Philippe Vidal (2024)
In Rainer Diaz-Bone & Guillemette de Larquier (eds.), Handbook of economics and sociology of conventions. Cham: Springer, Online first

Abstract. This chapter demonstrates the effectiveness of the theoretical apparatus of the economics and sociology of conventions (EC/CS) in the analysis of territorial phenomena. The chapter has a double purpose. First, it is addressed to geographers and spatial planners. The aim is to show that the convention approach allows them to better understand the dynamics of territorial actors. Reading territorial problems through the prism of convention theory makes it possible to analyze potential blockages and reveal frameworks of agreement. These frameworks may be the result of rather unstable compromises when several convention-based regimes coexist in the same territory, and it is therefore of utmost interest to study them in order to shed light on the interplay of actors at work. Looking at the dynamics of conventions helps to identify, in a given socio-spatial context, which conventions are losing ground and which are gaining ground. This dynamic reading of situations, once transferred to practitioners, can illuminate their choices in terms of strategic options for territorial development. The second plea is for EC/CS scholars to consider space in a more comprehensive and reflexive way. The contribution of geography is obviously territorial. Geography can make it possible to territorialize conventions, that is, to anchor them in a context that goes far beyond a simplistic vision of space. It’s about working with space, not just looking at it from its geographical boundaries. In this way, a stronger integration of geographic and urban planning thinking into the research programs of the EC/CS will be promoted.

