Praxeological Political Analysis


Book Description

With the interest in practice theory and praxeology on the rise, praxeology can be considered an emerging new methodological as well as theoretical paradigm which successfully overcomes epistemological dichotomies of conventional approaches. The articles in this volume serve as starting points for rendering contemporary practice theory approaches useful for the analysis of political events and processes, without reducing the political aspect a priori to the formal policy sphere. In this context, Praxeological Political Analysis demonstrates that praxeological research is now increasingly addressing issues which are considered virulent in, for instance, the consumer, sustainability or political spheres. Following on from this key focus on political analysis, this title also seeks to expand the current status of primarily political science adaptions of practice theory approaches to the analysis of predominantly narrowly defined political practices. Written with an explicit focus on diverse political aspects and dimensions in the performative enactment of social practices, this title will appeal to post-graduate students and scholars interested in sociology of politics, social and public policy, development in social theory and political research methods.




HabitusAnalysis 2 – Praxeology and Meaning


Book Description

Starting from the sociology of Pierre Bourdieu, Schäfer composes a methodical approach to habitus of social actors and the logic of their praxis: Building upon the generative terms of praxeology, he focuses on identity and strategy in processes of internalization, their transformation by means of dispositional schemes, and their externalization in action. The emphasis lies on a theory of dispositions that allows a flexible understanding of identity and strategy formation in the context of social experience and the interplay with social structures. This theory is developed over the course of a three-step analysis on habitus as a network of dispositions, on the dynamics that unfold between the logic of socio-structural processes and practical logic, and on the praxeological assessment of social structures via models of fields and the social space.This book is the second of three volumes of HabitusAnalysis. While the first volume deals with the epistemological underpinnings of praxeology, this book advances Bourdieu's theory with a special focus on creativity of action in the context of social structures, thereby preparing the methodological design of empirical models in the third volume.




International Practice Theory


Book Description

International Practice Theory is the definitive introduction to the practice turn in world politics, providing an accessible, up-to-date guide to the approaches, concepts, methodologies and methods of the subject. Situating the study of practices in contemporary theory and reviewing approaches ranging from Bourdieu’s praxeology and communities of practice to actor-network theory and pragmatic sociology, it documents how they can be used to study international practices empirically. The book features a discussion of how scholars can navigate ontological challenges such as order and change, micro and macro, bodies and objects, and power and critique. Interpreting practice theory as a methodological orientation, it also provides an essential guide for the design, execution and drafting of a praxiographic study.




Beyond Nudge


Book Description

In recent years, a wave of reforms known as ‘nudges’ or ‘behavioural interventions’ have emerged in public policy and administration. ‘Nudge’ policies are created to lightly influence groups in society to change their behaviour, using behavioural insights to solve complex policy problems. Generally, behavioural approaches focus on the psychology underlying the implementation and effects of policies in practice. First published as a special issue of Policy & Politics journal, this book situates these reforms within a broader tradition of methodological individualism. With contributions from international scholars, it demonstrates that when behavioural policies expand their focus beyond the individual, they have the potential to better understand, investigate, and shape social outcomes.




How To Do Politics With Art


Book Description

A major issue in the relation of art to the rest of society is the question of how art penetrates politics. From the perspective of most art scholars, this is a question of aesthetics—whether politics necessarily pollutes and debases the quality of the arts. From the perspective of social science, it has been primarily a question of meaning—how political messages are conveyed through artistic media. Recent work has begun to broaden the study of the arts and politics beyond semiosis and content focus. Several strands of scholarship are converging around the general issue of the social relationships within which art takes political form, that is, how art and artists do politics. This perspective of "doing" moves analysis beyond addressing the meaning of culture, to focus on the ways that art is embedded in—and intervenes in—social relationships, activities, and institutions. This volume brings together an interdisciplinary group of scholars from France and the United States to investigate these directions and themes by exploring the question of "how to do politics with art" from a comparative standpoint, putting sociological approaches in conversation with other disciplinary prisms. It will be of interest to scholars of social movements and politicization, the sociology of art, art history, and aesthetics.




Hybridity and Ideology


Book Description

Hybridity and Ideology analyzes the structure, development, and significance of political perspectives that mix or fuse the distinct beliefs, practices, and identities found in other ideologies—for example, hybrid worldviews such as liberal nationalism, ecosocialism, and anarchafeminism. Employing concepts and methods drawn from ideology studies, discourse theory, and cultural studies, Leonard Williams and Benjamin Franks explore the meaning of hybridity, the processes by which ideologies hybridize, and the political implications of the blended ideologies that result. Their hybrid inquiry fashions a theoretical vocabulary and framework for understanding and studying ideological hybridization. Using examples from a broad spectrum of ideologies, the book discusses the characteristic patterns by which hybrids are constructed from parent ideologies. It explores the operations and processes that enable hybrids to emerge from other ideologies and develop within social and political contexts. Lastly, it addresses how ideologies provide resources for political action and discusses the criteria for judging the success of hybrid ideologies. Hybridity and Ideology offers insight into the dynamic processes of hybridization central to ideological transformation and political change. It provides a helpful resource for students and researchers in political theory, cultural studies, and philosophy.




Action and Reaction in the World System


Book Description

This book occupies the same niche as Raymond Aron’s 1962 classic, Peace and War: A Theory of International Relations. While Aron wrote during the Cold War, Thierry de Montbrial writes about the post-Soviet international system, a system that is multipolar, ideologically heterogeneous, and therefore highly unstable. In this book, de Montbrial lays the foundation for a praxeology, or a “science of action,” to facilitate a better understanding of the dynamics of international problems and a more systematic approach to policy making. He develops a model to analyze different types of international problems that arise from interactions between different “active units,” which he then applies to a range of current and historical problems. A major contribution to international relations theory and winner of the 2002 Georges Pompidou Prize in its original French edition, this book offers the necessary keys to decrypt the international system in the twenty-first century. It has been published internationally in seven languages.




Social Innovation and Sustainable Consumption


Book Description

This book showcases strategic policies for and processes of societal transformation, which are required to address the challenge of sustainability. Based on the latest thinking at the interface of social innovation, sustainable consumption and the transformation of society, the book provides: in-depth discussions at the nexus of sustainable consumption, social innovation and social transformation, highlighting their significance to sustainability-related policy and practice; detailed case studies of social innovation in energy, food, housing and policy which illustrate emerging practice and promising policy, business and civil society interventions; and critical reflections and commentaries on the contribution of social innovation to societal transformation. Bringing together aspiring scholars and leading thinkers on this topic, this book leads to compelling new insights for an international audience into the potential of social innovation for sustainable consumption and the transformation of society. It will be of great interest to students and scholars of sustainable consumption, sustainable development, (social) innovation studies and environmental sociology.







Rebooting Global International Society


Book Description

This book asks if it is time to “reboot” the fundamental institutions of global international society. The volume revisits Hedley Bull’s seminal contribution The Anarchical Society by exploring the interconnected nature of change, contestation and resilience for maintaining order in today’s uncertain and complex environment. The volume adds to Bull’s theorizing by recognizing that order demands change, that contestation should be welcomed, and that resilience is anchored in local and agent-led forms of ordering. The contributors to Part One of the book focus on theoretical and conceptual issues related to order in the global international society, whilst the contributors to Part Two of the book focus on the primary institutions as listed by Hedley Bull with the addition of a chapter on the market adding a distinctive commentary on new and important dynamics of change, contestation and resilience of the existing institutions.