Network capital dependent path-dependency

Path dependency is created and maintained by three intertwined influences of network capital; that is, the inertia of the networks, the culture which defines the proper use of network capital, and the way such network capital fits into the local and global institutional setting. Following a brief introduction of the terms network capital and path dependency, I develop an extremely simplified dual typology to differentiate between network-sensitive and network-insensitive societies. These two extremes of a continuum characterize societies in which either everyday life is under the total domination of network capital or where networks are auxiliary resources to be used in rare and special situations. I will show how both communism and post-communism have been a fertile institutional setting for the emergence of network-sensitivity and how network capital under such conditions become so powerful that it shapes other institutions to its needs. In the last section I shall argue that the mechanisms I described in a networksensitive institutional setting are present in a network-insensitive one as well, and that there are signs that globalization increases the level of network-sensitivity all over the world

What Drives Happiness? The Interviewer’s Happiness

Interviewers in face-to-face surveys can potentially introduce bias both in the recruiting and the measurement phase. One reason behind this is that the measurement of subjective well-being has been found to be associated with social desirability bias. Respondents tend to tailor their responses in the presence of others, for instance by presenting a more positive image of themselves instead of reporting their true attitude. In this study, we investigated the role of interviewers in the meas- urement of happiness. We were particularly interested in whether the interviewer’s happiness cor- relates with the respondent’s happiness. Our data comes from a face-to-face survey conducted in Hungary, which included the attitudes of both respondents and interviewers. The results of the multilevel regression models showed that interviewers account for a significant amount of vari- ance in responses obtained from respondents, even after controlling for a range of characteristics of both respondents, interviewers, and settlements. We also found that respondents were more likely to report a happy personality in the presence of an interviewer with a happy personality. We argue that as long as interviewers are involved in the collection of SWB measures, further training of interviewers on raising awareness on personality traits, self-expression, neutrality, and unjusti- fied positive confirmations is essential

Informális piacok a mai Magyarországon = Informal marketplaces in contemporary Hungary

Kutatásunkban három kgst piacot és a Moszkva téri emberpiacot tanulmányoztuk. Az emberpiacról megállapítottuk, hogy az informális gazdaság munkaerő-piacának szűkülő ám szerves eleme. A piac szociológiai alapjellemzői egyáltalán nem változtak meg az elmúlt tíz év alatt. A piac szűkülése érvényes a keresletre (kevesebb az ajánlatok száma), a kínálatra (kevesebb a munkavállalók száma), illetve a tranzakciók gyakoriságára egyaránt, aminek eredményeképpen romlik a munkához jutás esélye és csökken a bér. A korábban megfogalmazott feltételezéseink alapján igazolódott, hogy a Moszkva téri emberpiac elsősorban a budapesti régió olcsó férfi-munkaerejének gyűjtőhelye. Az emberpiac etnikai összetételére jellemző, hogy a munkavállalók között sok a külföldi állampolgárságú, mégis a magyar etnikumú munkaerő dominál. A Moszkva téren elérhető munkabér alacsonynak és stagnálónak tűnik. Az elmúlt tíz évben a kgst piacok képe rendezettebbé vált, az árusítás körülményei javultak. A kereskedők Pécsett és Budapesten jellemzően többféle terméket árusítanak egy-egy standon, de Szegeden is csökkent az egyfélét árusítók aránya. Az ázsiai kereskedők száma emelkedett. Míg 1995-ben az eladók fele, napjainkban már az eladók 80 százaléka ázsiai származású volt a Józsefvárosi piacon. A vásárlások fele a kora reggeli órákban történik. Minden második tranzakció ruhaféle megvásárlásával ér véget. A vásárlók az ügyletek közel egyharmadában alkuval igyekeznek alacsonyabb árat elérni. | In our research we have investigated the "Human Market" of Moszkva tér and three Comecon markets. We have found that the Human Market is a shrinking but organic part of the labour market of informal marketplaces. The shrinking of the market is manifested in diminishing supply and demand (both the number of offers and of employment seekers have gone down), and in a plummeting frequency of sales transactions. As a result, it has become more difficult to attain a job and wages fell. It became clear that the Moszkva tér market has a regional concentration of cheap male labour for Budapest. There are many foreign nationals in the workforce; the majority, however, is Hungarian. The negotiable wages on the Moszkva tér market seem to be low and stagnant. During the last ten years the general look of Comecon markets have become more regular, and conditions of sale have grown better. Salesmen of the cities Budapest and Pécs invariably offer more than one sort of goods on a single stand, and the number of those selling a single produce has been decreasing in the city Szeged as well. The numbers of Oriental salesmen is on the increase: a good example is the Józsefváros market, where in 1995 Orientals were representing half of a sample of salespersons - which ratio is 80% today. Half of the daily sellings take place in the early morning hours. Every second transaction involves clothing material. To achieve a better price every third customer engages in haggling