Intersubjective Meaning and Collective Action in 'fragile' societies: Theory, Evidence and Policy Implications

Gauri, Varun; Woolcock, Michael; Desai, Deval

doi:10.1596/1813-9450-5707

Cited by 13 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 8 publications

(8 reference statements)

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“…Patron–client relationships and corruption can also serve many social functions. For example, Gauri, Woolcock, and Desai (, p. 27) observe that in Honduras, a history of violent conflict has shaped the way in which patron–client relations are viewed; rather than simply understood as a way in which to (corruptly) access public funds, they are understood to provide security and safety in a highly violent and unstable environment. Moreover, participating in a network of patron–client relationships can reinforce social bonds and societal norms that are universally valued like the notion that people in powerful positions should give back and shared feelings of mutual obligation.…”

Section: The Problem With Viewing Corruption As Only a “Problem”mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…1 See, for example, studies commissioned by the UK Department for International Development (DFID, 2015;Rao, 2013), the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Mungiu-Pippidi, 2011), and several papers by the World Bank (e.g., Gauri et al, 2011;Keefer, 2012;WBI, 2008). 2 To the best of our knowledge, it has not been established what actual collective good corruption is precluding or reducing, or how, through the lens of collective action theory, participating in corruption should be framed.…”

Section: Endn Otesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“… See, for example, studies commissioned by the UK Department for International Development (DFID, ; Rao, ), the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Mungiu‐Pippidi, ), and several papers by the World Bank (e.g., Gauri et al, ; Keefer, ; WBI, ).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Grappling with the “real politics” of systemic corruption: Theoretical debates versus “real‐world” functions

Marquette

Peiffer

2017

Governance

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A growing body of research argues that anticorruption efforts fail because of a flawed theoretical foundation, where collective action theory is said to be a better lens for understanding corruption than the dominant principal–agent theory. We unpack this critique and advance several new arguments. First, the application of collective action theory to the issue of corruption has been, thus far, incomplete. Second, a collective action theory‐based approach to corruption is in fact complementary to a principal–agent approach, rather than contradictory as is claimed. Third, applications of both theories have failed to recognize that corruption persists because it functions to provide solutions to problems. We conclude by arguing that anticorruption effectiveness is difficult to achieve because it requires insights from all three perspectives—principal–agent theory, collective action theory, and corruption as serving functions—which allows us to better understand how to harness the political will needed to fight corruption.

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Section: The Problem With Viewing Corruption As Only a “Problem”mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Endn Otesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Grappling with the “real politics” of systemic corruption: Theoretical debates versus “real‐world” functions

Marquette

Peiffer

2017

Governance

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“…In this view, the failure to act collectively can stem from the groups’ failure to ascribe a common meaning to a given situation. This problem may be especially severe in countries characterised by endemic conflict, where institutions that might otherwise provide frames for a common understanding of a situation have been weakened or destroyed (Gauri et al. , 2011).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Introduction: Tastes, Castes and Culture: The Influence of Society on Preferences

Fehr

Hoff²

2011

The Economic Journal

147

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Economists have traditionally treated preferences as exogenously given. Preferences are assumed to be influenced by neither beliefs nor the constraints people face. As a consequence, changes in behaviour are explained exclusively in terms of changes in the set of feasible alternatives. Here, we argue that the opposition to explaining behavioural changes in terms of preference changes is ill‐founded, that the psychological properties of preferences render them susceptible to direct social influences and that the impact of ‘society’ on preferences is likely to have important economic and social consequences.

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“…Here, the central argument is not just that the powerless are shamelessly coerced or manipulated by the powerful, but that these differentials are compounded by, or even directly premised on, the qualitatively different ways in which various groups involved understand the transactions taking place. The introduction of money -an abstraction that is alien to many groups -as the basis of exchange can erode the integrity of social relations and sometimes alters entire cosmologies (Gauri et al, 2011). 11 A classic film in this genre is The Gods Must be Crazy (1981), in which a Coke bottle, nonchalantly tossed from a passing aeroplane only to land at the foot of a perplexed San tribesman in rural Africa, becomes the fulcrum around which turn multiple confusions between colonisers and local populations.…”

Section: Film and Developmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Projection of Development: Cinematic Representation as A(nother) Source of Authoritative Knowledge?

Lewis

Rodgers

Woolcock

2013

The Journal of Development Studies

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Popular representations of development need to be taken seriously (though not uncritically) as sources of authoritative knowledge, not least because this is how most people in the global North (and elsewhere) 'encounter' development issues. To this end, and building on the broader agenda presented in a previous article exploring the usefulness of literary representations of development, we consider three different types of cinematic representations of development: films providing uniquely instructive insights, those unhelpfully eliding and simplifying complex processes, and those that, with the benefit of historical hindsight, usefully convey a sense of the prevailing assumptions that guided and interpreted the efficacy of developmentrelated interventions at a particular time and place. We argue that the commercial and technical imperatives governing the production of contemporary films, and 'popular' films in particular, generate a highly variable capacity to 'accurately' render key issues in development, and thereby heighten their potential to both illuminate and obscure those issues.

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Intersubjective Meaning and Collective Action in 'fragile' societies: Theory, Evidence and Policy Implications

Cited by 13 publications

References 8 publications

Grappling with the “real politics” of systemic corruption: Theoretical debates versus “real‐world” functions

Grappling with the “real politics” of systemic corruption: Theoretical debates versus “real‐world” functions

Introduction: Tastes, Castes and Culture: The Influence of Society on Preferences

The Projection of Development: Cinematic Representation as A(nother) Source of Authoritative Knowledge?

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