Literature Review

Write a literature review on a topic of your choice – must relate to Economic Strategy. Guidelines: 4,000 words, 10 pre-approved articles under different headings are given as a starting point. Accounts for 40% of a 5 ECTS module

Conference Presentation: The Power of Words in Tension: Enterprise/Strategy as a Dilemma in Neoliberalism’s Persistence.

We address how enterprise is related to, another important discourse, strategy. From a discourse analysis of the talk of small firm owner-managers, emerges a view of strategy and enterprise as a single, integrated entity, bound together by some commonalities but more importantly by paired opposites reminiscent of ideological dilemmas (Billig, Condor, Edwards, Gane, Middleton & Radley, 1988). This dilemmatic nature of enterprise/strategy discourse adds to explanations for the persistence of the neoliberal form of enterprise, with the entrepreneur as the heroic saviour of all, based on the entrepreneur as an empty signifier (Jones & Spicer, 2009; Kenny & Scriver, 2012) or as a spectre (Marttila, 2012)

Comparing Elites Across Countries: Formation & Discourses

Comparing elites across countries: formation & discourses .Presentation to Masters in International Business, Dublin Institute of Technology, February 23rd 201

Strategy/Enterprise Discourse Bounds in Business Talk.

Corporate strategy emerged as large non-owner managed firms became economically important (Knights and Morgan, 1991). Strategy became the substitute for the earlier enterprise discourse, which depended on the dominance, in entrepreneurial capitalism, of owner-managed firms. The discourses of strategy and enterprise developed as separate academic areas and as logics of two very different economic domains. From the late 1970s however, large organizations (Kanter, 1983:27) and governments have been urged to be more entrepreneurial (Klein et al., 2010; Osborne and Gaebler, 1993). Meanwhile, small firms were encouraged to be more strategic (Carr, 2000). This article looks at evidence from small owner-managed firms to examine how strategy and enterprise discourse are related in the talk of practitioners, arguing that are good reasons to view them as a single integrated entity, bound together by some commonalities but more importantly by paired opposites reminiscent of ideological dilemmas (Billig et al., 1988)

An Overview of Discourse Analytical Approaches to Research

The field of discourse analysis (DA) is vast, varied and contested with traditions ranging from conversational analysis (Sacks, 1995, [1964-1972]), to more Foucauldian inspired approaches (e.g. Kendall & Wickham, 1999), to critical discourse approaches (Van Dijk, 2001; Fairclough, 2003). This diversity means that this overview is necessarily selective. Nonetheless, this introduction should provide a platform from where readers can then further investigate those currents of DA that are of particular interest. In order to locate DA within the range of methodology discussed in this volume, and to argue for the unity of various DA approaches, a short history is outlined. A survey of DA is then provided, organized by what various approaches mean by ‘discourse’ and by what theories and concepts they use for analysis. An illustrative exercise in the discourse analysis of some interview data is then given. Finally, a guide to further reading and resources is provided for the reader who wishes to study discourse analysis in greater depth

Ireland Austerity Addiction: Challenges & Opportunities

The current hold of austerity on Irish public policy provokes a comparison with addiction. Postliberalism, the form of austerity Ireland is hooked on, brought the country to its knees. It tied the millstone of bank bailouts around Ireland’s neck, slashed its education and health spending and meant its budgets were closely supervised by the Troika of the Europe Union (EU), the International Monetary Fund and the European Central Bank from 2010-2013. Unemployment spiked and there was an exodus, particularly of young people, from the country. This was a period of national humiliation as economic sovereignty evaporated in a deal described as being more akin to the Versailles Treaty than the Marshall Plan (O’Toole, 2010a). Yet, Ireland is once again on a postliberal high with centre-right parties topping the polls, the national economy being celebrated once more as a triumph of postliberalism (Zehorai, 2015) and soaring house prices being taken as a return of the good times. Rising homelessness, prohibitive rents, the precarious nature of Ireland’s competitive corporate tax position and the bubble in land prices on while discussed, are more rationalised away than rationally dealt with. At the same time local authorities administer austerity as they reduce property taxes (Power et al., 2018). This pattern is not a new one to anyone familiar with Irish economic history (O’Rourke and Hogan, 2017). Neither is Ireland alone in its addiction, indeed its place in the network of austerity is one of its main dependencies. What are the impediments to escaping this addiction and what are the opportunities for both Ireland and the world to move this postliberal condition? To answer these questions requires a broader sweep than is possible in narrow academic papers. This paper therefore addresses all those with an interest in how we might jointly govern our societies in a way that goes beyond the austerity of vested interests and simplistic solutions. It draws on the work of social scientists that makes such experts a useful but not dominating contributor to the conversation. To do this , we firstly provide some of the general background to the postliberal condition we are now in, before giving a briefing some relevant details on Ireland’s situation. We then suggest three opportunities for Ireland and elsewhere to progress from where we are now. Our conclusions, we hope, are both realistic and enabling, but cry out for continuing the conversation

The Evolution of an Enduring Expertise: Understanding Irish Economists in Irish public discourse in the Great Recession

This work focuses on the institutional and social contexts of Irish economists’ prominence in public discourse in Ireland during the Great Recession. While examining performative aspects of experts’ legitimacy is important, understanding the wider societal context of how particular professional expertise is recognised is also vital (Collins & Evans 2007). The economics profession generally is characterised by strong hierarchy and dense integration (Fourcade, 2009; Mirowski & Plehwe, 2009; Pautz, 2014), we explore such phenomena in the Irish context. The Irish context is of interest more generally as a prominent PIIGS country in the Eurozone crisis, as a small peripheral state and as a site of confluence between Anglo-American and European Influences. Its close relationships with both the United Kingdom and the United States are particular interesting for an examination of the relationships between national and international influences on economists in a society

Working Paper of Reflections in the Eyes of a Dying Tiger: Looking Back on Ireland\u27s 1987 Economic Crisis

This work examines the discourses about previous Irish crises , in radio chat interviews with a former finance minister and an economists, during the current Irish economic crise

The Pragmatics of Economics Experts’ Engagement With Non-Specialists

A Call for Papers for Panel on Economics and Language Use: The pragmatics of economics experts’ engagement with non-specialists, 15th International Pragmatics Conference (IPrA2017) to be held in Belfast, Northern Ireland, 16-21 July 2017

Exploring Economists & Society: Constructing Expert Identity

The recent economic crisis has created a heightened interest in economics and greater demand for economics experts. The media has played an important role in meeting this demand as mediated expertise is relied upon to understand the complex relationships within society (Albaek, Christiansen and Togeby 2003; Beck 1992; Boyce 2006; Giddens 1990). Such interactions of experts with media are a key element of the knowledge flows within society (Sturdy et al. 2009) and so have attracted research attention (Ekstrom and Lundell 2011; Hutchby 2006; Montgomery 2008). This paper contributes to this literature by focusing on the under-researched area of the expert interview (Montgomery 2008), and in particular on the less-studied interview with the social science expert (Cassidy, 2008). The management experts chosen – economists – are key to the knowledge flows about business. Using discourse analysis we examined interactions on a prominent Irish radio news programme, building on previous literature which analyses radio interaction (Fitzgerald and Housley 2002; Hutchby 2006). Interviews with a well-known economist are analysed. This provides insights into how discursive tools are used to construct and preserve an expert identity in media interactions and how this influences the construction of the economy in knowledge flows