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21. Illiberal Democracy and the Struggle on the Right

Author:
Marc F. Plattner
Publication Date:
01-2019
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Journal of Democracy
Institution:
National Endowment for Democracy
Abstract:
With the longstanding dominance of center-left and center-right parties ebbing across Europe and Latin America, there is a growing danger that substantial segments of the right will be captured by tendencies indifferent or even hostile to liberal democracy. The 2019 elections to the European Parliament will provide a key test. Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has transformed the debate by openly promoting the concept of “illiberal democracy.” Orbán seeks to equate liberal democracy as such with a set of policy positions supported by forces on the left, thereby prying conservatives away from their fundamental commitment to liberal democracy. This rising challenge has manifested itself in a struggle for control of the European Union’s center-right bloc, the European People’s Party, as well as in the recent writings of several political theorists identified with the conservative side of the political spectrum.
Topic:
Authoritarianism, Democracy, Liberal Order, Conservatism, and Illiberal Democracy
Political Geography:
Europe, Hungary, Latin America, and Central Europe

22. The German Undervaluation Regime under Bretton Woods How Germany Became the Nightmare of the World Economy

Author:
Martin Höpner
Publication Date:
02-2019
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies
Abstract:
Germany is an undervaluation regime, a regime that steers economic behavior towards deterioration of the real exchange rate and thereby towards export surpluses. This regime has brought the eurozone to the brink of collapse. But it is much older than the euro. It was established during the Bretton Woods years and has survived all subsequent European currency orders. The regime operates in two steps: competitive disinflation against trading partners; and resistance against correcting revaluations. The Bretton Woods order provid- ed perfect conditions for the establishment and perpetuation of the regime: it was flexible enough for sufficient macroeconomic policy autonomy to bring about differential inflation rates, and sticky enough to delay and minimize revaluations.
Topic:
Political Economy, Regional Cooperation, Capitalism, and Inflation
Political Geography:
Europe, Germany, and Central Europe

23. Is There a Motherhood Penalty in Academia? The Gendered Effect of Children on Academic Publications

Author:
Mark Lutter and Martin Schroder
Publication Date:
02-2019
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies
Abstract:
Based on data that tracks CV and publication records as well as survey information from sociologists in German academia, we examine the effects of parenthood on the publication output of male and female academics. Results indicate that having children leads to a sig- nificant decline in the number of publications by women, while not affecting the number of publications by men. We also find that the gendered effect of children on productivity hardly mitigates differences in publication output between men and women, as women still publish about 20 percent less than men after controlling for the adverse effects of chil- dren on productivity. We further find that the gendered effect of childbearing depends partly on prior levels of women’s academic achievements, which suggests mechanisms of performance-driven self-selection. Lower-performing women tend to suffer a stronger motherhood penalty, while the publication output of more successful women (who have been granted academic awards) is not reduced through childbirth. The results indicate that women are better at managing the “double burden” of parenthood and career if external, award-giving committees have bestowed prestige upon them and indicated their potential for a scientific career. Overall, these findings contribute to a better understanding of how to reduce the adverse effect of children on female publication output.
Topic:
Gender Issues, Children, Women, Feminism, and Academia
Political Geography:
Europe, Germany, and Central Europe

24. An Overview of German New Economic Sociology and the Contribution of the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies

Author:
John Wilkinson
Publication Date:
02-2019
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies
Abstract:
New economic sociology (NES) in Germany has many similarities with economic sociology in the United States in its conscious efforts to institutionalize its presence within the broader sociology community, its promotion of a canon via handbooks, and its focus on the sociology of markets. At the same time, it differs in its stronger connections to the German classics, the greater vitality of a macrosociological tradition in Germany, the prior existence of a “bridging” generation of economic sociologists, and its later consolidation in a period of neo-liberal globalization, all of which have giv- en NES in the German-speaking world a distinctive character. In addition, it has been influenced by successive waves of French economic sociology – Bourdieu, convention, and actor-network theory – and its bilingual academic tradition has ensured its integration into English-speaking NES. In its contribution to the sociology of markets, the fact that NES emerged later in Germany than in the US led to a greater concern with quality markets rather than commodity markets, and a concomitantly greater attention to issues of value and price. These latter themes, in their turn, establish a continuity with German economic sociology’s enduring concern with understanding the role of money. Not surprisingly, therefore, German NES is now making key contributions to discussions on the sociol- ogy of money and is increasingly situating its analysis within the broader dynamic of capitalism and current processes of financialization.
Topic:
Economics, Globalization, Sociology, and Capitalism
Political Geography:
Europe, Germany, and Central Europe

25. Strong Firms, Weak Banks The Financial Consequences of Germany’s Export-Led Growth Model

Author:
Benjamin Braun and Richard Deeg
Publication Date:
05-2019
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies
Abstract:
The financial foundation of Germany’s manufacturing success, according to the compara- tive capitalism literature, is an ample supply of long-term capital, provided to firms by a three-pillar banking system and “patient” domestic shareholders. This premise also informs the recent literature on growth models, which documents a shift towards a purely export- led growth model in Germany since the 1990s. We challenge this common assumption of continuity in the German financial system. Export-led growth, characterized by aggregate wage suppression and high corporate profits, has allowed non-financial corporations to increasingly finance investment out of retained earnings, thus lowering their dependence on external finance. This paper documents this trend and shows that business lending by banks has increasingly been constrained on the demand side, reducing the power – and relevance – of banks vis-à-vis German industry. The case study suggests a need for students of growth models to pay greater attention to the dynamic interaction between institutional sectors in general, and between the financial and the non-financial sectors in particular.
Topic:
Banks, Exports, Institutionalism, and Corporations
Political Geography:
Europe, Germany, and Central Europe

26. Changing Perspectives in Political Economy

Author:
Renate Mayntz
Publication Date:
07-2019
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies
Abstract:
The history of a research field called political economy dates back to the eighteenth century, giving rise to a variety of disciplinary approaches, and experienced a renaissance as a mul- tidisciplinary field after the Second World War, combining economic, political science, and sociological approaches. The divergence between economic globalization and the nation- ally restricted scope of economic policy directs interest to the relationship between politics and the economy. A quantitative analysis of the articles published in two dedicated political economy journals shows major trends of the developing research field. The relationship between politics and economy is interpreted rather widely, and research is largely focused on Western capitalist nations. In conclusion, two avenues for further research in the field are briefly discussed.
Topic:
Political Economy, Regional Cooperation, Capitalism, and Global Political Economy
Political Geography:
Europe, Germany, Central Europe, and Western Europe

27. NextGen Network Key Takeaways: Prague, Czech Republic

Author:
Aspen Institute
Publication Date:
03-2019
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Aspen Institute
Abstract:
Aspen Central Europe hosted the Network in Prague in January 2019, with participants from Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic. Participants emphasized that there should be a focus on mapping where exactly AI can support existing professions, create new ones, but most importantly streamline the education system towards current trends and lifelong learning. It is essential to speed up the adoption of AI in Europe, as well as connect it with major challenges in society, such as tackling climate change or innovating healthcare, where, for example, AI can be explained by its promoters as a way of delivering better services rather than merely introducing a new technology.
Topic:
Climate Change, Science and Technology, Health Care Policy, and Artificial Intelligence
Political Geography:
Europe, Czech Republic, and Central Europe

28. Leaders, Managers or Administrators – Mayors in Central and Eastern European Countries

Author:
Karolina Tybuchowska-Hartlinska
Publication Date:
01-2019
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Polish Political Science Yearbook
Institution:
Polish Political Science Association (PPSA)
Abstract:
This paper is the first step to fill a gap in the studies on the position of mayors in European local government systems. The first part of the paper will be devoted to critical analysis of theoretical and methodological studies on the position and selection of mayors. The second part will focus on verifying the proposed hypotheses. In the conclusions, an at- tempt will be made to present a profile of local democracy in CEE countries.
Topic:
Government, Governance, and Local
Political Geography:
Europe, Eastern Europe, and Central Europe

29. The Surplus Woman: Unmarried in Imperial Germany, 1871-1918

Author:
Catherine L. Dollard
Publication Date:
01-2018
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Berghahn Books
Abstract:
The first German women’s movement embraced the belief in a demographic surplus of unwed women, known as the Frauenüberschuß, as a central leitmotif in the campaign for reform. Proponents of the female surplus held that the advances of industry and urbanization had upset traditional marriage patterns and left too many bourgeois women without a husband. This book explores the ways in which the realms of literature, sexology, demography, socialism, and female activism addressed the perceived plight of unwed women. Case studies of reformers, including Lily Braun, Ruth Bré, Elisabeth Gnauck-Kühne, Helene Lange, Alice Salomon, Helene Stöcker, and Clara Zetkin, demonstrate the expansive influence of the discourse surrounding a female surfeit. By combining the approaches of cultural, social, and gender history, The Surplus Woman provides the first sustained analysis of the ways in which imperial Germans conceptualized anxiety about female marital status as both a product and a reflection of changing times.
Topic:
Gender Issues, Political Activism, Women, and Literature
Political Geography:
Europe, Germany, and Central Europe

30. Selling the Economic Miracle: Economic Reconstruction and Politics in West Germany, 1949-1957

Author:
Mark E. Spicka
Publication Date:
01-2018
Content Type:
Book
Institution:
Berghahn Books
Abstract:
Through an examination of election campaign propaganda and various public relations campaigns, reflecting new electioneering techniques borrowed from the United States, this work explores how conservative political and economic groups sought to construct and sell a political meaning of the Social Market Economy and the Economic Miracle in West Germany during the 1950s.The political meaning of economics contributed to conservative electoral success, constructed a new belief in the free market economy within West German society, and provided legitimacy and political stability for the new Federal Republic of Germany.
Topic:
Cold War, Economics, Elections, European Union, Political stability, and Propaganda
Political Geography:
Europe, Germany, West Germany, and Central Europe