New economic sociology and new institutional economics

Abstract: This paper deals with similarities and differences between new economic sociology (NES) and new institu-tional economics (NIE). We start with brief reports on the basic ideas of NES and NIE. Regarding the latter, we concentrate on NIE in the sense of Oliver Williamson who introduced the term and whose work became the main target of sociologists’ critique. We show that the contrast between the two fields is less sharp than some social scien-tists might assume. We then present a review and assessment of the attack of seven sociologists on Oliver William-son’s ideas. The sociologists are Perrow, Fligstein, Freeland, Granovetter, Bradach & Eccles, and Powell. Their battering ram “social network theory” is briefly described and an attempt made to combine network analysis with new institutional economics as understood by Williamson, i.e., his transaction cost economics. The paper is con-cluded with some thoughts on the convergence of NES and NIE.New institutional economics; transaction cost economics; economic sociology

Targeting occasional buyers - the need for quality related communication approaches

Occasional organic buyers often purchase selected organic food items according to perceived added value in terms of quality and food safety issues or perceived additional ecological and social performances along the supply chain. They clearly take a more critical view of organic food and the organic farming concept in general than regular buyers do (Richter et al., 2004; Zanoli, 2004). The main barrier preventing this group from expanding its consumption of organic food is the higher price, which, in their perception, is not justified sufficiently by added quality attributes. However, in many cases the underlying problem is related to the complexity of quality profiles which are less transparent and understandable. To tackle this issue, the paper discusses quality-related communication approaches based on a literature review and an experimental test by using the IDM method. The authors recommend gathering the relevant information attributes of organic food, relating to specific product characteristics, to focus the communication on key quality attributes and to use personal promotion of producers

Institutional economics of the "Market Itself": an attempted answer to a complaint by Ronald Coase

This paper is motivated by the remark of Coase that 'although economists claim to study the working of the market, in modern economic theory the market itself has an even more shadowy role than the firm.' It is argued that under conditions of positive transaction costs, incomplete foresight and bounded rationality - the conditions of the New Institutional Economics (NIE) - the institutional framework not only of firms but also of markets matters. Actors who plan to buy or sell a good under conditions of NIE are facing two institutional choice problems: First, to choose or establish a specific market system within which to trade the good and, second, to choose a specific exchange contract. Both are nonmarket coordination problems - the first is a problem of collective action between a multiplicity of suppliers and demanders; the second is a problem of bilateral action: the coordination of individual plans between two parties. Only the first problem is object of this paper. Our hypothesis is that the organization of markets is a collective good, which may be a product of laissez faire or of planned collective action. So far there exists no systematic theory of the NIE of markets, only a number of considerations on specific issues concerning the basic functions of trade, viz., the activities of search, inspection, bargaining, contract execution, control, and enforcement. We content ourselves to describe and comment on some prominent examples from the NIE literature and related approaches to illustrate the kind of considerations that are part of an evolving new institutional economic theory of 'the market itself'' and argue that, for reasons of the general interest of traders themselves, some forms of planned collective actions are unavoidable

The Role of Law in the New Institutional Economics

To explain the role of law in the new institutional economics (NIE), we compare this approach with the economic analysis of law (EAL) of the 1970s when the NIE evolved. At that time the EAL was dominated by the “Chicago” or “market-based” approach that builds on the theory of perfect competition. Contracts are complete and Pareto efficient (allocative efficient). Ten years on, this approach was extended by informational economic models that are briefly touched upon here. After a few methodological considerations, the Article concentrates on the Williamsonian branch of NIE, i.e., the transaction cost approach (TCA). This theory argues that, in the real world of positive transaction costs, incomplete contracts can, at most, be efficient in a boundedly rational sense (“NIE-efficient”). The governance structure of contracts matters and becomes a bargaining point. Court ordering has to be complemented or substituted by private ordering. Attentive actors come to terms on a governance structure that protects them against ex post opportunistic maneuvers of their opponents. Generic governance structures are (according to Williamson) markets, hybrids, and hierarchies. Court ordering works best for market governance. In the case of hybrid modes (franchising, leasing, etc.), courts would mainly be supplanted by private ordering between the parties. As for hierarchies, courts would stay out of conflict resolution (fraud and conflict of interest excepted). While the objects of research in NIE and EAL remained different, the latter\u27s methodology appears to move closer to that of NIE. Reprinted by permission of the publisher

Dark and bright exciton formation, thermalization, and photoluminescence in monolayer transition metal dichalcogenides

The remarkably strong Coulomb interaction in atomically thin transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) results in an extraordinarily rich many-particle physics including the formation of tightly bound excitons. Besides optically accessible bright excitonic states, these materials also exhibit a variety of dark excitons. Since they can even lie below the bright states, they have a strong influence on the exciton dynamics, lifetimes, and photoluminescence. While very recently, the presence of dark excitonic states has been experimentally demonstrated, the origin of these states, their formation, and dynamics have not been revealed yet. Here, we present a microscopic study shedding light on time- and energy-resolved formation and thermalization of bright and dark intra- and intervalley excitons as well as their impact on the photoluminescence in different TMD materials. We demonstrate that intervalley dark excitons, so far widely overlooked in current literature, play a crucial role in tungsten-based TMDs giving rise to an enhanced photoluminescence and reduced exciton lifetimes at elevated temperatures

Quality of Life and Social Quality: Recent Developments

Complementary to the work of its National Experts within the scope of focus monitoring, the European Observatory on the Social Situation, Demography and Family carried out an Internet search project on the subjects of quality of life and social quality, with a view to obtaining relevant information for the EU and the National Experts. The following working paper investigates the use of the two concepts, both from a scientific perspective and from the European Union's point of view. Information sources are English and German-language scientific publications, EU documents and other associated information (e.g. from NGOs) obtained from the Internet. Accordingly, the large number of sources published on the subject in book form is not included in this paper

Lebensstile in der städtischen Gesellschaft

Auf einer empirisch-deskriptiven Ebene wird der Frage nachgegangen, ob es typisch städtische Lebensstile gibt. Nach einigen Anmerkungen zum Lebensstilkonzept wird anhand einer Lebensstilstudie aus Österreich die räumliche Verteilung von Lebensstilen aufgezeigt. Einen typischen städtischen Lebensstil gibt es nach diesen Ergebnissen nicht, wohl aber laßt sich eine Region auf Grund seiner Lebensstile charakterisieren. Durch die Kopplung von Stadt und Land durch dauernde Interaktionsprozesse (Pendelwesen, Massenmedien, Tourismus) kommt es zu einer Diffusion von Lebensstilen. Es wird die These vertreten, daß mit dem Begriff Lebensstil städtische und regionale Differenzierungsprozesse genauer und adäquater beschrieben werden können als mit den klassischen Begriffen von Schicht und Klasse. (GF

New economic sociology and new institutional economics

Abstract: This paper deals with similarities and differences between new economic sociology (NES) and new institu-tional economics (NIE). We start with brief reports on the basic ideas of NES and NIE. Regarding the latter, we concentrate on NIE in the sense of Oliver Williamson who introduced the term and whose work became the main target of sociologists’ critique. We show that the contrast between the two fields is less sharp than some social scien-tists might assume. We then present a review and assessment of the attack of seven sociologists on Oliver William-son’s ideas. The sociologists are Perrow, Fligstein, Freeland, Granovetter, Bradach & Eccles, and Powell. Their battering ram “social network theory” is briefly described and an attempt made to combine network analysis with new institutional economics as understood by Williamson, i.e., his transaction cost economics. The paper is con-cluded with some thoughts on the convergence of NES and NIE