Table of contents
Prefaceix
PART I. THEORY, METHODOLOGY AND EPISTEMOLOGY7
Introduction9
2. The paradoxes of societal analysis. A review of the past and prospects for the future13
3. The diabolical dialectics of societal effects37
4. Societal or systems effects?57
5. Towards a relational approach to the study of variety in the situated creativity of economic actors71
6. The implications of ‘societal analysis’ for a programme of research89
7. Theoretical problems in international comparisons: Towards a reciprocal improvement of societal analysis and régulation theory by methodic structuralism101
8. Positivist, hermeneutical and postmodern positions in the comparative management debate117
PART II. THE ECONOMY139
Introduction141
9. The contribution of societal analysis to the economic theory of the firm143
10. Explaining changes in institutional frameworks: Societal patterns of business coordination167
PART III. THE ENTERPRISE185
Introduction187
11. Understanding the globalization strategies of German and British multinational companies: Is a ‘societal effects’ approach still useful?189
12. The evolution of teamwork at Rover: Societal, sectoral and organizational explanations209
13. The societal effects school and transnational transfer: The case of Japanese investment in Britain225
14. The transfer of business practices to Britain and France241
15. Society, organization and work in China257
PART IV. GOVERNMENT, PUBLIC POLICY AND PUBLIC SERVICES273
Introduction275
16. Deregulation and societal systems277
17. Do we compare societies when we compare national university systems?295
18. Path dependencies of education systems and the division of labour within organizations: Formalizing the societal effects perspective311
19. Reintroducing public action into societal enalysis325
PART V. GENDER, THE FAMILY AND WORK339
Introduction341
20. Is it time to gender the societal effect?343
21. Societal analysis and social change in the family division of labour357
22. Male and female patterns of labour force participation: A comparison between France and Japan373
References401
Authors431
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