others. Analyzing a variety of survey data on the EU-27 countries with partial correlation models, it is shown that the macro-level determinants of Europeanization differ between actions and attitudes. While actions are more Europe-centered in small and affluent countries, attitudes are more Europe-centered in post-communist states as well as in countries that are located in the geographical center of the EU and that do not have a protestant religious tradition. Contrary to transactionalist theory, the Europeanization of actions does not coincide with the Europeanization of attitudes: “doing Europe” and “feeling Europe” do not go hand in hand.     

Institutionelle Arbeit am Konflikt – ein Beitrag zur Transnationalisierung der Arbeitsbeziehungen?

Although political decisions and the mobility of capital have advanced the integration of markets at the European and the global level, durable transnational bargaining relationships between labor and capital remain rare. Drawing on case studies in two automobile companies the article explores whether and how class-based conflicts are institutionalized in the transnational social space of European industry. Concepts are borrowed from the theories of Pierre Bourdieu and neo-institutionalism to develop a relational, space-sensitive understanding of power lacking in existing perspectives, such as the power resource approach. This allows for a better grasp of the institutions shaping transnational employment relations in the two studied companies, Volkswagen and General Motors-Opel, as well as of the differing stability of these institutions.     

Educating Asian International Students: Toward a Transcultural Paradigm

A large amount of literature critiquing the nature and practice of higher education has emerged in the wake of globalisation. This special issue represents a range of intellectual debates around the challenges facing educators in globalised higher institutions, especially where Asian international students are concerned. Read together, the four articles contribute to an emerging body of critical research which de-essentialises solid forms of educational imaginary and embraces heterogeneity of knowledge domains and pedagogy in the ever-changing universe. With a shared vision of providing a high quality, equitable, and global learning experience for all students, these papers interrelate through four parameters: (1) pluralising the disciplinary knowledge base and diversifying curricula and programmes for all students to serve the global community, (2) calling for a progressive pedagogy which takes into account the ‘transcultural’ flow of knowledge on campus and offers students an equal access to quality-orientated education, (3) problematising the ‘imagineering’ of study abroad and proposing a reshaping of research and teaching practices away from a ‘pure’ cultural and intercultural preparation of mobile students and cultural essentialism, and (4) taking into consideration of the fluidity and personal agencies and internationalising effect of international students and moving beyond methodological nationalism.     

‘Critical Thinking’ and Pedagogical Implications for Higher Education

Global higher education is now situated in an open information environment in which national borders are routinely crossed and cultural identities are constantly shaped through encounters with diverse others. With over 4.5 million students on the move, pedagogical implications are potentially profound to the knowledge structure which so far has been largely affected by a single-dimensional version of history. Located at the very centre of current critical debates on higher educational pedagogy is the most contested issue of ‘critical thinking’ which has been credited as the essential attribute of graduates by all universities in Australia. In management practice, university policy makers have taken up ‘critical thinking’ to benchmark against the deficiency scenario often associated with international students, a large cohort of which come from Asia. This paper engages with the current critical debates and examines three aspects of ‘critical thinking’, the practices of teaching, doing and defending ‘critical thinking’ in university classrooms. In contesting ‘critical thinking’ as the essential attribute of graduates in the Western educational paradigm, this paper argues for an urgent need for a transcultural approach to think critically about the practice of ‘critical thinking’ and for an alternative pedagogical approach to global knowledge domains and knowledge production.     

“Who Was Park Chung-hee?” The Memorial Landscape and National Identity Politics in South Korea

President Park Chung-hee played a predominant role in shaping South Korean history, yet he remains a controversial figure. This paper explores the way this controversy has manifested itself in the memorial landscape and its significance within the context of national identity politics. It is argued that the debate between conservatives and progressives over the memory of Park has complicated the discourse beyond the prevalent focus on ethnic nationalism. The increasing place allocated for Park in the memorial landscape since 2008 is a tangible manifestation of a memory boom that appeared a decade earlier. Thus, the creation of an encouraging atmosphere in this regard can explain the correlation between the establishment of consecutive conservative governments and said trend. The way the memorial landscape has changed has offered an opportunity to think about a form of national identity which is more intricate. However, with the socio-political camps entrenched in their respective positions, the high-profile controversy has reflected the competing agendas and the degree to which the two sides differ on the fundamental components of national identity. The controversy over the memory of Park has thus both reinforced the divide between the political camps and demonstrated the extent to which it is deep.     

Ana Clavel’s “outlaw” desires in Las ninfas a veces sonríen

As a writer whose fiction is known for its transgressive themes and forms, it is no surprise that the Mexican author Ana Clavel has continued to revel in such contraventions in her novella Las ninfas a veces sonríen (2012). In this article I seek to examine how these, also new transgressions, materialize in the novella specifically within a queer framework. The queer showcases Las ninfas’ exploration of “outlaw” sexual desires as well as the fantastical and intertextual genre-bending. By defying heteronormative sexual normalcy, Clavel is seen to challenge certain “givens” within (Mexican) society, whether these be religious, moral, sexual, or cultural, and thus creating a fascinating representation of society’s particular fears, anxieties, and disavowed desires. In the context of the female character’s sexual experiences, transgressive queereness can be understood by making reference to various theories including those of Kristeva’s abjection/uncanny and Creed’s/Braidotti’s monstrous feminine, whereby the female is positioned in terms of an ambiguous oscillation between unthreatening object of male desire, monstrosity, and celebratory female sexual agency. Ultimately by thus delving into outlawed “no-deseos”, Las ninfas can be posited as a prime example of a Barthesian text of “jouissance” which disrupts the reader’s pleasurable reading experience.     

The influence of interest: Real US interest rates and bilateral investment treaties

Bilateral Investment Treaties (BITs) present developing countries with a trade-off. BITs plausibly increase access to international capital in the form of foreign direct investment (FDI), but at the cost of substantially curtailing a government’s policy autonomy. Nearly 3000 BITs have been entered into, suggesting that many countries have found this trade-off acceptable. But governments’ enthusiasm for signing and ratifying BITs has varied considerably across countries and across time. Why are BITs more popular in some places and times than others? We argue that capital scarcity is an important driver of BIT signings: The trade-off inherent in BITs becomes more attractive to governments as the need to secure access to international capital increases. More specifically, we argue that the coincidence of high US interest rates and net external financial liabilities heightens governments’ incentives to secure access to foreign capital, and therefore results in BIT signings. Empirical evidence is consistent with our theory.