Asimina Christoforou - Böcker

Social regeneration is about the transformative processes that, through institutional choices that embody cooperation and inclusion, develop opportunities and capabilities for weak categories, and transversally for society. The challenge of social regeneration can be addressed, in part, through organisational solutions increasingly identified with social economy organisations, since they are characterised by a social objective, cooperation and inclusive democratic governance.Besides the organisational element, Social Regeneration and Local Development provides a new perspective on interacting socio-economic factors, which can work in synergy with the social economy organisations model to promote and sustain social regeneration and well-being. Such elements include civic engagement and social capital, the nature of the welfare system, the use of physical assets in urban and rural areas, leadership, technology, and finance.By analysing organisational and contextual elements, this book offers an institutional perspective on how socio-economic systems can reply to challenges such as social and environmental degradation, financial crises, immigration, inequality, and marginalisation.

This volume provides a collection of critical new perspectives on social capital theory by examining how social values, power relationships, and social identity interact with social capital. This book seeks to extend this theory into what have been largely under-investigated domains, and, at the same time, address long-standing, classic questions in the literature concerning the forms, determinants, and consequences of social capital. Social capital can be understood in terms of social norms and networks. It manifests itself in patterns of trust, reciprocity, and cooperation. The authors argue that the degree to which and the different ways in which people exhibit these distinctively social behaviours depend on how norms and networks elicit their values, reflect power relationships, and draw on their social identities. This volume accordingly adopts a variety of different concepts and measures that incorporate the variety of contextually-specific factors that operate on social capital formation. In addition, it adopts an interdisciplinary outlook that combines a wide range of social science disciplines and methods of social research. Our objective is to challenge standard rationality theory explanations of norms and networks which overlook the role of values, power, and identity. This volume appeals to researchers and students in multiple social sciences, including economics, sociology, political science, social psychology, history, public policy, and international relations, that employ social capital concepts and methods in their research. It can be seen as a set of new extensions of social capital theory in connection with its themes of social values, power, and identity that would advance the scholarly literature on social norms and networks and their impact on social change and public welfare.

Once again, unfettered capitalism has failed. Promises for global prosperity and peace have given way to a world of deep recession, social upheaval and political instability. Once again, mainstream economics has proved its inadequacy. Despite its technical rigour and mathematical virtuosity, it failed dramatically to respond to the current crisis. Why is this so? Mainstream economics turns a blind eye to society. By assumption, it maims its analyses by wiping away what makes us what we are. There is pressing need for a critical discussion and new ideas.We therefore turn to the insightful and stimulating work of Pierre Bourdieu. Arguably one of the major sociologists ever, he was also a major ‘economist’. Yet his works on the economy have received only scant attention, especially from economists, be they ‘mainstream’ or ‘heterodox’. Bourdieu helps to take a broader view and enrich our scientific imagination. By including dimensions of power, intuitive behaviour and social structures within the scope of his analysis, he provides for an alternative foundation of economics, based on an integrated, interdisciplinary theory. For the first time, this volume fills this gap in economics by featuring state-of-the-art research and experts from different social science disciplines. This book constitutes a first step, and hopes to become a milestone.The book offers an innovative outlook and a unique source for social scientists of all fields, particularly economists and sociologists, who wish to engage in the study of Bourdieu and his economics with a view to developing a more pertinent theory. It will also constitute a useful reference for university students and administrators who would like to explore the economy from a Bourdieusian perspective.

Once again, unfettered capitalism has failed. Promises for global prosperity and peace have given way to a world of deep recession, social upheaval and political instability. Once again, mainstream economics has proved its inadequacy. Despite its technical rigour and mathematical virtuosity, it failed dramatically to respond to the current crisis. Why is this so? Mainstream economics turns a blind eye to society. By assumption, it maims its analyses by wiping away what makes us what we are. There is pressing need for a critical discussion and new ideas.We therefore turn to the insightful and stimulating work of Pierre Bourdieu. Arguably one of the major sociologists ever, he was also a major ‘economist’. Yet his works on the economy have received only scant attention, especially from economists, be they ‘mainstream’ or ‘heterodox’. Bourdieu helps to take a broader view and enrich our scientific imagination. By including dimensions of power, intuitive behaviour and social structures within the scope of his analysis, he provides for an alternative foundation of economics, based on an integrated, interdisciplinary theory. For the first time, this volume fills this gap in economics by featuring state-of-the-art research and experts from different social science disciplines. This book constitutes a first step, and hopes to become a milestone.The book offers an innovative outlook and a unique source for social scientists of all fields, particularly economists and sociologists, who wish to engage in the study of Bourdieu and his economics with a view to developing a more pertinent theory. It will also constitute a useful reference for university students and administrators who would like to explore the economy from a Bourdieusian perspective.

This volume provides a collection of critical new perspectives on social capital theory by examining how social values, power relationships, and social identity interact with social capital. This book seeks to extend this theory into what have been largely under-investigated domains, and, at the same time, address long-standing, classic questions in the literature concerning the forms, determinants, and consequences of social capital. Social capital can be understood in terms of social norms and networks. It manifests itself in patterns of trust, reciprocity, and cooperation. The authors argue that the degree to which and the different ways in which people exhibit these distinctively social behaviours depend on how norms and networks elicit their values, reflect power relationships, and draw on their social identities. This volume accordingly adopts a variety of different concepts and measures that incorporate the variety of contextually-specific factors that operate on social capital formation. In addition, it adopts an interdisciplinary outlook that combines a wide range of social science disciplines and methods of social research. Our objective is to challenge standard rationality theory explanations of norms and networks which overlook the role of values, power, and identity. This volume appeals to researchers and students in multiple social sciences, including economics, sociology, political science, social psychology, history, public policy, and international relations, that employ social capital concepts and methods in their research. It can be seen as a set of new extensions of social capital theory in connection with its themes of social values, power, and identity that would advance the scholarly literature on social norms and networks and their impact on social change and public welfare.

Social regeneration is about the transformative processes that, through institutional choices that embody cooperation and inclusion, develop opportunities and capabilities for weak categories, and transversally for society. The challenge of social regeneration can be addressed, in part, through organisational solutions increasingly identified with social economy organisations, since they are characterised by a social objective, cooperation and inclusive democratic governance.Besides the organisational element, Social Regeneration and Local Development provides a new perspective on interacting socio-economic factors, which can work in synergy with the social economy organisations model to promote and sustain social regeneration and well-being. Such elements include civic engagement and social capital, the nature of the welfare system, the use of physical assets in urban and rural areas, leadership, technology, and finance.By analysing organisational and contextual elements, this book offers an institutional perspective on how socio-economic systems can reply to challenges such as social and environmental degradation, financial crises, immigration, inequality, and marginalisation.

The economics of social institutions has been a well-established research field for over a century, one that continues to expand and to develop new areas of investigation. Here Professor Davis and Dr Christoforou bring together in one easily accessible volume the most significant contributions by leading figures in this area. The volume provides a comprehensive review of the origins and development of the economics of social institutions and addresses the main theoretical and policy concerns that have occupied scholars and researchers.With an insightful original introduction by the editors, this collection is a key resource which will make an invaluable contribution to advancing future thinking in this evolving area of study.

This book addresses the role of social capital in promoting rural and local development. The recent financial and economic crises have exposed the European Union (EU) to an increased risk of social exclusion and poverty, which are now at the heart of its economic, employment and social agenda with explicit reference to rural and marginal areas (Europe 2020). The authors' work from the notion that rural development is not imposed from the ‘outside’, but depends also on endogenous factors, namely local cultural and ecological amenities, eco-system services, and economic links with urban areas which expand rural opportunities for innovation, competitiveness, employment and sustainable development.Social capital is of paramount importance because it helps build networks and trusting relations among local stakeholders in the public and private spheres,  and supporting the enhancement of governance of natural resources in rural areas