Gales, Streams, and Multipliers: Conceptual Metaphors and Theory Development in Business History

2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 320-339 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. DANIEL WADHWANI
Keyword(s):  
Economic History ◽  
Industrial Revolution ◽  
Theory Development ◽  
Creative Destruction ◽  
Historical Change ◽  
Business History ◽  
Conceptual Metaphors ◽  
Historical Interpretation ◽  
Intrinsic Form ◽  
The Relationship

Conceptual metaphors, like Galambos and Amatori’s “entrepreneurial multiplier,” play a pivotal but largely unexamined role in historical interpretation. They do this by allowing historians to see one set of historical associations or relationships in terms of another, more familiar, one. I highlight this interpretive role by comparing Galambos and Amatori’s construct to Joseph Schumpeter’s “gale of creative destruction” and Arthur Cole’s “entrepreneurial stream” as metaphors that attempt to explain the relationship between entrepreneurship and historical change. I also point out the risks that taken-for-granted metaphors can have in narrowing room for interpretation, and argue that reflexivity and playfulness are essential to keeping conceptual metaphors alive as interpretive devices. I conclude by suggesting that metaphors are an intrinsic form of theorizing in historical interpretation, and illustrate my argument by briefly examining “industrial revolution” as a construct in business and economic history.

scholarly journals New Issues in British Business History

1983 ◽  
Vol 57 (2) ◽  
pp. 165-174 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leslie Hannah
Keyword(s):  
Economic Theory ◽  
Public Relations ◽  
Economic History ◽  
Industrial Revolution ◽  
High Standard ◽  
Business History ◽  
High Quality ◽  
International Context ◽  
The Public ◽  
History Of

Business history has been a thriving academic industry in Britain for the last three decades. Following some pioneering case studies of Industrial Revolution entrepreneurs by the early giants of the discipline of economic history, the postwar generation has produced a series of high quality company histories. The first of these, published in 1954, was Charles Wilson's history of the Anglo-Dutch multinational Unilever, formed by a merger of Lever Brothers and Margarine Unie in 1929. Wilson's book set the pattern for a high standard of scholarship, resting on complete freedom of access to company archives, and for publication based on scholarly independence rather than the public relations needs of the commissioning organization. If some of its terms of reference now seem dated, and its framework of analysis somewhat unscientific, then that is an indication of the incentive Wilson provided for others to do better, particularly in the use of economic theory and of comparative analysis setting firms in their industrial or international context.

Business History and Economic History

1966 ◽  
Vol 26 (4) ◽  
pp. 407-417 ◽  
Author(s):  
Harold F. Williamson
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Nineteenth Century ◽  
Economic History ◽  
Academic Discipline ◽  
The United States ◽  
Business History ◽  
German Scholar ◽  
The Relationship

As Fritz Redlich has had occasion to point out, business history is neither of American nor of recent vintage–that interest in company histories which began on the Continent early in the nineteenth century had by 1900 prompted at least one prominent German scholar to suggest how a study of business might be developed into an academic discipline. What was new in the United States was the term “business history,” and what is more relevant for my comments in this paper were the circumstances that led to its emergence as a special field and the effect that this separation has had on the relationship between business history and economic history.

Financial Folly and Spain’s Black Legend

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mauricio Drelichman ◽  
Hans-Joachim Voth
Keyword(s):  
Seventeenth Century ◽  
Economic History ◽  
Military Power ◽  
Great Flexibility ◽  
Loan Contracts ◽  
Historical Tradition ◽  
Black Legend ◽  
Contractual Obligations ◽  
The Relationship

This epilogue argues that Castile was solvent throughout Philip II's reign. A complex web of contractual obligations designed to ensure repayment governed the relationship between the king and his bankers. The same contracts allowed great flexibility for both the Crown and bankers when liquidity was tight. The risk of potential defaults was not a surprise; their likelihood was priced into the loan contracts. As a consequence, virtually every banking family turned a profit over the long term, while the king benefited from their services to run the largest empire that had yet existed. The epilogue then looks at the economic history version of Spain's Black Legend. The economic history version of the Black Legend emerged from a combination of two narratives: a rich historical tradition analyzing the decline of Spain as an economic and military power from the seventeenth century onward, combined with new institutional analysis highlighting the unconstrained power of the monarch.

Anti-Ideology of Entrepreneurship as an Attribute of Entrepreneurial Projects

2020 ◽  
Vol 26 (8) ◽  
pp. 830-839
Author(s):  
E. Ya. Litau
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
Economic Activity ◽  
Creative Destruction ◽  
Innovative Activity ◽  
Entrepreneurial Activity ◽  
Methodological Principle ◽  
Historical Period ◽  
Professional Literature ◽  
Efficient System ◽  
The Relationship

Aim. The presented study examines and develops theoretical and methodological foundations that make it possible to distinguish innovative entrepreneurship among other economic phenomena.Tasks. The author identifies the specific features of entrepreneurship and its qualitative differences from other types of economic activity aimed at obtaining benefits, specifies the relationship between creative destruction and economic development, determines the attributes of innovative entrepreneurship.Methods. This study uses systematic analysis of professional literature on entrepreneurship to highlight the main attributes of entrepreneurial activity. The methodology of dialectical contradiction in its original Hegelian interpretation plays an important role in elaborating and substantiating the definition of entrepreneurship. The author considers innovative activity as creation of new values, which, according to the logic of dialectical development, destroy the old ones, triggering the process of economic development.Results. An approach to understanding the phenomenon of entrepreneurship is proposed, making it possible to distinguish this type of activity as significantly different from other types of economic activity, which may be externally similar but have different content. During the development of this approach, the concept of “anti-ideology” of entrepreneurship is introduced, which reflects the essence of innovative activity as a process of creative destruction. The necessary and sufficient attributes of entrepreneurial innovation are identified, making it possible to reflect the meaning of this phenomenon and verify this complex defining structural element in the system of economic relations. The study substantiates that the level of anti-ideology and public benefit can be used as criteria for assessing the significance of an entrepreneurial idea. A progressive model of anti-idea realization (PMA) is proposed based on the methodological principle. It can be used to develop an efficient system for evaluating startups within the framework of venture capitalism.Conclusions. Specification of the relationship between creative destruction and economic development is crucial to understanding the importance of innovative entrepreneurship. Each historical period creates its own demand for a specific type of entrepreneurs. The principle of anti-ideology, which lies at the heart of the PMA model, is key in identifying competitive commercial ideas, making it possible to focus resources and attention on projects that can make a significant contribution to economic development.

scholarly journals Does Respect Foster Tolerance? (Re)analyzing and Synthesizing Data From a Large Research Project Using Meta-Analytic Techniques

2021 ◽  
pp. 014616722110244
Author(s):  
Steffen Zitzmann ◽  
Lukas Loreth ◽  
Klaus Michael Reininger ◽  
Bernd Simon
Keyword(s):  
Regression Coefficient ◽  
Theory Development ◽  
High Status ◽  
Social Psychological ◽  
Way Of Life ◽  
Research Project ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Large Research ◽  
Existing Data

Our own prior research has demonstrated that respect for disapproved others predicts and might foster tolerance toward them. This means that without giving up their disapproval of others’ way of life, people can tolerate others when they respect them as equals (outgroup respect–tolerance hypothesis). Still, there was considerable variation in the study features. Moreover, the studies are part of a larger research project that affords many additional tests of our hypothesis. To achieve integration along with a more robust understanding of the relation between respect and tolerance, we (re)analyzed all existing data from this project, and we synthesized the results with the help of meta-analytic techniques. The average standardized regression coefficient, which describes the relationship between respect and tolerance, was 0.25 (95% confidence interval [CI] = [0.16, 0.34]). In addition to this overall confirmation of our hypothesis, the size of this coefficient varied with a number of variables. It was larger for numerical majorities than for minorities, smaller for high-status than for low-status groups, and larger for religious than for life-style groups. These findings should inspire further theory development and spur growth in the social-psychological literature on tolerance.

The Significance of Regional Studies for the Elaboration of National Economic History

1960 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 588-596 ◽  
Author(s):  
Henry W. Broude
Keyword(s):  
Economic Development ◽  
Economic History ◽  
Regional Differentiation ◽  
Regional Studies ◽  
National Economic ◽  
Methodological Problems ◽  
National Economic Development ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Point Of Departure

The purpose of this paper is to serve as a point of departure for discussion of the relationship of regional differentiation and growth to general economic development. In addition to touching on methodological problems, I hope to establish two specific points: (a) that the needs of economic history call for particular perspectives in delimiting regions, and (b) that study of regional interaction can provide insights in an understanding of national economic development.

Social Space and the Periodization of Economic History: A Case from Taiwan

1985 ◽  
Vol 27 (3) ◽  
pp. 531-561 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Steven Sangren
Keyword(s):  
Economic History ◽  
Social Space ◽  
Theoretical Orientation ◽  
World View ◽  
Rhetorical Strategies ◽  
Ideal Types ◽  
Common Value ◽  
The One ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Data Subject

Case studies in local economic history and organization conventionally employ either of two rhetorical strategies. In the first, a particular world view, theoretical orientation, or set of basic categories is assumed and forms the basis for organizing a description of a particular case; in the second, the facts or data are marshaled in an attempt to validate, authenticate, or test an explicitly stated theoretical position. Of course, these are ideal types, and many studies quite appropriately combine both. Progress is conceived as an outcome over time in which both kinds of study contribute to ever more elegant, encompassing, and parsimonious orderings of data. The nature of the relationship between theory, assumptions, world view, and so forth on the one hand, and data, subject, or facts on the other, transcends otherwise widely divergent arguments-for example, “Marxist,” “dependency,” “neoclassical,” and (more subtly) “substantivist.” In short, a common value, broadly “positivist,” informs most Western sociaI science discourse.

4IR and Right to Education in Nigeria: Synergybetween Legal Instruments and Stem Education

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 2286-2295
Author(s):  
Mariam Adepeju Abdulraheem-Mustapha
Keyword(s):  
Stem Education ◽  
Industrial Revolution ◽  
Research Collaboration ◽  
Legal Protection ◽  
Right To Education ◽  
Fourth Industrial Revolution ◽  
Science Technology ◽  
And Mathematics ◽  
Laws And Policies ◽  
The Relationship

Laws and policies have important roles to play in advancing the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) through Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) research in Nigeria. STEM education and knowledge brings about development by converging scholars across the world with recent research discoveries. In order for Nigeria to reap the maximum benefits from the 4IR, its legal system must come in line with the principles advanced by the 4IR. It is important to state that the laws which have been enacted before the contemporary era are inadequate and obsolete. Education (STEM education inclusive) which will benefit the most from thenewrevolution would demand new legal instrumentsthat are adequate and effective to cater for the legal and policy demands of the 4IR by bringing forth a more current and inclusive legal protection for all the relevant beneficiaries. Using doctrinal methodology, thispaperexamines4IR and right to education in Nigeria with a view to establishing the relationship between the legal instruments and STEM education with the objective of advancing the agenda of the relevance of all fields of education for the next generation.The paper is divided into six sections and the findings show that, education (STEM education inclusive) is bedeviled with many challenges andthe extant laws are inadequate to solve them.Thus, making the goal of 4IR unachievable in Nigeria. To reach the greatest dexterities in all works of life, the paper concludes by bringing the significance of laws and policies that wouldaccommodate free STEM education in secondary and tertiary school levels in order to answer the call for 4IR. It recommends research collaboration across STEM fields for integrated curriculum and an amendment of the Constitution. It also advocates for gender equality and investing more in STEM education for having a transformative shift in Nigeria for the purpose of achieving 4IR.

scholarly journals Technology and Geography in the Second Industrial Revolution: New Evidence from the Margins of Trade

2017 ◽  
Vol 77 (1) ◽  
pp. 39-89 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Huberman ◽  
Christopher M. Meissner ◽  
Kim Oosterlinck
Keyword(s):  
Productivity Growth ◽  
Industrial Revolution ◽  
New Products ◽  
Trade Costs ◽  
Belle Epoque ◽  
Belle Époque ◽  
New Evidence ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Second Industrial Revolution

Belle Époque Belgium recorded an unprecedented trade boom. Exploiting a new granular trade dataset, we find that the number of products delivered abroad and destinations serviced more than doubled in less than 40 years. To explain this remarkable achievement, we study the relationship between trade costs and the intensive and extensive margins of trade. The establishment of a foreign diplomatic network that lowered beachhead costs and enabled the entry of new products was an essential fact of the trade boom. Interestingly, the expansion in trade in certain sectors did not translate into faster productivity growth. We offer some explanations.

Economic Systems and Economic History

1965 ◽  
Vol 25 (4) ◽  
pp. 660-679
Author(s):  
Arthur Schweitzer
Keyword(s):  
Economic History ◽  
Economic Systems ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
Relationship Of ◽  
The Relationship

What is the relationship of economic history to the study of comparative economic systems? Perhaps the major contribution to thought on this subject has been made by Walter Eucken, whose ideas may be taken as the starting point for our discussion.

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