finland lecture summer 2013 notes

7/28/2019 Finland Lecture Summer 2013 Notes

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The difficulty lies, not in the new ideas, but in escaping fromthe old ones, which ramify, for those brought up as most ofus have been, into every corner of our minds.

John Maynard Keynes, The General Theory of Employment,

Interest and Money (13 December 1935)

Peter Herrmanni

Methodological considerations for Theory of Social Policy/Social Policy Research

at the Interface of Political Economy and Politics of Social Order

Schwarze Rcke, seidne Strmpfe,

Weie hfliche Manschetten,

Sanfte Reden, Embrassieren

Ach, wenn sie nur Herzen htten!

Herzen in der Brust, und Liebe,

Warme Liebe in dem Herzen

Ach, mich ttet ihr Gesinge

Von erlognen Liebesschmerzen.

Auf die Berge will ich steigen,

Wo die frommen Htten stehen,

Wo die Brust sich frei erschlieet,

Und die freien Lfte wehen.


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Wo die dunkeln Tannen ragen,

Bche rauschen, Vgel singen,

Und die stolzen Wolken jagen.

Lebet wohl, ihr glatten Sle!

Glatte Herren! glatte Frauen!


Lachend auf euch niederschauen.

(Heine, Heine, 1826: Die Harzreise,

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/24249/24249-h/24249-h.htm - Juni

2013)

I.

Knowledgeof language is surely an issuewhenworking in international and

seemingly multi-linguistic environments even if the often subtle linguistic

problemsare frequently unappreciated. Some of thedifficultiesmay be taken

fromalookattheterms,oronemaybettersayconceptsoftheheadingandthe

translations

interfaceSchnittstellepointingintheEnglishlanguageclearlyonthecentrifugalaspectwhereastheGermanhighlightstheseparation

politics of social order Sozial- und Ordnungspolitikon the one sidelooking orderof the socialwhereaswesee ontheother sidea kind of

positioningofcomplementaritiesorevenajuxtaposition

political economy Volkswirtschaftslehre though the two areactuallynot the same. There is a German Politische Oekonomie, but no English

PeoplesEconomicParadigmasa literarytranslationfromtheGerman

would suggest; however, there is an English CommonWealthwhich is

completelydifferentfromtheGermanGemeinwohl.

All this is not just about terminology and knowledgeof language but about acompletelydifferentmodeofcomplexreflectionsandsentiments,eachincluding


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adifferentZeitgeistwhichisreflectedinthetermsandconcept,eachofwhich

hadbeen emerging in specific historical contexts. Sure, already knowledgeof

language in very simple terms is often not simple at all as the little clip on

different accents of the English language shows:http://twentytwowords.com/2012/05/01/a-world-tour-of-english-accents/

Leaving this later dimension of understanding aside, the before mentioned

aspectsrequiredeepmethodologicalcircumspection!!Andacrucialpartofthis

circumspection is theknowledgeof the concretehistorical circumstances and

backgroundsanytermreflects:conceptsunderlyinglanguage,theuseofwords

andthedevelopmentofterms.

II.

Aquestionablepleasureofteachingjobsisthetaskofmarkingwhichisusually

going hand in hand with it. I faced this dimension again recently, students

actuallycomplainingaboutthemarksIgavethem.Apparentlythereisatvarious

universities an inflation of high marks. Instead of offering an upgrading as

response to their complains, I presented the possibility to submit a revised

versiononthebasisofwhichIwouldreassessthestudents.Someofthestudents

cametomyofficeinordertodiscussissuesoftheir(first)submissions.Tocuta

longstoryshort,thedeliberationsonthemarksshowedtheunderlyingproblem

whichhasalsoapsychologicaldimension.Primarilythemarksassuchhadnot

been at stake. Instead, the discussion developed in two directions, one being

concernedwithsubstantialissues,theotherbeingamatterofworryingabout

themarks.Onemaytranslatethis:ithadbeenadiscussionthathadbeendealing

at the end with the division between use value (as matter of developing

understandingandgeneratingknowledge)andexchangevalue(thegradefor

which one pays via fees,1 time invested in learning rather than leisurely

enjoyments etc. and the outcome that can later be exchanged on the labour

market).

1 Especiallythefactofpaymentoffeescontributestoorevenevokestheinflationofhighmarks.


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Ofcourse,thisisusuallyalsoreflectedinthemethodologicalquestionsapplied

bystudentsandthedefinitionoftheobjectoftheanalysischosenassubjectof

their assignments. And furthermore it is always a matter of determining the

subjectofanalysis.

III.

Thelinkbetweenthetwo,objectandsubjectofanalysis,isgivenbytheultimate

linktopractice.So,anyquestionisaboutrelationsofthefollowingdimensions.

Individualsrelatingtothemselvesas SelbstbestimmungandSelbstbezug.Reflexivity frequently used in this context as English term is actually

goingfurther,consideringalreadythereflectionoftheselfwithinandin

relationtoagivencontext

General social others in mutual relations the allgemeine und diffuseSozialbeziehungen,wherethemutualcharacterdoesbynomeansimply

equalityofpower.

Asideremarkmayenlightenusabit:theEnglishtermrelationalready

referstothecloselinktorelative:kinship.ThisisevenstrongerinItalian

wherewehavetranslationsandsynonymsasrelazione/relazioni,legame,

parente/parentaleetc.;whereastheFrench relation seesthemexplicitly

asmatterexistingentrechoses,personnes,pays).

Class relationships and relations between social strata Klassen- undSchichtbeziehungenasspecifiedrelations,actuallyspecificallydefiningthe

generalsocialother,basedondifferentcriteria.

Emededdnessinnaturalenvironments,alwaysbeingamatterofasocio-environmentUmweltbeziehungenundEinbettungen.

IV.

Lookingnowatrecentdevelopmentsmaycomeacrossasadisconnected,andit

mayseemtobefar-fetchedtodrawalinebetweenmarksofstudentsessaysand

thefloodsthatafflictedlargepartsofEurope.Thelinkisgivenbythematterof

streamlining,straightening lines. It isnot leastaboutthereduction ofvaluein

termsofasimplifiedcalculability.Attheendofthedaythismeansnothingelse


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thandisjoiningsubjectandobjectandfurthermorethedifferentinherentfacets

ofeach.Inotherwordsitisaboutthedissolutionoftotalities.

V.Ingeneral,muchoftodayssocialpolicyresearchisbasedon twofundamental

flaws/limitations.

Ontheonehandwemayfindafundamentallyandprincipallynormativeapproach

or we may find an equally fundamentally, though not necessarilyprincipallyinstitutionalistapproach.

AnexampleforthefirstisarecentspeechbytheIrishPresident,addressingthe

EuropeanParliament.Alengthyquotemayshowhisapproach.

- Schuman, who was aware of it, reached back to recall the early

monastic perigrinatio and declared Columbanus to be the patron

saint of all those who now seek to build a united Europe.

- The Schuman meeting, and the others which followed it, assisted

by such as Jean Monnet, was responding to near and terrible

events. But we should never forget, and I emphasize it today, that in

their response they recognized its immense value, and drew on, the

rich scholarship, philosophy, moral instincts and generous impulses

of European thought as they sought, not only to replace war with

peace, but more importantly, to construct a vision of Europes

people working together in an inclusive way. It was not any abstract

construction. It was a practical proposal drawn from the head,

propelled by the heart, and uniting economy and ethics in its

aspiration.

(Higgins, Michael D., 2013: Towards a European Union of the

Citizens. Adress to the European Parliament, Strasbourg,

Wednesday, 17th April,

2013http://www.president.ie/speeches/address-by-president-

michael-d-higgins-towards-a-european-union-of-the-citizens-


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european-parliament-strasbourg-wednesday-17th-april-2013-2/ -

10/05/2013)

An example for the second though not a strictly institutionalist but more

economisticapproachcanbetakenfromthe ForewordoftheUNCTADReport

bytheTaskForceonSystemicIssuesandEconomicCooperation.Weread:

The global deleveraging that first hit the world economy in mid-

2007 and that accelerated in autumn 2008 could not have been

possible without the rare coincidence of a number of market failures

and triggers, some reflecting fundamental imbalances in the global

economy and others specific to the functioning of sophisticatedfinancial markets. Chief among these systemic factors were the

full-fledged deregulation of financial markets and the increased

sophistication of speculation techniques and financial engineering.

Other determinants were also at play, particularly the systemic

incoherence among the international trading, financial and

monetary systems, not to mention the failure to reform the global

financial architecture. Most recently, the emergence of new and

powerful economic actors, especially from the developing countries,

without the accompanying reform needed in the framework

governing the world economy, accentuated that incoherence.

(Report by the UNCTAD Secretariat Task Force on Systemic Issues

and Economic Cooperation, Foreword: ix)

The latter,however, ischaracterisedbya fundamental tension:asmuchaswe

arefocussingonstructuralandformalisedlimitations,wearealsoconfrontedwith the need to go actually beyond the normative claim, looking for the

underlyingmomentsthataredeterminingwhatwesee.However,assuchthese

determinants also allow developing the understanding of structures and

processes.


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VI.

Onlythementioningofcatchwordsofthecommonlyusedapproacheshastodo

sufficehere:

Webersviewonidealtypes Marxdeterminationofsocietalandsociallaws Foucaultsspecificinterpretationofconstructivism APhanresianapproachissurelynotcommonorevenknownhowcould

it,beingherepresentedasinspirationtakingfromaseriesofthreesmall

childrens books I wrote (Herrmann,Peter: Phanresia. Geschichten vom

Anders-Sein und von den Gegensaetzen; With Illustrations by Franziska

Herrmann; Bremen: Europaeischer Literaturverlag, 2010 (2nd. Edition);

Phanresias Geschichten von der Freundschaft. Ein Kinderbuch; With

Illustrations by Franziska Herrmann; Bremen: Europaeischer

Literaturverlag, 2010; Das Grosse Zelt; With Illustrations by Franziska

Herrmann;Bremen:EuropaeischerLiteraturverlag,2010;alsoDiaryfrom

a Journey into another World. Diaries against nationalism, inspired by

trying to overcome personal resentments; with Illustrations by Kerstin

Walsh Europaeischer Hochschulverlag;2012anddifferent sociotainment-

contributionsonhttp://rozenbergquarterly.com).

Thisisabouttheuseofafantasyasmeansofacreativeapproachnotto

constructrealitybuttouseformsofdifferentcontextualisationasmeans

ofdevelopingunderstanding.Inactuallyfactitisamethodofadialectical

de-andre-constructiveapproach.

With this reference to all the various relationswehavealso a framework foranalysingcomplexrealitiesasmatterof

structure action process aims/objectives


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Mind, that aims and objectives are mentioned at the end. Though it is

impossible to determine a final rank between the four, the reason for the

sequenceisthatwearestartingwiththeconditions,elevatingtotherefinement

ofaimsbyouractionbywhichwestartchange:history(andtheknowledgeofit,subsequentlythepossibleexantecontrol)asactiveprocess.Still,attheendwe

aredealingwithrelationality,eachoftheindividualmomentsbeingbeginning,

endandfinalpointwhichisthestartofanewbeginning.

One important challenge is for any research to carefully consider this

relationalityofcourse,inpracticethiscanonlymeanreferringespeciallytothe

points of disruption. And: streamlining requires not least building dams and

bridgeswherenecessaryandappropriate.

VII

Two common matters in economics are the ceteris paribus formula and the

functionofproduction,thelatterreading

Y = ALK

saying

Production equals factor productivity multiplied by labour input

defined by output elasticity multiplied by capital defined by output

elasticity

However, both are highly questionable, as they are actually not allowing

analysing concrete realities. In order to enable us doing so, reference will

usefullybemadetotheconceptoftheModeofProduction.Wecandefinineits

follows:

The method of producing the necessities of life. The Mode of

Production is the unity of the productive forces and the relations of

production. Production begins with the development of its

determinative aspect the productive forces which, once they

have reached a certain level, come into conflict with the relations of


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production within which they have been developing. This leads to an

inevitable change in the relations of production, since in the

obsolete form they cease to be indispensable condition of the

production process. In its turn, the change in the relations of

production, which means the substitution of the new economic basis

for the old one, leads to more less rapid change in the entire society.

Therefore, the change in the Mode of Production comes about not

through peoples volition, but by virtue of the correspondence

between the productive relations to the character and level of

development of the productive forces. Due to this, the development

of society takes the form of the natural historical change of socio-

economic formations. Conflict between the productive forces and

the relations of production is the economic basis of social

revolution.

(http://www.marxists.org/glossary/terms/m/o.htm 09/06/2013)

Thelatteralsoandimportantlyandincreasinglyincludesthequestionofreach

andscope.

Thisneedstobelinkedtocapitalism,territorialisationandde-territorialisation

asfwhichSteinberghighlights

the territorial state emerged concurrent with the deterritoriali-

zation of political economy and geographical imagination

(Steinberg, P. E., 2009: Sovereignty, Territory, and the Mapping of

Mobility: A View from the Outside. Annals of the Association of

American Geographers 99[3]: 467495: here: 468).

Of special interest is here a point highlighted by Alex Callinicos in his book on

Imperialism and Global Political Economy (Callinicos, Alex, 2009/2010:

Imperialism andGlobalPolitical Economy; Cambridge: Polity).Looking atmore

recent structural developmentsand the role of statepolitics in the context of

geopoliticalshifts,hestatesinhisconclusionthat


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the simultaneous operation of both economic and geoplotical

determinations introduces a dagree of indeterminancy into the

formation of state policy, one that has the merit of allowing some

free play to other dimensions of the social. For example, scope is

allowed for ideology plainly a key topic, given the imoportance of

a Wilsonian conception of a global liberal capitalist order in

shaping US foreign policy over the past century. It is here also

perhaps that the issues higlighted by the so-called neo-Gramscian

school in international relations the effort by an actual or aspiring

hegemonic power culturally and politically to integrate the ruling

classses of other states might find some purchase.

(ibid.: 15)

The consideration of this tensional linkage between political and economic

dimensionissurelyacomplexoneandhastoberevisitedinthelightofthenew

movesofglobalisation.Importantlywehavetonoticetheroleofspaceandwith

thisthecomplexinterrelationshipbetweensocio-economic,politicalandnatural

conditions.Wecanunderstandthedifferentapproachestowardsdevelopment

onlyagainstsuchbackground.

Presumptions that are generally underlying the analysis of definitions of the

objectives are captured by the following main approaches dealing with this

issue:

Growth ashighlighted by Rostowasa general pattern of development,characterisedbyfivestages;

Stability,anorientationclaimedbyGalbraithasnecessityoftheday; Dcroissance, amore or less recent topic, brought forward in different

waysandwithdifferentfacetssomemilestonesmarkingthisdebateare

the work by the Club of Rome (since 1969), the work by the World

CommissiononEnvironmentandDevelopment(WCED commonlyknown

as Brundtland commission) (since 1983) and the debates on Human

Development (1990) as well as Human Security (especially 1994); the


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latter are of special interest as they actually aim on reconceptualising

growth;

Static society as proposal brought forward by Mills for the developedsocietyandthoughinadifferentinterpretationalsotrailedbyKeynesandexpressedbypointingonhigherculturalandnon-materialneedsas

theessenceoflifewhichcouldbetakencareofafterreachingacertain

levelofgeneralwealth:

The day is not far off when the economic problem will take the back

seat where it belongs, and the arena of the heart and the head will

be occupied or reoccupied, by our real problems / the problems of

life and of human relations, of creation and behavior and religion.

(http://thinkexist.com/quotes/john_maynard_keynes/ - 17/06/2013)

Finally,freedom can be added as orientation pursued by Hegelian andMarxian thinking and differing fundamentally from the others by

referring to the aim of development and thus soci(et)al practice

(output) instead of accepting a teleologically given aim which is

concretisedbythemeansofachievingthem(input).2

VIII3

The following presents a kind of analytical tool that allows understanding

welfaresystemsascomplexpolitical-economicsystems.Bydrawingon

envisagedpatternsofgrowth(s.matrix3) thewaysofgeneratingvalue(s.matrix4) resourcesthatarestandingbehindthegenerationofvalue(s.matrix5) and finally the socio-political system and the inherent claims on

sovereignty(s.matrix6)

wearriveatananalyticalschemepresentedinmatrix1 andactuallyconsisting

offoursub-schemes,(presentedinmatrix3,matrix4,matrix5andmatrix6).

2 Ofcourse,alloftheseapproachesdonotexistinpurecontradistinction.Thereareespeciallyissuesinthelastthree

approachesthatdeservecloserdebateintermsofoverlapsandmutualstimulation.3 SeeforthefollowingalreadyrecentpostingsintheWilliamThompsonBlog.


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resourcereference

value

generatio

n

patternsof

growth

socio-politicalsystemandsovereignty

matrix1:welfaresystemanalyticaltool

Each of these schemes will only be presented without major elaboration.

Importantis,however,toconsiderinadvancethatthecoreissuearoundwhich

all thesedimensions evolve is control in theunderstanding ofpowerwhich

itselfisunderstoodasmatterofabilitytoactorHandlungsfhigkeit.Itiscoined

bydifferentpointsofreference,characterisedontheonehandbytheobjectof

controlandontheotherhandbythebasicmodeofproductionwhichactsasa

kind of counterpoint as we know it from baroquemusic. A rough guide is

presentedinmatrix2.

capitalistsocieties non-capitalistsocieties

controlofmeansofproduction

controlofprocessesofproduction

controlofproducts

controlofthedistributionof

products

matrix2:dimensionsofcontrol

Actuallythe followinghas tobe treatedwithspecialcautionasin theonecase

the term development is misleading as long as we follow the mainstream

understanding of it. The answer has to be sought by differentiating between

qualitativeandquantitativegrowth.Thisiscloselylinkedtothedistinctionmade

earlier, namely between use value and exchange value. Whereas the latter iscloselylinkedtotheconceptofexponentialgrowth, thefirstisbyanymeansa


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matter of defining the object of development in different terms, namely as

practice of permanently re-balancing and equilibrising the different facets of

relationalityastheyhadbeenoutlinedinthebeginningofsectioniii.Takenfrom

here an implicit reference is made to set use value as ultimate goal, linkingcompetitiontoenhancingtheusevalueratherthanincreasingitssupersession

byanabstractexchangevalueasarithmeticunit.

autocentricdevelopment extraverteddevelopment

relativeeco

nomic

sustainab

ility

competitiveness

matrix3:PatternsofGrowth

Coming then to the question of the generation of value, it is first useful to

remember the Marxian distinction between two departments that are

constitutive for the overall structuration of economic processes, department I

producingmeansofproduction,departmentIIproducingmeansofconsumption.

OnotheroccasionsIemphasisedthatweshouldespeciallytodaynotforget Rosa

LuxemburgselaborationinherworkonTheAccumulationofCapital(Luxemburg,

Rosa,1913:The Accumulation ofCapital.Translated from the German byAgnes

Schwarzschild. With an Introduction of Joan Robinson; London: Routledge and

KeganPaul,1951).Shestates

[w]e ought to add a further department, that of production of the

means of exchange, to the other two large departments of social

production [those of means of production (I) and of consumer goods


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(II)]. It is, indeed, a characteristic feature of this third department

that it serves neither the purposes of production nor those of

consumption, merely representing social labour in an

undifferentiated commodity that cannot be used.

(ibid.: 99)

FurthermoreIsuggestedgoingasstepfurther,introducing

a department IV that produces in particular though not solely by

providing services the social as distincted, i.e. externalised and

separated are[a] of existence. Altering Rosa Luxemburgs

formulation we may say that it is, indeed, a characteristic feature of

this fourth department that it serves neither the purposes of

production nor those of consumption, nor does it represent social

labour in an undifferentiated commodity that cannot be used.

Instead it is the representation of a quasi-independent area of

presentation: on the one hand as re-presentation of virtuality and

on the other hand as presentation of the concealed values:

whereas the early realisation and presentation had been based on

status from where it moved to contract and later to the fluctuation of

the marketised realisation and presentation, it seems to move from

there to design of an arbitrarily designed individual.

(Herrmann, Peter, 2012: Rights Developing Ownership by

Linking Control over Space and Time. Writings on Philosophy and

Economy of Power Vol. 2; Bremen: EHV: 49 f.)

With this inmind, we can gain an understanding of the different drivers ofproduction,presentedinthefollowingmatrix4.


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high-value

productionfoundedininformational

labour

high-volumeproductionbasedinlow-costlabour

redundant

producers,

reduced

ondevaluedlabour

productionofraw

materialfoundedin

naturalresources

matrix5:ResourceReference

Finallywereturntothequestionofthesocio-politicalsystemandsovereignty.

Acceptingtherelativeindependenceofthepoliticalsphere,wehavetohighlight

neverthelessitscloseinterlockingwiththeeconomictermsofthestructuration

ofsocietybuilding.Inthefollowingmatrix6thisisexpressedbyreferencetothe

keyinstrumentsofsteering,namelytwodimensionsofmonetarypolicyonthe

onehandandmechanismsofsocietalintegrationontheotherhand.


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monetarypolicyi.w.s.as

meansofsocialintegration

monetarypolicyi.w.s.asmeansofsecuring

internationalsovereignty

competitiven

ess

tra

ditionality

matrix6:Socio-PoliticalSystemandSovereignty

Anotherdimensionofthisquestionmaybeevenmoreimportantinthepresent

context of the overall conceptualisation of a theory of social policy. It is the

questionofanintegratedapproachthatlinksthequestionofwelfaresystemsto

the question of different capitalist modes of accumulation rather than

elaboratingonthis,referenceisonlymadetootherworksbythepresentauthor

(Herrmann,Peter,2012:SocialState,WelfareStateandThen?WheretoMovefrom

theWelfarestate?ACooperativeStateofSustainableSociabilityasPerspectivefor

Innovation; in: Heiskanen, Johanna/Henry, Hagen/Hytinkoski, Pekka/Kpp,

Tapani(eds.):NewOpportunitiesforCo-operatives:NewOpportunitiesforPeople.

Proceedings of the 2011 ICA Research Conference, 24-27 August, 2011, Mikkeli,

Finland; Helsinki: University of Helsinki. Ruralia Institute, 2012: 295- 313;

Herrmann, Peter, forthcoming: Poverty of the Welfare State or: Poverty:

ConstructionDe-constructionandaLostBattle).

IX

Asanoutlineforsocialpolicyandthetheoryofsocialpolicythefollowing

maybeuseful.Beforecapitalismbutalsoreachingintoit,actuallystillbeinga

relevantinpracticeeventodaywefindtheearlyclientelistsystemsofsupportand provision, not least based on religiously motivated good-doing (though


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includingpunishmentandstrictexclusion),andthemutualhelpoftheguilds.Of

coursealliscloselyboundintosystemsoffamilyandkinshiprelations.

Capitalism,now,lackedanyofsuchsupportsystemsorevenmotivationsforany

social support systems andwas thus extremely vulnerable. Nevertheless, the

lackofsuchamotivationistrueonlyontheindividuallevel.Ascapitalistsociety,

thissystemclearlyshowedaneedanditwasthis,whatthecapitaliststatehadto

deliveraspoliticalsystem,bridgingtheever-wideninggapbetweentheclasses.

Seeminglyneutral,theaimwastomaintainthehierarchyandexploitationofone

classbytheother.Inparticularfivefunctionsofsocialpolicycanbeseenagainst

thisbackground.Thestandardcategorisationofthesemainfunctionsisgrasped

underthefollowingheadings

protective distributive productivity societalpolitics re-distribution

X

Looking more closely at the perspectives for social policy from the earlier

remarks, the first and most important point is about taking the term with

caution.Thereisnosuchthingassocialpolicyinstrictusensu,i.e.as

policy academicdisciplineorideology

initsownright.

Thisisatleastvalidifwethinkaboutscienceasmatterofembracingrealityof

essentials,notasinterpretationofthephenomenology5ofcurrentexistence.This

meansdifferentiatingbetweenessenceandappearance.

5 Mind,thisisnotaboutphenomenologyasmethodology.


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Second,wefacenowthefundamentalproblemswithsocialpolicyresearchas

theyhadbeenoutlinedabove,namely

thenormativist thestucturalist/institutionalist

cage.Bothareconsequencesofanartificialseparationofpartsofthesocialfrom

the social as complex relational-interactional system of (re-)production. The

definitionthatisproposedherecomesfromthesocialqualitytheory.

In the social quality approach the social is an outcome of the

interaction between people (constituted as actors) and their

constructed and natural environment. Its subject matter refers to

peoples interrelated productive and reproductive relationships. In

other words, the constitutive interdependency between processes of

self-realisation and processes governing the formation of collective

identities is a condition for the social and its progress or decline.

(van der Maesen, Laurent/Walker, Alan: Social Quality and

Sustainability; in: 260)

Ofcourse,suchseparationisnotasimplemistakeorexpressionofsomekindof

politicalvoluntarism.Itisinactualfacttheultimateconsequenceoffollowing

societalpractice.

Assuch,itlinkssubsequentlyandultimatelytothecapitalistmodeofproduction

anditsfundamentaldistinctionbetweenandseparationof

use value and with this the institutionalist approach towards socialpolicyand

exchangevalueandwiththisthenormativistapproachtosocialpolicy.

XI

Atthispointwemayhesitate,inparticularwhenit comesto thesecondpoint:

suggesting that norms are underlying social policy is usually understood as

positive orientation, thinking about norms as matter of morality, being


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fundamentallyconcernedwiththeideaofagoodsociety,frequentlyreferringto

Aristotelianthinkinginaverybroadunderstading.However,thisoverlooks

thatAristotelianthinking,andhisunderstandingofagoodsociety,hadbeenverymuchgrounded ina specificunderstandingofwhateconomy

andthe(re-)productionofdailylifeisabout

thattheconditionsofthateconomydonotexistanymore thatAristotelianthinkinghadbeenbasedinanddependingonstructural

exclusion

that the reasoning today is in objective terms (i.e. as matter of thedevelopment of the productive forces) and equally in terms of the

referencedvaluesdifferent(linkingbacktothesecondpointofthislist).

Itisalsoimportantthatcapitalistvalueaseconomiccategoryisnotanentirely

arithmeticcategory.Inotherwords,itcannotevenbereducedonbeingobjective

insuchareducedmeaning.

On the one hand and most fundamentally the value theory is based on the

calculabilityofthecostpriceforanycommodity.Anditiseasytoacceptevenby

mainstream economics that also labour has to be assessed in this light. The

difficulty however is to go the little but decisive step further, accepting that

under certain conditions (namely the conditions of a capitalist mode of

production)notlabourassuchistherelevantcategorybutlabourpowerwhich

degenerateditselftobeingacommodity.Inthisformofgeneralisedcommodity

productionwefindinitsextremeform,i.e.thatoffetishismthat

the social relations between their private labours appear as whatthey are, i.e. they not appear as direct social relations between

persons in their work, but rather as material relations between

persons and social relations between things.

(Marx, Kapital, 1867: The Capital. Volume I)

However,sayingthatthisistheextremeformmeansthatthereisonanother

level alwayssome residual socialmeaning involved we can easily see these

whenthedeterminationofthevalueinparticularofthelabourpowermarksthe


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importance of the historical-moral element and the assertiveness of the

employees in their demands for higher wages, improvement of working

conditionsetc.(partofitnotleastregulatedwithintheframeworkagreements

[Manteltarifvertrge]).

Otherfactorsareforinstance

power, including the acceptance of inequality preceding and resultingfromequalexchange

thoughthecostpriceisthedecisivemomentwhenitcometodeterminingthe economic value, the also relevant moments are market value (as

matter of supply anddemand), the character of positional goods (onlyindirectlyamatterofcost-price)andartificiallyinfluencedcomparative

advantages(alsoamattercompetitivepower)

inaddition,therearesomesub-marketsthatareinveryparticularandpeculiarwayspronetonon-economicdeterminations;twoexamples:(1)

artsand(2)informaleconomyetc.

a fourth factor has to be added though it is already in some waysintegrated in/consequence of the previously mentioned factors: theinternaldimensionofeconomicvalueisonlyrelevantassuchandwith

thisstronglydependingontheactual scopeof internality, ortheother

wayround:itisnotleastdefinedbytheactuallyachievedexternalisation

ofcosts.

Also andmost fundamentally the category economic value is abstract,disconnectedfromtherealeconomywesawthisonanextremelevel

reflectedinrecentdebatesthatstatedaseparation/juxtapositionofrealandfinanceeconomy.

Comingfromhere,thefollowingdimensionsofthesocio-economicpowercanbe

capturedbywayofasummary:

(1)Productionandreproductionofdailylifepractice,asdailyactionandsetof

activities,issocialinthesenseofinteraction

(2) This interactionas (re-)productiverelation has a social policy dimensioninsofarwearedealingwithaprocessofstructurationofpowerrelations


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(3)This includesfurthermorethe definitionofneedsandwants. Ineconomic

theorythishadbeenissuedinvariousways,inparticularbySayandthelawof

demand-supply-balanceandthefactthateverysupplycreatessufficientdemand.

It is worth while to remark, that a product is no sooner created,

than it, from that instant, affords a market for other products to the

full extent of its own value. When the producer has put the finishing

hand to his product, he is most anxious to sell it immediately, lest its

value should diminish in his hands. Nor is he less anxious to dispose

of the money he may get for it; for the value of money is also

perishable. But th only way of getting rid of money is in the

purchase of some product or other. Thus, the mere circumstance of

the creation of one product immediately opens a vent for other

products.

(Say, Jean-Baptiste, 1880: A Treatise on Political Economy; or the

Production, Distribution, and Consumption of Wealth; Translated

from the Fourth Edition of the French, by C. R. Prinsep, M. A. with

Notes by the Translator. New American Edition. Containing a

Translation of the Introduction, and Additional Notes by Clement C.Biddle, LL. D.; Philadelphia: Claxton, Remsen & Haffelfinger:

1880; Internet Edition: Kitchener/Ontario: Batoche Books: 57;

http://www.efm.bris.ac.uk/het/say/treatise.pdf - 10/06/2013)

Furthermore

Money performs but a momentary function in this double exchange;

and when the transaction is finally closed, it will always be found,that one kind of commodity has been exchanged for another.

(Ibid.)

meansthatfromtheretherelevantdemandisalsodefined.

(4)Atthesametimefromherethewayofansweringneedsanddemandsisalso

defined.Twodimensionsareofspecialrelevance:

thedefinitionofresponsibilities(public,private,individual,social)


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thedefinitionofsociallyacceptedinequalitywhichmeansnotleasttodefineneedsandwantsaspublic,private,individual,social

XIIWe arrive at the point of a separation of political issues in several regards,

distinct issues, though closely linked to each other and also linked in/by

contradictions.

publicprivate socialindividual politicspolitiespolicies

social economic cultural environ-mental

generallivingtogether

real finance consumedculture

highculture

production,consumption,distribution,exchange

socialprovision socialprotection/insurance

everydaysculture

matrix7

It isobvious that contingenciesarenotamatter of options in termsofdepending on the situation and context, but a matter of a horizon of

optionsthatisallowedwithinaspecificcontext.

XIII

In conclusio, and coming back to the title: Methodological considerations for

TheoryofSocialPolicy/SocialPolicyResearchattheInterfaceofPoliticalEconomy

andPoliticsofSocialOrder,wemaypointoutthefollowingasbeingofparticular

relevance:

(i) Good social policy is an economic orientation that understands the

economicprocessassomethingthatisgenuinelyaboutthesocial,i.e.


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outcome of the interaction between people (constituted as actors)

and their constructed and natural environment. Its subject matter

refers to peoples interrelated productive and reproductive

relationships. In other words, the constitutive interdependency

between processes of self-realisation and processes governing the

formation of collective identities is a condition for the social and its

progress or decline.

(van der Maesen, Laurent J.G/Walker, Alan, 2012: Social Quality

and Sustainability; in: van der Maesen, Laurent J.G/Walker, Alan

[eds.]: Social Quality. From Theory to Indicators; Houndsmills:

Palgrave 260)

Importantly, social policy is also and not least about defining objectives of

production,thushasalsomajorconsequencesfortheunderstandingofwhatthe

labourmarket,employmentandemploymentpoliciesisabout.

We may well capture this in social quality terms as matter of societal

development.

(ii) In differentiated, modern societies, social policy is in particular about

dealingwithbrokenlinksofsocietalintegrity.Assuchitisverymuchaboutrepairing: compensating for losses emerging from bad economics and side

effects,securinglegitimacyetc.Thisposition,referringtotheconsequencesof

modernisation, poses explicitly against Ulrich Becks position speaking of a

uncompleted,halbiertemodernity.

Insocialqualitytermswemayspeaknowaboutthematterofinstitutions.

NB:Hereitisworthwhiletolookat leastbrieflyat thequestionofcharismatic

leadership.Ofcourse,themeaningofcharismaticleadershipanditlegitimacycanbedenied.Andinstrictusensuitdoesnotplayarolewithintheframeworkof

a completely rationalisedworld. However, its denial is about denying the fact

that even the strictly rational understanding of the world is actually still

dependingona remainder of irrationalities. It isaboutan irrational residuum

thatexistsinleadershipasitdoesalsoexistwithinreligion.Sure,thisdoesnot

sayanythingintermsofthemeaningandevenlegitimacyitisonlyreferringto

acceptingarationalanalysisoftheirrationalityoftheworld.Cumgranosaliswe


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may actually apply to the political and managerial level a point that Rosa

Luxemburgmadeinrespectoftheeconomicanalysis.Shecontends:

The workers and capitalists themselves cannot possibly realise that

part of the surplus value which is the be capitalised. Therefore, the

realisation of the surplus value for the purposes of accumulation is

an imppossible task for a society which consists solely of workers

and capitalists.

(Luxemburg, Rosa, 1913: The Accumulation of Capital. Translated

from the German by Agnes Schwarzschild. With an Introduction by

Joan Robinsom; London: Routledge And Kegan Ltd., 1951: 350)

Andsheconcludesthataccumulation

requires as its prime condition that there should be starta of

buyers outside capitalist society.

(ibid.: 352)

Translating this into a political andmanagerial perspective on leadership,we

may say that rational approaches are important for times of stability, timesduring which the historical-political process determines with it specific

rationality the societalmovements. However, in situations of upheaval, threat

andinnovationsomeformofcharismaticauthoritywillatleasthavetobelinked

with the prevailing pre-dominantly rational structure of (to useMaxWebers

terminology)legitimaterule.ActuallyWeberhadbeenverymuchawareofthis

ongoingresidualbutessentialmeaningofdifferentformsoflegitimaterule.

(iii)Socialpolicyshouldnotleastbeunderstoodasvisionaryinitsorientation,

dealingwithpursuingnon-for-profitoptions,usevalueclaimsetc.pp.Thisisnot,

however,aboutnormativeclaimsbutaboutbringingthepotentialstotheforeas

they are needed in themove towards a newmode of production as defined

earlier.

Referringanothertimetothesocialqualityapproachthisisaboutthedimension

ofcommunities.


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(iv) Here we may look at a final dimension of social policy as matter of

permanently balancing and redefining the relationship between society and

community,statusandcontractetc.

In social quality terms, this is surely a matter of both, societal development,institutions and communities (see on the latter Herrmann, Peter, 2009:

Gemeinschaft der Gesellschaft die Suche nach einem Definitionsrahmen fr

Prekaritt; in: Hepp, Rolf (ed.): The Fragilisation of Socio-structural

Components/Die Fragilisierung soziostruktureller Komponenten; Bremen:

Europaeischer Hochschulverlag: 76-107). Here it is seen as a core issue of

enabling,empoweringindividualstofullyparticipateintheoverallprocessof

societaltogetherness:inallaspectsandonalllevels.

XII

Wemayfinallyhaveabrieflookatthecitizenship.Thestandardapproachhad

been famously brought forward by T.H. Marshall, applying a historical

perspective,proposingthedevelopmentofcivilrightstopoliticalrightstosocial

rights(seeMarshall,TomH.,1950:CitizenshipandSocialClass;in:Citizenshipand

SocialClass;TomH.Marshall/TomBottomore;Londonetaltera:PlutoPress,1992:

8-17).Insomewayitcanbesaidthatheapproachestheproblemfromthewrong

end,puttingthecartbeforethehorse.6Insteadofstartingfromtheproductionof

reallifeofrealpeople,hereplicatestheconstructionofpeopleaccordingtothe

development of the bourgeois state as it is suggested by themost important

philosophers and theorisers in this areas as for instance Hobbes, Locke,

Montesquieu, Rousseau et altera. At the centre is the abstract market citizen

whosecivilrightsareactuallytherightsofthebourgeoistoengageineconomicactivities.AdecisiveexampleforthisistheclaimbyJohn Lockeforwhomthe

ultimatecivicfreedomistherightofproperty.

Ofcourse,thismeansultimatelythatwefindwiththisorientationoneconomic

propertyrightsasfundamentalcivillibertyaspecificinterpretationofrightsas

relationtonatureinthewidestsense.Actuallyitisaboutsocietysrelationwith

naturewhichisitselfbasedintwodimensions:

6 Thisisofcourseaconsequencethatactuallytherightsquestioninbourgeoissocietiesisstandingonitshead,rather

thanbeingbasedintherealdevelopmentofsocietal(re-)production.


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themodeofproduction thecontrollability, i.e. thesocialand individualpoweras it isnot least

definedbyreligiousandideologicalattitudes.

OnanotheroccasionIapproachedthistogetherwith YitzhakBerman(Berman,

Yitzhak/Herrmann,Peter, 2012:Systems ofLaw and SocialQuality; in: Social &

Public Policy Review; Social & Public Policy Review, 2012; 6, 1, pp. 20-39 -

http://www.uppress.co.uk/socialpolicy_pdf/Berman%20herman.pdf), proposing

thefollowingdimensionsanddevelopments:

ApproachtoReality ApproachtoLaw

Immediateappropriationofnature Spontaneousnaturallawaslawofnature(environmentallaw)

Successivedivisionoflabour Divinelaw

Successivedivisionofcontrol Canonlaw7

Emergenceofsystemsofcommunalproduction8

Commonlaw

Heavilyexchangebasedeconomiesandsocietiesemphasisingtheimportanceofcivicnessasdistinctarea

BeginningwiththeLexDuodecimTabularumtheRomanlawandthelatercivillaw

Prospectedsocialqualitysociety GlobalHumanRightsApproach

matrix8:RecognitionRealityRegulation

(ibid.: 35)

Thiscannotbeelaboratedatthispoint.Importantistofindagainananalytical

approachthatrecognisesthedifferentperspectivesonrightsandsubsequently

onlawnotassomethingemergingfromdifferentmoralandnormativesystems

buttheotherwayroundlocalisestheminthecontextofthedevelopmentofthe

productive forces and the mode of production. This in the given context

importantinordertochallengeustorethinkaswellthequestionofthemeaning

of rights-basedapproaches, overcoming the highly individualised concept and

limitationsofWesternjurisprudence(seeinthiscontextlectureonSocialQuality:

7 Thoughinawiderunderstanding,aslawofreligiousbodies/institutions8 Though well going hand in hand with a separation of power and control, thus including feudal and especially

capitalistsystems


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Rethinking Social Policy and Economics as Mode of Social Thinking; Shanghai

2013).

XIIIAcceptingthischallenge,alittlebitoffoulingtheownnestisattheendmost

appropriate, looking at academia and a rather fundamental or structural

conservative attitude towards generating knowledge and academic

development,amatter that hadbeen already a long time nicely expressedby

HeinrichHeineinthealreadyquotedHarzreise.

Hinter Weende begegneten mir der Schfer und Doris. Dieses ist

nicht das idyllische Paar, wovon Gener singt, sondern es sind

wohlbestallte Universittspedelle, die wachsam aufpassen mssen,

da sich keine Studenten in Bovden duellieren, und da keine neuen

Ideen, die noch immer einige Decennien vor Gttingen Quarantaine

halten mssen, von einem spekulierenden Privatdocenten

eingeschmuggelt werden. ....... Dann und wann rollte auch Einspnner vorber, wohlbepackt mit

Studenten, die fr die Ferienzeit oder auch fr immer wegreisten. In

solch' einer Universittsstadt ist ein bestndiges Kommen und

Abgehn, alle drei Jahre findet man dort eine neue

Studentengeneration. Das ist ein ewiger Menschenstrom, wo eine

Semesterwelle die andere fortdrngt, und nur die alten Professoren

bleiben stehen in dieser allgemeinen Bewegung, unerschtterlich


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fest, gleich den Pyramiden gyptens nur da in diesen

Universittspyramiden keine Weisheit verborgen ist.

(Heine)

i Dr.phil(Bremen,Germany).StudiesinSociology(Bielefeld,Germany),Economics(Hamburg,Germany),Political

Science(Leipzig,Germany)andSocialPolicyandPhilosophy(Bremen,Germany).Since2013heissenioracademicattheEuropeanObservatoryforSocialQualitywhichisanewresearchunitatEURISPESinRome,Italy.HeisalsoadjunctprofessorattheUniversityofEasternFinland(UEF),DepartmentofSocialSciences(Kuopio,Finland),honoraryassociateprofessoratCorvinusUniversityinBudapest,FacultyofEconomics,DepartmentofWorldEconomyandvisitingprofessoratUniversityCollegeCork,SchoolofAsianStudies.HehadbeenteachingatseveralThirdLevelInstitutionsacrosstheEU;currentlycorrespondenttotheMaxPlanckInstituteforForeignandInternationalSocialLaw(Munich,Germany).HeholdspositionasforinstancethatofasenioradvisortotheEuropeanFoundationonSocialQuality(TheHague,Netherlands),memberoftheAdvisoryBoardofEURISPESInstitutodiStudiPolitici,EconomicieSociali,Rome,memberoftheScientificBoardanditscoordinationcommitteeofATTACAssociationpourlataxationdestransactionsfinancirespourlaideauxcitoyens,AssociateMemberoftheEurasianCenterforBigHistoryandSystemForecasting,LomonosowMoscowStateUniversity,Russia..Heheldvariouspositionsasvisitingprofessoratdifferentuniversities.HealsohadbeenresearchfellowatNationalTaiwanUniversity,Taipei;TheCairnsInstitute,JamesCookUniversity,Australia;VisitingScholar

atOrtaDoguTeknikniversitesi(ODTU),Ankara,Turkey;VisitingScholarattheMax-Planck-InstitutefrSozialrechtundSozialpolitik,Munich,Germany.HestartedhisworkinresearchingEuropeanSocialPolicyandinparticulartheroleofNGOs.HismaininterestshiftedoverthelastyearstowardsdevelopingtheSocialQualityApproachfurther,lookinginparticularintothemeaningofeconomicquestionsandquestionsoflaw.Helinkedthiswithquestionsonthedevelopmentofstateanalysisandthequestionofsocialservices.Onbothtopicshepublishedwidely.Memberofseveraleditorialboards;editorofthebookseriesAppliedSocialStudiesRecentDevelopments,InternationalandComparativePerspectives(NewYork,USA)andStudiesinComparativePedagogiesandInternationalSocialWorkandSocialPolicy(Bremen,Germany);peer-reviewingforseveraljournalsinthesocialareaandbookseries.

finland lecture summer 2013 notes

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