Measuring social capital in the Basque Country: an eclectic approach

228 p.In the last decades, the literature of social capital has comprised a growing number of contributions in fields as diverse as the theory of organisation, education, health, sociology and economics. In the economic sphere, the influence of social capital is acknowledged on account of its key role for innovation since it is a process that highly depends on social action. Simply put, good social relations facilitate communication, and a network of actors based on trust and common cognitive elements is seen as an optimal space to share resources that can result in interactive learning. Social capital is, however, a controversial concept, primarily due to its ambiguity and subsequent difficulties for measurement. In order to overcome these limitations, this dissertation introduces an eclectic approach, involving a set of indicators regarding different dimensions (structural, relational and cognitive), levels (micro, meso and macro), scales (region and city), agents (cluster-associations, firms and individuals), time-frames (static, short-term and long-tern) and disciplines (economic history, economics, evolutionary economic geography, network theory, etc.). This PhD thesis provides interesting policy implications for public authorities of the Basque Country. First, it suggests the need for much more rigorous and frequent diagnoses of the cluster structural organisation conducive to repair the network¿s imperfections and monitor the position and role of the actors at different scales. At the same time, institutions should be aware of informal networking as an alternative way of bringing regional actors together. Opportunities for casual encounters (online but especially offline) should be granted and equally measured to ensure the cooperation between companies and institutions. To this end, the (hi)story of Eibar may be a good mirror to look at

Measuring social capital in the Basque Country: an eclectic approach

228 p.In the last decades, the literature of social capital has comprised a growing number of contributions in fields as diverse as the theory of organisation, education, health, sociology and economics. In the economic sphere, the influence of social capital is acknowledged on account of its key role for innovation since it is a process that highly depends on social action. Simply put, good social relations facilitate communication, and a network of actors based on trust and common cognitive elements is seen as an optimal space to share resources that can result in interactive learning. Social capital is, however, a controversial concept, primarily due to its ambiguity and subsequent difficulties for measurement. In order to overcome these limitations, this dissertation introduces an eclectic approach, involving a set of indicators regarding different dimensions (structural, relational and cognitive), levels (micro, meso and macro), scales (region and city), agents (cluster-associations, firms and individuals), time-frames (static, short-term and long-tern) and disciplines (economic history, economics, evolutionary economic geography, network theory, etc.). This PhD thesis provides interesting policy implications for public authorities of the Basque Country. First, it suggests the need for much more rigorous and frequent diagnoses of the cluster structural organisation conducive to repair the network¿s imperfections and monitor the position and role of the actors at different scales. At the same time, institutions should be aware of informal networking as an alternative way of bringing regional actors together. Opportunities for casual encounters (online but especially offline) should be granted and equally measured to ensure the cooperation between companies and institutions. To this end, the (hi)story of Eibar may be a good mirror to look at

Pan para hoy...¿Hambre para mañana?

Nivel educativo: Grado. Duración (en horas): De 31 a 40 horasEste caso sugiere ponerse en el lugar de un responsable político español en el contexto de la crisis agraria de finales del siglo XIX. La difusión del ferrocarril y la navegación a vapor, así como la mejora en las comunicaciones gracias a la extensión de la red telegráfica, facilitaron la progresiva integración del mercado internacional de productos agrícolas en el último cuarto del siglo XIX. Una de sus consecuencias fue la llegada de cereales procedentes del continente americano, del este de Europa e, incluso, de la India a los mercados de Europa occidental, empujando sus precios a la baja. El ministro de Hacienda, López Puigcerver, se encontraba ante el dilema de mantener unos derechos arancelarios relativamente bajos, de acuerdo con sus posiciones ideológicas y las de su gobierno, o de ceder ante las presiones de la oposición que le recomendaba el establecimiento de unos aranceles más elevados que protegieran a la agricultura española de la competencia extranjera. ¿Qué decisión debería tomar el ministro? ¿Qué implicaciones económicas y sociales tendría el mantenimiento de una política moderadamente librecambista? ¿Y la aplicación de una política comercial proteccionista

Responsabilidad social empresarial : decisiones, reflexiones y casos de estudio

Esta obra es resultado del esfuerzo conjunto realizado por miembros de la Asociación Latinoamericana de Casos (ALAC), el Centro Internacional de Casos del Tecnológico de Monterrey (México) y la Universidad del Norte (Colombia). Contiene una selección de trabajos que versan sobre la problemática de la responsabilidad social empresarial en América Latina, la visión de la cultura y el devenir histórico acerca de este tema y una serie de casos que, sin lugar a dudas, se constituyen en un aporte significativo a los procesos de enseñanza-aprendizaje respecto a la ética empresarial y la responsabilidad social

Measuring social capital in the Basque Country: an eclectic approach

228 p.In the last decades, the literature of social capital has comprised a growing number of contributions in fields as diverse as the theory of organisation, education, health, sociology and economics. In the economic sphere, the influence of social capital is acknowledged on account of its key role for innovation since it is a process that highly depends on social action. Simply put, good social relations facilitate communication, and a network of actors based on trust and common cognitive elements is seen as an optimal space to share resources that can result in interactive learning. Social capital is, however, a controversial concept, primarily due to its ambiguity and subsequent difficulties for measurement. In order to overcome these limitations, this dissertation introduces an eclectic approach, involving a set of indicators regarding different dimensions (structural, relational and cognitive), levels (micro, meso and macro), scales (region and city), agents (cluster-associations, firms and individuals), time-frames (static, short-term and long-tern) and disciplines (economic history, economics, evolutionary economic geography, network theory, etc.). This PhD thesis provides interesting policy implications for public authorities of the Basque Country. First, it suggests the need for much more rigorous and frequent diagnoses of the cluster structural organisation conducive to repair the network¿s imperfections and monitor the position and role of the actors at different scales. At the same time, institutions should be aware of informal networking as an alternative way of bringing regional actors together. Opportunities for casual encounters (online but especially offline) should be granted and equally measured to ensure the cooperation between companies and institutions. To this end, the (hi)story of Eibar may be a good mirror to look at

Pan para hoy...¿Hambre para mañana?

Nivel educativo: Grado. Duración (en horas): De 31 a 40 horasEste caso sugiere ponerse en el lugar de un responsable político español en el contexto de la crisis agraria de finales del siglo XIX. La difusión del ferrocarril y la navegación a vapor, así como la mejora en las comunicaciones gracias a la extensión de la red telegráfica, facilitaron la progresiva integración del mercado internacional de productos agrícolas en el último cuarto del siglo XIX. Una de sus consecuencias fue la llegada de cereales procedentes del continente americano, del este de Europa e, incluso, de la India a los mercados de Europa occidental, empujando sus precios a la baja. El ministro de Hacienda, López Puigcerver, se encontraba ante el dilema de mantener unos derechos arancelarios relativamente bajos, de acuerdo con sus posiciones ideológicas y las de su gobierno, o de ceder ante las presiones de la oposición que le recomendaba el establecimiento de unos aranceles más elevados que protegieran a la agricultura española de la competencia extranjera. ¿Qué decisión debería tomar el ministro? ¿Qué implicaciones económicas y sociales tendría el mantenimiento de una política moderadamente librecambista? ¿Y la aplicación de una política comercial proteccionista