Davydd J. Greenwood - Böcker

This work contains a history of farming in a Spanish Basque town where the farmers changed their subsistence farms into highly profitable commercial enterprises in response to demand created by tourism and industrialisation. In the period of highest profits however, the young Basques began to abandon their farms and turned to factory work at a much lower standard of living. The institutional problems within both the farm families and the local municipality are described along with the Basque ideas about the dignity of work to help explain why such successful maximisers of economic gain should ultimately reject economic rewards in favour of other values. Davyyd Greenwood carefully examines the relationships between workers of economic gain and the institutional and cultural aspects of human behaviour. In particular he argues that human behaviour is a complex mix of motivations and that our methods must reflect this complexity.

This groundbreaking book issues an urgent call to confront the global social and ecological crises that are destabilizing societies everywhere. Business as usual in social science and governance is no longer sustainable. A Call to Action Research urges academic researchers, citizens, third sector workers, public officials, and businesspeople to join forces for global social justice and ecological sustainability.Expert action researchers Davydd J. Greenwood, Johan E. Ravn, and Koen P.R. Bartels demonstrate how action research and solidary social action can lead to a sustainable, just, and democratic future. They shed light on the scope and promise of action research, exposing how and why current higher education and political-economic systems are incapable of providing solutions to our global crises. Chapters provide an overview of how diverse approaches to action research can be used to confront ecological collapse, harmful capitalism, social inequalities and ill-equipped governance. The book uniquely covers a wide range of frameworks and methods necessary for the practice of action research, illuminated by many case studies from across the globe.This book offers a timely appeal and concrete guidance to tackle our collective crises. Scholars and students from across the social sciences will learn how to do action research in collaboration with diverse participants. It is also a valuable resource for policymakers and government, third sector, and business practitioners committed to sustainability, social justice, and democracy.

Public universities are in crisis, waning in their role as central institutions within democratic societies. Denunciations are abundant, but analyses of the causes and proposals to re-create public universities are not. Based on extensive experience with Action Research-based organizational change in universities and private sector organizations, Levin and Greenwood analyze the wreckage created by neoliberal academic administrators and policymakers. The authors argue that public universities must be democratically organized to perform their educational and societal functions. The book closes by laying out Action Research processes that can transform public universities back into institutions that promote academic freedom, integrity, and democracy.