Suchergebnisse

Though the assertion of class struggle as the principal contradiction of capitalism was a leading achievement of Marxist thought, it is argued that Marxism, like critical thought in general, tends to overidealize the working class. This view positions workers -- or the people as a whole -- as "liberating victims," denying them their role as negotiators & the "merchants of their own labor power," even in their rebelliousness against oppression & exploitation. It is contended that the history of capitalism is one of "negotiated contradictions" within & between classes; several examples are offered since the emergence of capitalism -- in the late 20th century, highlighting negotiated contradictions at the international level surrounding colonialism & technological development. A systems theory approach is utilized to explain how negotiated contradictions form the basis of contemporary capitalist megaorganizations & their role in neoliberal globalization; such an analysis also illuminates the inadequacy of Marxist determinist concepts. K. Hyatt Stewart

Though the assertion of class struggle as the principal contradiction of capitalism was a leading achievement of Marxist thought, it is argued that Marxism, like critical thought in general, tends to overidealize the working class. This view positions workers -- or the people as a whole -- as "liberating victims," denying them their role as negotiators & the "merchants of their own labor power," even in their rebelliousness against oppression & exploitation. It is contended that the history of capitalism is one of "negotiated contradictions" within & between classes; several examples are offered since the emergence of capitalism -- in the late 20th century, highlighting negotiated contradictions at the international level surrounding colonialism & technological development. A systems theory approach is utilized to explain how negotiated contradictions form the basis of contemporary capitalist megaorganizations & their role in neoliberal globalization; such an analysis also illuminates the inadequacy of Marxist determinist concepts. K. Hyatt Stewart

It is argued that the concept of contradiction has lost explanatory value, its use in Marxist analysis tending to "oscillate between.pretentious & empty theoretical verbiage & ritual cliche, vague enough to cover almost anything.." In an attempt to rescue the concept & reestablish its utility for contemporary analyses of capitalism, Karl Marx's original theorizing is revisited in light of the ideas on contradiction expressed by Marxist historian G. E. M. de Ste. Croix (1981) in his work on class struggle in ancient Greece. Marx & Ste. Croix are compared in terms of their perspectives of contradiction between (1) the forces & relations of production, (2) the social character of production & private appropriation, & (3) private landownership & rational agriculture. Ste. Croix's objections to the application of contradiction to class relations are reviewed, & the idea that class relations under capitalism may be different than those in other systems is explored. The roles of market dependence & exchange relations in contradictory class relations are also reevaluated. Capitalist contradictions in the modern world are evidenced in two examples: ecological degradation & globalization. K. Hyatt Stewart

It is argued that the concept of contradiction has lost explanatory value, its use in Marxist analysis tending to "oscillate between.pretentious & empty theoretical verbiage & ritual cliche, vague enough to cover almost anything.." In an attempt to rescue the concept & reestablish its utility for contemporary analyses of capitalism, Karl Marx's original theorizing is revisited in light of the ideas on contradiction expressed by Marxist historian G. E. M. de Ste. Croix (1981) in his work on class struggle in ancient Greece. Marx & Ste. Croix are compared in terms of their perspectives of contradiction between (1) the forces & relations of production, (2) the social character of production & private appropriation, & (3) private landownership & rational agriculture. Ste. Croix's objections to the application of contradiction to class relations are reviewed, & the idea that class relations under capitalism may be different than those in other systems is explored. The roles of market dependence & exchange relations in contradictory class relations are also reevaluated. Capitalist contradictions in the modern world are evidenced in two examples: ecological degradation & globalization. K. Hyatt Stewart

New modes of managerial governance have caused universities to function more like companies and produce non-intended effects as well as imaginary contradictions. In this article, four of these contradictions are discussed to provide answers to the following research questions: Do professors have a higher commitment to their organization or to their peers in the scientific community? Which factors strengthen the affective organizational commitment? Which work environment supports intrinsic motivation at universities? Can universities provide incentives that do not crowd out intrinsic motivation? A theoretical underpinning of hypotheses will be provided, and these hypotheses will be tested using two nationwide surveys of German professors. The empirical results demonstrate that commitment to professional peers increases affective organizational commitment. In the perception of German professors, there is no contradiction between profession and organization, but the newly implemented steering instruments increase organizational commitment. In addition, the results also provide evidence that autonomy, relatedness, and perceived competence increase intrinsic teaching motivation. These findings support the Self-Determination Theory. The results also provide some evidence of a crowding-out effect of the new steering instruments and that teaching awards do not crowd out intrinsic motivation. (HRK / Abstract übernommen).

The central principles, practices & contradictions of US efforts to unify global political, social & economic space under a particular form of US supremacy are analyzed to argue for a Gramscian "pessimism of the intelligence, optimism of the will." The two main faces of US power - globalization of Anglo-American constitutional principles & neoliberal mechanisms of accumulation & economic discipline combined with the empire of civil society - are colossal obfuscations that seek to conceal the real costs of disciplinary neoliberalism, & its principal beneficiaries of the global plutocracy of the rich. But, the worldwide reproduction of the relationship between capital & labor contextualizes economical globalization extension of the empire of civil society & securing the world market for the rule of capital with the achievement of military "full spectrum dominance" does have costs that could shake the confidence of (foreign) investors. A Gramscian interpretation of the US efforts asserts that the war in Iraq may be seen as the first to show the significant limits of US power, not because of Iraqi resistance, but because other forces constrain & challenge US supremacy. Grounds for optimism exist in the growth of new movements that seek alternatives to the insecurity, injustice & excesses of disciplinary neoliberalism & US supremacy. Ultimately these forces stand against the most fundamental & antagonistic contradiction of all those that US supremacy entails, the fact that the deepening power of capital expropriates & undermines the basic means of livelihood. These forces engage in transformative resistance to forge new forms of political agency that might transcend the structures, limits & contradictions of US-led efforts to instantiate disciplinary neoliberalism. References. J. Harwell

Attempts to evaluate the performance of neoliberalism since its emergence out of the structural crisis of the 1970s & 1980s in the major capitalist economies. A Marxist perspective is employed to explore the dynamics of capitalism, its historical tendencies & crises, & the interpretation of neoliberalism in the context of the "new capitalism." Internal contradictions of neoliberalism that challenge its survival, both politically & economically, are described. Characteristics of neoliberalism likely to contribute to its sustainability or decline are identified. US hegemony in the new neoliberal world order is discussed, & the US economy is compared to that of France, Germany, & the UK, drawing on international statistics on rates of capital accumulation & growth & business cycle fluctuations. The compatibility of neoliberalism with the continuing transformation of relations of production is addressed, & alternatives to neoliberalism that might arise with different power configurations are reviewed. 7 Figures. K. Hyatt Stewart

Argues that Louis Althusser's concept of overdetermination provides a starting point for imaging noncapitalist forms of economic practices because it militates against economic monism & provides a basis for theorizing economic difference. The concept of overdetermination is described as the idea that social totality is not structured by the primacy of any particular social element or location. A view of identity as decentered & fluid is extrapolated from this notion & juxtaposed to versions of essentialist or economic monism found in the literature. Included in these examples is a discussion of regulation theory & socialist feminism, each of which is descibed as an effort to reduce social reality to one causal element. The efforts of Ernst Laclau & Claude Mouffe (1985) to construct an antiessentialist framework on the basis of Althusser's work is presented as an important step in post-Althusserian Marxist theory. 27 References. D. M. Smith

Attempts to evaluate the performance of neoliberalism since its emergence out of the structural crisis of the 1970s & 1980s in the major capitalist economies. A Marxist perspective is employed to explore the dynamics of capitalism, its historical tendencies & crises, & the interpretation of neoliberalism in the context of the "new capitalism." Internal contradictions of neoliberalism that challenge its survival, both politically & economically, are described. Characteristics of neoliberalism likely to contribute to its sustainability or decline are identified. US hegemony in the new neoliberal world order is discussed, & the US economy is compared to that of France, Germany, & the UK, drawing on international statistics on rates of capital accumulation & growth & business cycle fluctuations. The compatibility of neoliberalism with the continuing transformation of relations of production is addressed, & alternatives to neoliberalism that might arise with different power configurations are reviewed. 7 Figures. K. Hyatt Stewart

Chronicles the development of the lesbian & gay movement in VT, focusing on activists' pursuit of a politics of recognition based on identity as a minority group. Data are drawn from movement documents, informant interviews, secondary sources, & activist accounts. A distinction is made between ethnic identity & queer strategies of identity construction in the political realm, comparing their "essentialist" vs "antinormalizing" tendencies. The intersection between the law, the state, & identity construction is examined, demonstrating how it contributed to overcoming diversity & binding gay & lesbian social movements into a cross-gender alliance for homosexual rights beginning in the early 1980s. 1 Table. K. Hyatt Stewart

Chronicles the development of the lesbian & gay movement in VT, focusing on activists' pursuit of a politics of recognition based on identity as a minority group. Data are drawn from movement documents, informant interviews, secondary sources, & activist accounts. A distinction is made between ethnic identity & queer strategies of identity construction in the political realm, comparing their "essentialist" vs "antinormalizing" tendencies. The intersection between the law, the state, & identity construction is examined, demonstrating how it contributed to overcoming diversity & binding gay & lesbian social movements into a cross-gender alliance for homosexual rights beginning in the early 1980s. 1 Table. K. Hyatt Stewart

Uses R. W. Connell's three structures of gender relations -- division of labor, structure of power, & structure cathexis -- as a framework for analyzing the gender regime of Tanzanian civil service. Although equal integration is the stated principle, gender differences are manifested in training, resource allocation, promotion, & sexual harassment. It is suggested that the main point of resistance to women's advancement is the husband. The bureaucratic principle of equality is contradicted by the domestic reality of the husband's role in maintaining his status as master of wife & children, as well as his need to display gender superiority through controlling women as sexual objects. 9 References. M. Greenberg