Archives mensuelles : juin 2024

L’intégration des parties prenantes dans les projets événementiels culturels hors des métropoles

Integrating stakeholders into cultural event projects outside metropolitan areas

Armel Didier Tella (2024)

PhD thesis. Thèse de Doctorat en administration – Gestion de projet, Gatineau: Université du Québec en Outaouais, Juin 2024

Jury :
Jacques-Bernard Gauthier, Université du Québec en Outaouais
Julie Bérubé, Université du Québec en Outaouais, directrice de thèse
Hamed Motaghi, Université du Québec en Outaouais
Jonathan Paquette, Université d’Ottawa
Stéphanie Demers, Université du Québec en Outaouais

Résumé. Les projets événementiels ont connu de véritables situations à travers le monde ces dernières années. La problématique révèle que le contexte des événements a largement changé depuis les quarante (40) dernières années, donc la gestion efficace des projets événementiels devient un ordre avéré pour l’atteinte des objectifs fixés dans le temps. Cette situation amène les gestionnaires de projet événementiel à faire plus d’efforts et à prendre des décisions importantes basées sur la sécurité générale de toutes les parties prenantes (Tremblay, 2023). Ainsi, plusieurs chercheurs de domaines diversifiés s’intéressent à la recherche sur les événements, les projets événementiels et la gestion de projets événementiels pour apporter des connaissances essentielles. Cependant, la situation de l’industrie événementielle prouve l’impossibilité d’organiser et de refaire actuellement certains événements historiques célèbres de 50 ans passés (Donaldson, 2019a). Malgré la volonté des organisateurs et la demande alléchante du public, la primauté exige le refus systématique pour le maintien de la paix, de la santé et de la sécurité pour tous. La problématique indique aussi que le taux de fréquentation des événements connaît aussi une baisse accablante généralisée (Carabin, 2019; Fortier, 2014; Siag, 2023) qui mérite de porter une attention particulière afin de saisir les potentielles causes et opportunités. Également, la flambée du Covid-19 vient suspendre de façon inopinée toutes sortes d’événements en cours ou programmés pour des raisons basées sur la santé des populations contrôlées par les décisions strictes et intransigeantes des autorités gouvernementales. Donc, cette situation semble imposer d’autres formes (hybride ou virtuelle) de mise en oeuvre des événements adaptés au contexte réel de la société contemporaine et laisse de nouvelles perspectives après Covid-19 pour l’écosystème des projets événementiels dans les villes. […] La recherche documentaire a révélé également que les projets événementiels rassemblent beaucoup de parties prenantes diversifiées avec plusieurs objets et dispositions indispensables pour la mise en oeuvre. Donc, il semble logique de mobiliser la théorie de la justification de Boltanski et Thévenot (1991) pour analyser simultanément les parties prenantes (personnes) et les objets (choses) impliqués afin de comprendre comment l’intégration des principales parties prenantes fonctionne dans les projets événementiels en contexte de COVID-19. Ainsi, la méthodologie de recherche qualitative a été adoptée avec la stratégie de recherche d’étude de cas multiple, car elle offre des situations variées qui permettent de bien cerner les actions réelles associées à l’intégration des principales parties prenantes. La logique d’échantillonnage dirigé basé sur les critères prédéfinis a permis de sélectionner quatre projets événementiels et 40 entrevues semi-structurées ont été réalisées auprès de gestionnaires, clients et prestataires de contenu à raison de 10 parties prenantes par cas dans la région de l’Outaouais. […]

Abstract. Event projects have been in a real state of flux around the world in recent years. The problem reveals that the context of events has largely changed over the last forty (40) years, so the effective management of event projects becomes a proven order to achieve the objectives set over time. This situation leads event project managers to make greater efforts and important decisions based on the overall safety of all stakeholders (Tremblay, 2023). Thus, many researchers from diverse fields are interested in re-researching events, event projects and event project management to provide essential knowledge. However, the state of the events industry proves the impossibility of currently organizing and remaking some famous historical events from 50 years ago (Donaldson, 2019a). Despite the will of organizers and the enticing demand of the public, primacy demands systematic refusal to maintain peace, health and safety for all. The issue also points to the fact that event attendance rates are also experiencing a general decline (Carabin, 2019; Fortier, 2014; Siag, 2023), which merits special attention in order to grasp potential causes and opportunities. Equally, the Covid-19 outbreak unexpectedly suspends all kinds of events in progress or scheduled for reasons based on the health of populations controlled by the strict and intransigent decisions of government authorities. So, this situation seems to impose other forms (hybrid or virtual) of event implementation adapted to the real context of contemporary society, and leaves new prospects after Covid-19 for the ecosystem of event projects in cities. […] The literature search also revealed that event-based projects bring together many diverse stakeholders with several objects and dispositions essential for implementation. Thus, it seems logical to mobilize Boltanski and Thévenot’s (1991) theory of justification to simultaneously analyze the stakeholders (people) and objects (things) involved in order to understand how the integration of key stakeholders works in event-based projects in the context of COVID-19. Thus, the qualitative research methodology was adopted with the multiple case study research strategy, as it offers varied situations that allow for a clear identification of the actual actions associated with the integration of key stakeholders. The logic of purposive sampling based on predefined criteria enabled us to select four event-based projects, and 40 semi-structured interviews were conducted with managers, customers and content providers at a rate of 10 stakeholders per case in the Outaouais region.

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From Land Ownership to Landed Commons. Social Innovation in the Commoning of Scarce Land Resources

Frank Moulaert, Pieter van den Broeck, Pavlos-Μarinos Delladetsimas & Liana Simmons (2024)

Cheltenham: Edward Elgar

Extract: “The analysis is done by use of an operationalized version of the French pragmatist ‘Théorie des Cités’ (TdC) (Boltanski and Thévenot, 1991) that we named the ‘Théorie des Cités plus’ (TdC+), which together with the Grand Principles of the Landed Commons (GPLCs) we embed in an Action Research (AR) trajectory. Given the importance of the social, political, and institutional dynamics surrounding land ownership and access and use rights in our research, as well as the relevance of analyzing opportunities and agency for commoning, we found a close affinity with the TdC and considered it as a prime candidate for structuring the methodological framework of our commoning case study analysis. As a political science approach that explains how people (person-agents) justify their positions referring to particular cités [reference worlds], and negotiate, pursue, and effectuate common worlds as compromises within an institutional complex world, TdC provides the groundwork for an appropriate analytical framework to analyze and guide commoning processes. Yet when leading our pilot case study (during a first involvement with Trage Wegen) we discovered some hiatuses in the TdC, especially with respect to the way it addresses the (social) psychology of actors and the role of social relations among them. We operationalized TdC as TdC+ in order to turn it into a methodological framework for commoning Action and Research.” (p. 3)

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Between hospitality and the inhospitable: Critical judgments on the professional-beneficiary relationship within assisted reproductive technology

Luís Gouveia, Catarina Delaunay & Rita Morais (2024)

European Journal of Cultural and Political Sociology, Online first, open access

Abstract. In recent decades, the health sector has witnessed the emergence of social movements of patients aimed at redefining public policies on access to and provision of medical care. These changes are reflected in the conceptual models of patient-centred care, developed to guide medical practice towards patients’ expectations and wishes. However, different patient-centred models remain eminently focused on the dimension of solicitude when attending to patients’ specific needs: interpersonal relations based on the caregiver’s attention to the patient’s singularity. Namely, patients can express other moral references concerning their experiences in clinical contexts. That is the case with hospitality. Based on a Portuguese research project focused on the clinical experience of ART beneficiaries, this article aims to analyse hospitality as a moral orientation with specific proprieties associated with attending to patients’ singularity, thus aiming to contribute to the ongoing discussion and revision of the conceptual models of patient-centred care.”

Extract: “The paper draws on the regimes of engagement in action, conceptualised by Laurent Thévenot (2006, 2019), as the theoretical framework guiding the analytical trajectory. Each regime concerns distinctive formats of actors’ involvement with the surrounding environment, through different forms of cognitive and evaluative appropriation (Thévenot 2007, 2014). Namely, the regimes differ by the type of socially valued good aimed at when engaging with the environment. Thus, each mode of engagement relies on different kinds of normativity in terms of how a given situation is perceived according to a desired good.” (p. 5)

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Les embarras des employeurs: recruter dans des métiers peu qualifiés en tension

Employers’ concerns: recruiting in low-skilled jobs in short supply

Ines Albandea, Pauline David, Manuella Roupnel-Fuentes & Pierre-Yves Bernard (2024)

Formation emploi, 166, pp.  23-43

Résumé. Les tensions de recrutement concernent actuellement de nombreux métiers. Cette recherche s’appuie sur le cadre théorique des conventions et sur des entretiens semi-directifs auprès de chefs d’entreprise ou de responsables ressources humaines (RH). Dans un contexte incertain, les employeurs se réfèrent fréquemment au savoir-être et déclarent privilégier des stratégies de recrutement qui s’apparentent à la « cité domestique », telles que les réseaux de proximité, la confiance ou le modèle familial et hiérarchique. Ils cherchent à se montrer créatifs en empruntant à la « cité inspirée » pour attirer et garder des salariés. Toutefois, ces stratégies demeurent insuffisantes, en particulier pour les métiers peu qualifiés où les conditions de travail sont souvent difficiles et les emplois peu attractifs.

Abstract. The context of strong labor shortage currently concerns many professions. This research is based on the theoretical framework of conventions and on semi-structured interviews with company managers or HR managers. In order to reduce uncertainty, employers declare that they favour recruitment strategies that can be likened to the domestic city, such as proximity networks, trust or the family and hierarchical model. They must be creative and borrow from the inspired city to attract and retain employees. It would seem, however, that these strategies are not always sufficient to reduce the imbalance between supply and demand, particularly for low-skilled jobs where working conditions are often difficult and jobs are not very attractive.

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Varieties of alternativeness: Relational practices in collaborative housing in Vienna

Andrea Schikowitz & Nina Pohler (2024)

Sociological Review, 72(2). Open access, pp. 301-321

Abstract. This article develops an empirically grounded frame for analysing varieties of alternativeness, using the case of such collaborative housing groups in Vienna (so-called Baugruppen) which aim to overcome the commodification of housing as well as the standardisation in social housing provision. Through experimenting with alternative ways of organising and living together they strive for social and political change. Taking inspiration from literature on commoning and alternative spaces, the article draws on French pragmatist sociology as well as post-actor-network theory (ANT) and assemblage approaches to focus on relational practices and different kinds of commonality as a basis for collective action. It analyses varieties of alternativeness as relational constellations by tracing how different groups compose commonality amongst each other, and how they relate to various actors. In doing so, it contributes to a situated understanding of the relations and relational practices that sustain alternatives, as well as the possibilities of scaling and transformation that specific variations of alternative housing hold.

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Composite relations. Democratic firms balancing the general and the particular

Nina Pohler (2024)

Organization, 31(4), open access, pp. 645-662

Abstract. This paper focuses on a central coordinative tension in alternative, democratic organizations: They need to maintain formal equality and democratic governance, but they also have to support their members in their autonomy and be sensitive toward their particularities. Based on an empirical study of two democratic-collectivist firms, this paper combines insights from Laurent Thévenot’s sociology of engagement, and Zelizer’s notion of relational work to analyze how firms can establish “composite relations” that enable to balance the general and the particular. The paper offers two main contributions to the literature on alternative organizations: First, it describes possibilities for compositions between particular, personal relations, which are often of high importance in alternative organizations, and general, standardized relations, which are centrally important for all modern organizations. Second, while influential work on alternative organization assumes, that the tension between social values and business is quasi-equal to a tension between informal and formalized coordination in organizations, this paper develops a more nuanced perspective on the interrelation between morality and coordination in alternative organizations.

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Grand Challenges Viewed through the Pragmatist Lens of the Economies of Worth: A Multidisciplinary Review and Framework for the Conduct of Moral Work in Pluralistic Settings

Charlotte Cloutier, Francis Desjardins & Linda Rouleau (2024)

Journal of Management Studies, online first, open access

Abstract. A fast-growing number of organization and management scholars are responding to calls to conduct research on grand challenges (GCs). Few among these, however, question the core assumptions that underpin their efforts. In this paper we argue that the intractability of GCs stems from a failure to recognize the fundamentally pragmatic, plural, and moral character of these problems, which generate conflicts between groups over what is the ‘right’ or most appropriate course of action to pursue. A theoretical lens frequently used across many disciplines to make sense of problems such as these is Boltanski and Thévenot’s (1991, 2006) economies of worth (EoW). On this premise, we undertake a multidisciplinary review of articles that use the EoW for studying GCs. Based on our analysis, we develop a pragmatist framework that articulates the practices that underpin the conduct of ‘moral work’ that organizational actors engage in as they seek to agree on a common sense of justice in GC contexts. Our framework provides a useful roadmap for scholars interested in applying a pragmatist perspective to our understanding of GCs, and by so doing, explore different, more socially just, and potentially more impactful ways of tackling them.

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From coca to cocoa: Conflicts, violence and hegemonic compromises in the turbulent Peruvian Amazonia settlement process: The case of Tocache

Daniel Coq-Huelva, Angie Higuchi, Ruth Arias-Gutiérrez & Rafaela Alfalla-Luque (2024)

Environment and Planning A: Economy and Space, 56(1), pp. 136-154.

Abstract. This article analyses the role of conventions, compromises and even violence in the intricate bio-social construction process of cocoa cultivation in the province of Tocache in the Peruvian Amazonia. This article discusses the different phases of the settlement process and its social, institutional and environmental bases. Specifically, the analysis focuses on the dramatic abandonment of coca cultivation and its replacement by alternative crops such as cocoa. Emphasis is placed on the centrality of agents’ normative coherence and coordination. For over 50 years, the civic–market compromise has framed agents’ discourses and actions, although it has sometimes been ostensibly distorted. This framing effect has also occurred in circumstances with considerable recourse to violence and armed conflict. Thus, this article focuses not only on justification processes but also on what happens ‘after justification’ and on how violent situations can coexist with discursive constructions with a relevant normative element.

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L’utile, le juste et l’efficace. La justification parlementaire relative à la discrimination positive dans la direction du sport

Useful, fair, and effective. Parliamentary justification for affirmative action in sports leadership

Annabelle Caprais (2024)

Staps, 144, pp. 75-92

Résumé. La loi « pour l’égalité réelle entre les femmes et les hommes » marque un tournant dans la lutte contre les inégalités de genre dans la direction du sport. Elle instaure de nouveaux quotas pour la composition des instances dirigeantes des fédérations sportives nationales. Elle échoue néanmoins à instaurer la parité, un objectif pourtant porté par le gouvernement. Quels sont les motifs idéologiques qui empêchent l’instauration de la parité ? L’objectif de cette contribution est de comprendre la façon dont les inégalités dans la gouvernance du sport sont conceptualisées par les pouvoirs publics. L’analyse porte sur les justifications (Boltanski & Thévenot, 1991) mobilisées par les parlementaires lors des débats législatifs. Elle montre que si la loi se donne pour objectif de parvenir à l’égalité réelle, les arguments mobilisés valorisent une « égalité efficace ». Enfin, l’imbrication des rapports sociaux (de sexe, race, classe, etc.) n’est jamais considérée, de sorte que la loi conduit à la production d’une égalité élitiste (Pochic, 2018). En ne prenant en compte que les inégalités de genre, les parlementaires participent à la mise en place de dispositifs qui ne bénéficient qu’à une certaine catégorie de dirigeantes, recréant, ainsi de nouvelles formes d’inégalités.

Abstract. The French law ‘for real equality between women and men’ (2014) marked a turning point in the fight against gender inequalities in sport governance. It introduced new gender quotas on executive boards of national sports federations. However, the law has failed to achieve genuine parity, one of the French government’s objectives. What are the ideological reasons that prevent the establishment of parity? This article looks to gain a better understanding of how public authorities conceptualize inequalities in sport governance. The analysis focuses on the justifications (Boltanski and Thévenot, 1991) advanced by members of parliament during legislative debates. Results show that although the law is explicitly aimed at achieving ‘real equality,’ the arguments put forward promote a tangible or ‘effective equality.’ Finally, the law leads to the production of ‘elitist equality’ (Pochic, 2018) because the different and multidimensional forms of discrimination are not taken into consideration. By only considering gender inequalities, members of parliament participate in the implementation of systems that only benefit a certain category of women, thus recreating new forms of inequalities.

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In Defence of the Indefensible: Exploring Justification Narratives of Corporate Elites Accused of Corruption

Mabel Torbor, David Sarpong, Georg Ofosu & Derrick Boakye (2024)

Journal of Business Ethics, Online first, open access

Abstract. Drawing on the pragmatic turn in contemporary social theory, we explore how corporate elites accused of corruption in the context of weak institutions engage in their justification works. Empirically, we focus on three high-profile corruption scandals that shook Ghana between 2010 and 2020 and inspired widespread public condemnation. Publicly accessible archival documents, such as court reporting, newspaper stories, press conferences, and the digital footprints of corporate elites implicated in the scandals provide data for our inquiry. Focussing on the juxtaposition of ‘sayings’ and ‘doings’, the findings show justification as performative, and rooted in contextual pragmatism that acknowledges the plurality of logics situated between self-interest and folk-logic. Within this framework, the domestic and civic orders of worth emerge as most prominent, with the justification processes manifesting through victimising, scapegoating, and crusading. Building on these insights, we develop a framework that highlights how the use of justifications serves as a critique of the inadequacies within climates of weak institutional frameworks consequently fostering an atmosphere conducive to framing unethical conducts as morally acceptable.

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Becoming morally equipped: A study of children’s public expressions

Jan Frode Haugseth & Eli Smeplass (2024)

European Education Research Journal, Online first, open access

Abstract. This article discusses the notion of a ‘morally equipped’ childhood and adolescence, and how such a notion can help us get a fresh perspective on the relation between young people’s participation and empowerment, and the formation of personal and the collective moral repertoires of modern society. Utilising a mixed-methods approach inspired by the sociology of conventions (SC) and the sociology of regimes of engagement (SRE), we analyse letters to the editor of the Norwegian children’s newspaper Aftenposten Junior, to investigate the formats of children’s generalised moral arguments. We demonstrate that our informants exhibit a broad moral sensibility in the letters we have analysed, particularly showing keen engagement with issues related to civic rights. We discuss the young participants’ expressions in the light of convention theory. We make a case for how becoming ‘morally equipped’ could be understood as being able to engage, challenge, and articulate the tensions and negotiations between personal formats of daily experiences and interactions, and collective formats, such as public expressions, throughout childhood and adolescence.

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Historical development of job profiles in adult education in Germany through the interaction of intermediaries from a conventional-theoretical perspective

Matthias Alke, Laura Uhl & Francesca Baker (2024)

European Education Research Journal, Online first, open access

Abstract. Job profiles in German adult education are manifold, and the requirements for engaging in professional activity are only minimally regulated by the state. It is primarily the providers in adult education who decide on access to the professional field and influence the historical development of job profiles. The article presents findings from a historical longitudinal analysis of job advertisements and other historical documents, focusing on the historical genesis of job profiles in adult education in the Federal Republic of Germany. The analysis draws on theoretical concepts from “Economics of Convention” (EC) research on occupational categories, intermediaries, and labor markets. The results demonstrate that the conception, dissemination, and long-term establishment of a specific job profile for adult education were only made possible through the interaction of different actors, each taking on different intermediary functions.

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Non-profit organizations in training for employment: On the transformative potential of their critique of education

Mariángeles Molpeceres, Ignacio Martínez-Morales, Joan Carles Bernad, Fernando Marhuenda-Fluixá (2024)

European Educational Research Journal, online first

Abstract. A sociology of conventions perspective is used in this paper to examine how non-profit organizations make sense of their educational action in the field of training for employment. Both critiques of education that such organizations voiced and compromises that they had to establish at the turn of the 21st century are revisited here in view of the transformations that the field of training for employment has experienced in recent years. We show empirical data illustrating their discourses on education 20years ago that were obtained through in-depth, focused interviews with trainers and management of Spanish non-profit organizations. Some critiques are highlighted that were prominent in their discourse at the turn of the century, when the ‘third sector’ was regarded as a promising actor that could amend some of the most concerning inadequacies of the education system. However, the transformative potential of such critiques is critically re-examined in view of the transformations that such an increasingly hybrid field has experienced since, transformations that allow for a new perspective into those once change-promising discourses.

Luc Boltanski

Numéro spécial de Critique 2024/1-2 (n° 920-921)

Présentation. Luc Boltanski est sociologue. Ainsi se définit-il. Ainsi est-il perçu et reconnu: comme l’un des sociologues français les plus importants des dernières décennies, dont l’œuvre est traduite et discutée dans le monde entier.
Énumérons quelques-uns de ses objets d’étude, sans craindre l’inventaire à la Prévert: la puériculture et la prime enfance, la médecine, les rapports au corps, la vulgarisation scientifique, la paranoïa, les messages d’amour envoyés à des prisonniers, la presse et la bande dessinée, les usages de l’automobile, l’engendrement et l’avortement, les romans policiers ou d’espionnage. Et encore: les taxinomies sociales, les modes et les lieux de production de l’idéologie dominante, les métaphysiques politiques et le sens de la justice, les formes contemporaines de la critique et les théories du complot.
Dans ce paysage si varié fait relief l’étude du capitalisme. Témoins trois ouvrages importants: Les Cadres (1982); Le Nouvel Esprit du capitalisme (1999), écrit avec Ève Chiapello; Enrichissement (2017), co-signé avec Arnaud Esquerre. Leurs dates de parution, des années 1980 à nos jours, signalent la constance d’une interrogation. Boltanski, qui ne se réclame pas du marxisme, est un des rares sociologues à avoir fait du capitalisme un objet de plein droit et non la toile de fond de ses enquêtes. Il en a étudié les transformations, décrit les récentes reconfigurations; il a scruté les liens d’interdépendance qui l’unissent à l’État et sa capacité à absorber ou neutraliser critiques et contestations. Boltanski s’est formé dans l’équipe de Pierre Bourdieu, avec lequel il a travaillé pendant une quinzaine d’années avant de prendre du champ. Il invente alors ses propres manières de faire, dans le cadre de ce qu’on appellera bientôt la « sociologie pragmatique », par référence à l’une de ses sources d’inspiration: la philosophie pragmatiste nord-américaine. Aux côtés de Bruno Latour ou Laurent Thévenot, il apporte à ce mouvement une contribution décisive. Puis, de nouveau, il infléchit sa course et entreprend de penser les sociétés à partir d’une dialectique entre les institutions et les opérations critiques. Cette réorientation le rapproche de la théorie critique allemande – notamment d’Axel Honneth, présent dans ce numéro – et de philosophes comme Nancy Fraser. (p. 3)

Presentation. Luc Boltanski is a sociologist. This is how he defines himself. This is how he is perceived and recognized: as one of the most important French sociologists of recent decades, whose work is translated and discussed worldwide. Let’s list just a few of his subjects of study, without fearing a Prévert-style inventory: childcare and early childhood, medicine, relationships with the body, popular science, paranoia, love messages sent to prisoners, the press and comic strips, the uses of the automobile, childbearing and abortion, detective and spy novels. And still more: social taxonomies, the modes and places of production of the dominant ideology, political metaphysics and the sense of justice, contemporary forms of criticism and conspiracy theories. The study of capitalism stands out in this varied landscape. Witness three important works: The Making of a Class – Cadres in French Society (1982/1987); The New Spirit of Capitalism (1999/2005), written with Ève Chiapello; Enrichment (2017/2020), co-authored with Arnaud Esquerre. Their publication dates, from the 1980s to the present day, indicate the constancy of an interrogation. Boltanski, who does not claim to be a Marxist, is one of the few sociologists to have made capitalism an object in its own right, rather than the backdrop to his investigations. He has studied its transformations and described its recent reconfigurations; he has scrutinized its interdependent links with the state and its ability to absorb or neutralize criticism and dissent. Boltanski trained in the team of Pierre Bourdieu, with whom he worked for some fifteen years before moving on. He then invented his own ways of doing things, within the framework of what was soon to be called “pragmatic sociology”, with reference to one of his sources of inspiration: North American pragmatist philosophy. Alongside Bruno Latour and Laurent Thévenot, he made a decisive contribution to this movement. Then, once again, he changed course and began to think of societies in terms of a dialectic between institutions and critical operations. This reorientation brings him closer to German critical theory – notably Axel Honneth, featured in this issue – and philosophers such as Nancy Fraser. (p. 3)

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Regional Development: How Convention Theory Explains Economic Development

Kenkichi Nagao & Junya Tatemi (2024)

In Rainer Diaz-Bone & Guillemette de Larquier (eds.), Handbook of economics and sociology of conventions. Cham: Springer, Online first

Abstract. Despite the notion that “The world is flat,” “The world is curved” with uneven geographical development. Why does contemporary capitalism simultaneously or paradoxically exhibit trends of globalization and localization? Why do economic wealth and opportunities differ across regions? The economics and sociology of conventions (in short EC/SC) provide a perspective on understanding the dynamics of regional development. The contributions of EC/SC to regional studies are fourfold. First, this approach integrates economic and noneconomic factors to explain linkages and coordination between actors. Second, it indicates that regions are the fundamental unit of economic life that contribute to the dynamics of capitalism but are not just an outcome of the maximization of individual behaviors. Third, this approach extends valuation perspectives on regional studies to examine the dynamics of industrial changes by penetrating different subjects, from coordination to market construction. Furthermore, through the concept of the “power of valuation,” regional studies with the EC/SC perspective have revealed uneven geographical development. Shifts in research from focusing on “traded interdependencies” on interfirm linkages to “untraded interdependencies” on actors’ relationships have caused a broader trend of “relational turn” in the field of economic geography and regional studies. This chapter presents findings obtained using a realistic approach based on EC/SC to examine the “black box” in regional development studies.

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