The Vexing Case of Igor Shafarevich, a Russian Political Thinker

The Russian mathematician, academician and former dissident Igor Shafarevich (b. 1923) is commonly mentioned in Western scholarly studies on perestroika and post-perestroika-era Russian politics as one of the most notable anti-Semites and extreme nationalists of the country. This notoriety owes to Shafarevich’s old samizdat article Russophobia, which was published in 1988. The scandal surrounding Russophobia came to a head when the president of The National Academy of Sciences in the United States asked Shafarevich, its honorary member, to resign. Nothing like this had ever happened in the academy’s history. The present dissertation discusses Shafarevich’s political activities, his texts and ideas as well as their reception. Particular attention is given to Russophobia, whose detailed examination proves very clearly that its reputation as an anti-Semitic text is groundless. The reasons for Russophobia’s hasty but fierce condemnation were many, but only one was that when the Soviet system began to tumble, it was commonly assumed that a vigorous rise in anti-Semitism and extreme nationalism in the Soviet Union/Russia would be just a matter of time. Many observers were highly sensitised to detecting its signs and symptoms. The dissertation also shows that most of those to write the first criticisms of Russophobia and to liken Shafarevich to the ideologues of Nazi Germany were the same people he had criticised in Russophobia for their deterministic view of history and irrational manner of connecting things for the purpose of fanning the flames of distrust between Russia’s Jews and Russians. In retrospect, it is fairly evident that Shafarevich actually managed to effectively “neutralise” the message of many of those obsessed with the Jews among his Russian contemporaries and contributed to the fact that anti-Jewish sentiments have been a great deal less popular in post-communist Russia than so many had feared and expected. The thesis also thoroughly discusses Shafarevich’s other texts and activities before Russophobia’s appearance and after it. In the 1970s, Shafarevich was one of the best-known dissidents in the Soviet Union. He worked together with academician Andrei Sakharov in a dissidents’ unofficial human rights committee and co-operated closely with Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn before Solzhenitsyn’s exile. Then, during the chaotic years of perestroika, Shafarevich defended the basic rights of ordinary citizens and warned that the hype concerning democracy could become counterproductive if the most palpable result of the reforms was the disappearance of citizens’ basic security and elementary social justice. One of the conclusions of the thesis is that even if the world around Shafarevich has changed considerably, his views have remained essentially the same since the late 1960s and early 1970s.

Ion-regulatory proreins in neuronal development and communication

Brain function is critically dependent on the ionic homeostasis in both the extra- and intracellular compartment. The regulation of brain extracellular ionic composition mainly relies on active transport at blood brain and at blood cerebrospinal fluid interfaces whereas intracellular ion regulation is based on plasmalemmal transporters of neurons and glia. In addition, the latter mechanisms can generate physiologically as well as pathophysiologically significant extracellular ion transients. In this work I have studied molecular mechanisms and development of ion regulation and how these factors alter neuronal excitability and affect synaptic and non-synaptic transmission with a particular emphasis on intracellular pH and chloride (Cl-) regulation. Why is the regulation of acid-base equivalents (H+ and HCO3-) and Cl- of such interest and importance? First of all, GABAA-receptors are permeable to both HCO3- and Cl-. In the adult mammalian central nervous system (CNS) fast postsynaptic inhibition relies on GABAA-receptor mediated transmission. Today, excitatory effects of GABAA-receptors, both in mature neurons and during the early development, have been recognized and the significance of the dual actions of GABA on neuronal communication has become an interesting field of research. The transmembrane gradients of Cl- and HCO3- determine the reversal potential of GABAA-receptor mediated postsynaptic potentials and hence, the function of pH and Cl- regulatory proteins have profound consequences on GABAergic signaling and neuronal excitability. Secondly, perturbations in pH can cause a variety of changes in cellular function, many of them resulting from the interaction of protons with ionizable side chains of proteins. pH-mediated alterations of protein conformation in e.g. ion channels, transporters, and enzymes can powerfully modulate neurotransmission. In the context of pH homeostasis, the enzyme carbonic anhydrase (CA) needs to be taken into account in parallel with ion transporters: for CO2/HCO3- buffering to act in a fast manner, CO2 (de)hydration must be catalyzed by this enzyme. The acid-base equivalents that serve as substrates in the CO2 dehydration-hydration reaction are also engaged in many carrier and channel mediated ion movements. In such processes, CA activity is in key position to modulate transmembrane solute fluxes and their consequences. The bicarbonate transporters (BTs; SLC4) and the electroneutral cation-chloride cotransporters (CCCs; SLC12) belong the to large gene family of solute carriers (SLCs). In my work I have studied the physiological roles of the K+-Cl- cotransporter KCC2 (Slc12a5) and the Na+-driven Cl--HCO3- exchanger NCBE (Slc4a10) and the roles of these two ion transporters in the modualtion of neuronal communication and excitability in the rodent hippocampus. I have also examined the cellular localization and molecular basis of intracellular CA that has been shown to be essential for the generation of prolonged GABAergic excitation in the mature hippocampus. The results in my Thesis provide direct evidence for the view that the postnatal up-regulation of KCC2 accounts for the developmental shift from depolarizing to hyperpolarizing postsynaptic EGABA-A responses in rat hippocampal pyramidal neurons. The results also indicate that after KCC2 expression the developmental onset of excitatory GABAergic transmission upon intense GABAA-receptor stimulation depend on the expression of intrapyramidal CA, identified as the CA isoform VII. Studies on mice with targeted Slc4a10 gene disruption revealed an important role for NCBE in neuronal pH regulation and in pH-dependent modulation of neuronal excitability. Furthermore, this ion transporter is involved in the basolateral Na+ and HCO3- uptake in choroid plexus epithelial cells, and is thus likely to contribute to cerebrospinal fluid production.

The Media and the Academic Globalization Debate : Theoretical Analysis and Critique

This study offers a reconstruction and critical evaluation of globalization theory, a perspective that has been central for sociology and cultural studies in recent decades, from the viewpoint of media and communications. As the study shows, sociological and cultural globalization theorists rely heavily on arguments concerning media and communications, especially the so-called new information and communication technologies, in the construction of their frameworks. Together with deepening the understanding of globalization theory, the study gives new critical knowledge of the problematic consequences that follow from such strong investment in media and communications in contemporary theory. The book is divided into four parts. The first part presents the research problem, the approach and the theoretical contexts of the study. Followed by the introduction in Chapter 1, I identify the core elements of globalization theory in Chapter 2. At the heart of globalization theory is the claim that recent decades have witnessed massive changes in the spatio-temporal constitution of society, caused by new media and communications in particular, and that these changes necessitate the rethinking of the foundations of social theory as a whole. Chapter 3 introduces three paradigms of media research the political economy of media, cultural studies and medium theory the discussion of which will make it easier to understand the key issues and controversies that emerge in academic globalization theorists treatment of media and communications. The next two parts offer a close reading of four theorists whose works I use as entry points into academic debates on globalization. I argue that we can make sense of mainstream positions on globalization by dividing them into two paradigms: on the one hand, media-technological explanations of globalization and, on the other, cultural globalization theory. As examples of the former, I discuss the works of Manuel Castells (Chapter 4) and Scott Lash (Chapter 5). I maintain that their analyses of globalization processes are overtly media-centric and result in an unhistorical and uncritical understanding of social power in an era of capitalist globalization. A related evaluation of the second paradigm (cultural globalization theory), as exemplified by Arjun Appadurai and John Tomlinson, is presented in Chapter 6. I argue that due to their rejection of the importance of nation states and the notion of cultural imperialism for cultural analysis, and their replacement with a framework of media-generated deterritorializations and flows, these theorists underplay the importance of the neoliberalization of cultures throughout the world. The fourth part (Chapter 7) presents a central research finding of this study, namely that the media-centrism of globalization theory can be understood in the context of the emergence of neoliberalism. I find it problematic that at the same time when capitalist dynamics have been strengthened in social and cultural life, advocates of globalization theory have directed attention to media-technological changes and their sweeping socio-cultural consequences, instead of analyzing the powerful material forces that shape the society and the culture. I further argue that this shift serves not only analytical but also utopian functions, that is, the longing for a better world in times when such longing is otherwise considered impracticable.

Viestintää valtuustossa : Valtuutettujen viestintätyyli ja käsitys Helsingin kaupunginvaltuuston kokouksien viestinnästä

The goal of the study was to determine the kind of communication used in the meetings of the City Council. Councillors' addresses were studied by observing their communication styles. A questionnaire was used to study councillors' perception of communication in council meetings as perceived communication climate. A second goal of the study was to develop a method for analysing communication style. The nature of the study was a longitudinal case study. Studies of speech communication at the individual level and those of organisational communication at the community level served as the theoretical frame of reference. Due to the chosen object of study, political research and communication context shaped the frame of reference for the study. Verbal, nonverbal and paraverbal characteristics form the communication style. The perceived communication climate is dynamic in nature and consists of characteristics. The research material was gathered from the meetings of the Helsinki City Council held from 1993 to 1996. The communication style was analysed from meeting addresses (N=1271) given by the permanent members (N=95) of the council. The perceived communication climate was studied using a questionnaire modified from Wiio's OCD2 questionnaire. The questionnaire survey was carried out twice. The first time, 58 questionnaires (68%) were returned and, the second time, 49 questionnaires (58%) were returned. The method of analysis used for communication style was classification and cross tabulation. Based on the subset of material for the first year, five communication style categories were defined Communication style was examined using gender, length of council membership, and political party as subgroups. The results related to the perceived communication climate were analysed as averages and percentages. A comparison of the results from two different measuring times revealed how the perceived communication climate changed during a council term. The finding of the study was that the municipal politicians could be placed in all five communication style categories in each year of their four-year council term. The sizes of the style categories varied only little in the different years. A relatively stable - rather than changing - communication style was more characteristic of individuals during a council term. Gender did not explain an individual's communication style. On the other hand, the length of service in the council and, to some extent, the political party were connected with a certain communication style. Changes in style mainly manifested themselves as variation in communication activity so that activity was highest at the beginning and at the end of the council term. The method of researching communication style developed for this study proved to be functional, though labour-consuming. The perceived communication climate in the Helsinki City Council was good. Women's and men's satisfaction with the communication in the council differed; women's perception became considerably more positive at the end of the council term. Satisfaction with the communication in the council was characteristic of the Coalition Party and the Social Democrat councillors and dissatisfaction was characteristics of the Green councillors. Long council experience increased satisfaction with communication in the council. Only in the case of a few style categories was it possible to show any connection between the communication style and the perceived communication climate. The study confirmed the perception that an individual's communication style in the same communication context was relatively stable in the long term as well.

The Finnish Competition State and Entrepreneurial Policies in the Helsinki Region

The thesis examines the intensification and characteristics of a policy that emphasises economic competitiveness in Finland during the 1990s and early 2000s. This accentuation of economic objectives is studied at the level of national policy-making as well as at the regional level through the policies and strategies of cities and three universities in the Helsinki region. By combining the analysis of state policies, urban strategies and university activities, the study illustrates the pervasiveness of the objective of economic competitiveness and growth across these levels and sheds light on the features and contradictions of these policies on a broad scale. The thesis is composed of five research articles and a summary article. At the level of national policies, the central focus of the thesis is on the growing role of science and technology policy as a state means to promote structural economic change and its transformation towards a broader, yet ambivalent concept of innovation policy. This shift brings forward a tension between an increasing emphasis on economic aspects – innovations and competitiveness – as well as the expanding scope of issues across a wide range of policy sectors that are being subsumed under this market- and economy oriented framework. Related to science and technology policy, attention is paid to adjustments in university policy in which there has been increasing pressure for efficiency, rationalisation and commercialisation of academic activities. Furthermore, political efforts to build an information society through the application of information and communication technologies are analysed with particular attention to the balance between economic and social objectives. Finally, changes in state regional policy priorities and the tendency towards competitiveness are addressed. At the regional level, the focus of the thesis is on the policies of the cities in Finland’s capital region as well as strategies of three universities operating in the region, namely the University of Helsinki, Helsinki University of technology and Helsinki School of Economics. As regards the urban level, the main focus is on the changes and characteristics of the urban economic development policy of the City of Helsinki. With respect to the universities, the thesis examines their attempts to commercialise research and thus bring academic research closer to economic interests, and pays particular attention to the contradictions of commercialisation. Related to the universities, the activities of three intermediary organisations that the universities have established in order to increase cooperation with industry are analysed. These organisations are the Helsinki Science Park, Otaniemi International Innovation Centre and LTT Research Ltd. The summary article provides a synthesis of the material presented in the five original articles and relates the results of the articles to a broader discussion concerning the emergence of competition states and entrepreneurial cities and regions. The main points of reference are Bob Jessop’s and Neil Brenner’s theses on state and urban-regional restructuring. The empirical results and considerations from Finland and the Helsinki region are used to comment on, specify and criticise specific parts of the two theses.

Uuden median murros Alma Mediassa, Sanoma Oy:ssä ja Yleisradiossa 1994-2004

This is a qualitative and multimethodological comparative study, which consists of two main parts: examining the development of new media and analysing and comparing the new media strategies of the three companies studied (Alma Media, Sanoma and the Finnish Broadcasting Company Yleisradio). The study includes the first large-scale review in Finnish of the development of new media, paying attention to the birth of the Internet as well as to mobile media, web TV and any other element of new media. It also concentrates on the function of electronic distribution channels before the age of the Internet, e.g. cable text and videotext. Answers about how the three traditional Finnish media houses began spreading their content to the Internet and wireless applications in 1994–2004 are also given. In researching the new media strategies the study pays special attention to the attitudes that the three media companies adopted towards the Internet and other forms of new media in their strategies during the years in question. By analysing and comparing, e.g., the companies’ strategies and their investments, the study ascertains whether the companies had a joint functional model in adopting new media or acted totally on their own without taking too much notice of the media field overall. The study makes extensive use of previously published material. The researcher has also interviewed almost twenty people who were involved in getting the companies’ new media functions under way. The methods for the interviews were dialogue and snowball sampling. The researcher has created a classification in which he divides the business strategies into four different categories: active strategy, careful strategy, permissive strategy, and passive strategy. In comparing and analysing the companies the researcher has used the classification devised by Allan Afuah & Christopher L. Tucci. The seven element classification consists of dominant managerial logic, competency trap, fear of cannibalisation and loss of revenue, channel conflict, political power, co-opetitor power and emotional attachment. In analysing the company strategies the researcher has also noted the classifications of convergence made by Everette E. Dennis and Graham Murdock as well as the aspects formulated by Sylvia Chan-Olmsted and Louisa Ha concerning the success of the companies in adopting the Internet into their functions. Based on all these classifications and by further developing them the researcher analyses and compares the success of the new media strategies of the three Finnish companies. The outcome of the study is a conclusion as to what kind of strategies the companies have carried out their new media functions and how they have succeeded in it.

Rethinking Media Pluralism : A Critique of Theories and Policy Discourses

This study examines different ways in which the concept of media pluralism has been theorized and used in contemporary media policy debates. Access to a broad range of different political views and cultural expressions is often regarded as a self-evident value in both theoretical and political debates on media and democracy. Opinions on the meaning and nature of media pluralism as a theoretical, political or empirical concept, however, are many, and it can easily be adjusted to different political purposes. The study aims to analyse the ambiguities surrounding the concept of media pluralism in two ways: by deconstructing its normative roots from the perspective of democratic theory, and by examining its different uses, definitions and underlying rationalities in current European media policy debates. The first part of the study examines the values and assumptions behind the notion of media pluralism in the context of different theories of democracy and the public sphere. The second part then analyses and assesses the deployment of the concept in contemporary European policy debates on media ownership and public service media. Finally, the study critically evaluates various attempts to create empirical indicators for measuring media pluralism and discusses their normative implications and underlying rationalities. The analysis of contemporary policy debates indicates that the notion of media pluralism has been too readily reduced to an empty catchphrase or conflated with consumer choice and market competition. In this narrow technocratic logic, pluralism is often unreflectively associated with quantitative data in a way that leaves unexamined key questions about social and political values, democracy, and citizenship. The basic argument advanced in the study is that media pluralism needs to be rescued from its depoliticized uses and re-imagined more broadly as a normative value that refers to the distribution of communicative power in the public sphere. Instead of something that could simply be measured through the number of media outlets available, the study argues that media pluralism should be understood in terms of its ability to challenge inequalities in communicative power and create a more democratic public sphere.

Towards a United States of Africa? Combining Zambian and AU level debate.

Globalisaatio on luonut uuden maailmanjärjestelmän jonka myötä yksittäisten valtioiden vaikutusvalta on vähentynyt entisestään. Tämä pitää paikkansa erityisesti kehittyvien maiden kohdalla, esimerkiksi Afrikassa. Afrikka on pyrkinyt taistelemaan globalisaation tuomia negatiivisia vaikutuksia vastaan alueellistumisen ja maanosan yhtenäisyyttä ajavien hankkeiden kautta jo vuosikymmenien ajan, mutta toistaiseksi tulokset eivät ole olleet vakuttavia. Tällä hetkellä Afrikan Unionissa keskustellaan hankkeesta muodostaa Afrikan Yhdysvallat. Aiemmista hankkeista poiketen tämän uuden aloitteen ajatus perustuu ylikansallisuudelle, jossa yksittäiset valtiot luovuttavat valtaansa ylikansallisille elimille, kuten Afrikan Unionin hallitukselle. Näin ollen on tärkeää tarkastella aloitetta Afrikan Yhdysvaltojen perustamiseksi ja arvioida, voisiko tällainen ylikansallinen organisaatio auttaa Afrikkaa kääntämään globalisaation haittavaikutukset myönteisiksi. Tämä Pro Gradu-tutkielma väittää sen olevan mahdollista, mutta vain siinä tapauksessa että Afrikka on valmis hyväksymään yhtenäisyyden rajoitukset. Aiemman tutkimuksen vähyyden vuoksi on myös tarpeen tutkia Afrikan Yhdysvalloista kansallisilla tasoilla käytävää keskustelua. Tämän vuoksi tässä tutkielmassa painotetaan esimerkkimaa Sambian kautta yhden Afrikan Unionin jäsenmaan keskinäistä keskustelua aiheesta ja verrataan sitä Afrikan Unionin tason keskusteluun. Tutkielma sisältää kirjallisuuskatsauksen sekä tapaustutkimuksen. Tutkimusaineisto koostuu sambialaisista sanomalehtiotteista sekä Sambian valtion ja Afrikan Unionin virallisista asiakirjoista. Pääasiallisena tutkimusmenetelmänä on laadullinen sisällönanalyysi. Teoreettinen viitekehys perustuu afrikkalaisen valtion ja kansalaisyhteiskunnan, alueellistumisen, globalisaation hallinnan, pan-afrikkalaisuuden ja poliittisen integraation teorioihin sekä historialliseen katsaukseen Afrikan yhtenäisyydestä. Perimmäisenä tarkoituksena on lisätä ymmärrystä afrikkalaisesta valtiosta ja politiikasta. Tutkimuksen tulosten mukaan on havaittavissa aukko valtioiden virallisten toimijoiden näkemysten ja kansalaisyhteiskunnan huolenaiheiden välillä. Viralliset toimijat näyttävät olevan kansalaisyhteiskuntaa vahvemmin Afrikan Yhdysvaltojen kannalla. Virallisten toimijoiden korostaessa Afrikan aatteellista yhtenäisyyttä kansalaisyhteiskunta on huolissaan sen toteutumisesta käytännössä. Esiin nousee myös kysymys 'afrikkalaisesta' identiteetistä ja kansalaisuudesta sekä kommunikaatiosta valtion ja kansalaisten välillä.

Why Do Russians Support Censorship of the Media?

This article analyses support for censorship in Russia as part of the democratization process. Censorship has been an important part of Russian history and it was strengthened during the Soviet era. After the collapse of the Soviet system formal censorship was banned even though the reality has been different. Therefore it is not strange that many Russians would like to limit the freedom of the media and to censor certain topics. The views of Russians on censorship have been studied on the basis of a survey carried out in 2007. According to the results, three different dimensions of censorship were found. These dimensions include moral censorship, political censorship, and censorship of religious materials. Support for these dimensions varies on the basis of socio-demographic characteristics and media use. The article concludes that many Russians reject new phenomena, while support for the censorship of political criticism is not as high, but political censorship seems to enjoy more support among elites than among the common people.

Relationships in food chains: an empirical examination of trust, commitment and communication

This report derives from the EU funded research project “Key Factors Influencing Economic Relationships and Communication in European Food Chains” (FOODCOMM). The research consortium consisted of the following organisations: University of Bonn (UNI BONN), Department of Agricultural and Food Marketing Research (overall project co-ordination); Institute of Agricultural Development in Central and Eastern Europe (IAMO), Department for Agricultural Markets, Marketing and World Agricultural Trade, Halle (Saale), Germany; University of Helsinki, Ruralia Institute Seinäjoki Unit, Finland; Scottish Agricultural College (SAC), Food Marketing Research Team - Land Economy Research Group, Edinburgh and Aberdeen; Ashtown Food Research Centre (AFRC), Teagasc, Food Marketing Unit, Dublin; Institute of Agricultural & Food Economics (IAFE), Department of Market Analysis and Food Processing, Warsaw and Government of Aragon, Center for Agro-Food Research and Technology (CITA), Zaragoza, Spain. The aim of the FOODCOMM project was to examine the role (prevalence, necessity and significance) of economic relationships in selected European food chains and to identify the economic, social and cultural factors which influence co-ordination within these chains. The research project considered meat and cereal commodities in six different European countries (Finland, Germany, Ireland, Poland, Spain, UK/Scotland) and was commissioned against a background of changing European food markets. The research project as a whole consisted of seven different work packages. This report presents the results of qualitative research conducted for work package 5 (WP5) in the pig meat and rye bread chains in Finland. Ruralia Institute would like to give special thanks for all the individuals and companies that kindly gave up their time to take part in the study. Their input has been invaluable to the project. The contribution of research assistant Sanna-Helena Rantala was significant in the data gathering. FOODCOMM project was coordinated by the University of Bonn, Department of Agricultural and Food Market Research. Special thanks especially to Professor Monika Hartmann for acting as the project leader of FOODCOMM.

Key Factors Influencing Economic Relationships and Communication in Finnish Food Chains

The aim of this report is to discuss the role of the relationship type and communication in two Finnish food chains, namely the pig meat-to-sausage (pig meat chain) and the cereal-to-rye bread (rye chain) chains. Furthermore, the objective is to examine those factors influencing the choice of a relationship type and the sustainability of a business relationship. Altogether 1808 questionnaires were sent to producers, processors and retailers operating in these two chains of which 224 usable questionnaires were returned (the response rate being 12.4%). The great majority of the respondents (98.7%) were small businesses employing less than 50 people. Almost 70 per cent of the respondents were farmers. In both chains, formal contracts were stated to be the most important relationship type used with business partners. Although for many businesses written contracts are a common business practice, the essential role of the contracts was the security they provide regarding the demand/supply and quality issues. Relative to the choice of the relationship types, the main difference between the two chains emerged especially with the prevalence of spot markets and financial participation arrangements. The usage of spot markets was significantly more common in the rye chain when compared to the pig meat chain, while, on the other hand, financial participation arrangements were much more common among the businesses in the pig meat chain than in the rye chain. Furthermore, the analysis showed that most of the businesses in the pig meat chain claimed not to be free to choose the relationship type they use. Especially membership in a co-operative and practices of a business partner were mentioned as the reasons limiting this freedom of choice. The main business relations in both chains were described as having a long-term orientation and being based on formal written contracts. Typical for the main business relationships was also that they are not based on the existence of the key persons only; the relationship would remain even if the key people left the business. The quality of these relationships was satisfactory in both chains and across all the stakeholder groups, though the downstream processors and the retailers had a slightly more positive view on their main business partners than the farmers and the upstream processors. The businesses operating in the pig meat chain seemed also to be more dependent on their main business relations when compared to the businesses in the rye chain. Although the communication means were rather similar in both chains (the phone being the most important), there was some variation between the chains concerning the communication frequency necessary to maintain the relationship with the main business partner. In short, the businesses in the pig meat chain seemed to appreciate more frequent communication with their main business partners when compared to the businesses in the rye chain. Personal meetings with the main business partners were quite rare in both chains. All the respondent groups were, however, fairly satisfied with the communication frequency and information quality between them and the main business partner. The business cultures could be argued to be rather hegemonic among the businesses both in the pig meat and rye chains. Avoidance of uncertainty, appreciation of long-term orientation and independence were considered important factors in the business cultures. Furthermore, trust, commitment and satisfaction in business partners were thought to be essential elements of business operations in all the respondent groups. In order to investigate which factors have an effect on the choice of a relationship type, several hypotheses were tested by using binary and multinomial logit analyses. According to these analyses it could be argued that avoidance of uncertainty and risk has a certain effect on the relationship type chosen, i.e. the willingness to avoid uncertainty increases the probability to choose stable relationships, like repeated market transactions and formal written contracts, but not necessary those, which require high financial commitment (like financial participation arrangements). The probability of engaging in financial participation arrangements seemed to increase with long-term orientation. The hypotheses concerning the sustainability of the economic relations were tested by using structural equation model (SEM). In the model, five variables were found to have a positive and statistically significant impact on the sustainable economic relationship construct. Ordered relative to their importance, those factors are: (i) communication quality, (ii) personal bonds, (iii) equal power distribution, (iv) local embeddedness and (v) competition.

Governance theory as a framework for empirical research : a case study on local environmental policy-making in Helsinki, Finland

Governance has been one of the most popular buzzwords in recent political science. As with any term shared by numerous fields of research, as well as everyday language, governance is encumbered by a jungle of definitions and applications. This work elaborates on the concept of network governance. Network governance refers to complex policy-making situations, where a variety of public and private actors collaborate in order to produce and define policy. Governance is processes of autonomous, self-organizing networks of organizations exchanging information and deliberating. Network governance is a theoretical concept that corresponds to an empirical phenomenon. Often, this phenomenon is used to descirbe a historical development: governance is often used to describe changes in political processes of Western societies since the 1980s. In this work, empirical governance networks are used as an organizing framework, and the concepts of autonomy, self-organization and network structure are developed as tools for empirical analysis of any complex decision-making process. This work develops this framework and explores the governance networks in the case of environmental policy-making in the City of Helsinki, Finland. The crafting of a local ecological sustainability programme required support and knowledge from all sectors of administration, a number of entrepreneurs and companies and the inhabitants of Helsinki. The policy process relied explicitly on networking, with public and private actors collaborating to design policy instruments. Communication between individual organizations led to the development of network structures and patterns. This research analyses these patterns and their effects on policy choice, by applying the methods of social network analysis. A variety of social network analysis methods are used to uncover different features of the networked process. Links between individual network positions, network subgroup structures and macro-level network patterns are compared to the types of organizations involved and final policy instruments chosen. By using governance concepts to depict a policy process, the work aims to assess whether they contribute to models of policy-making. The conclusion is that the governance literature sheds light on events that would otherwise go unnoticed, or whose conceptualization would remain atheoretical. The framework of network governance should be in the toolkit of the policy analyst.

Oligarchs, political regime changes, and firm valuation

This paper examines the impact of a regime shift on the valuation of politically powerful oligarch firms. Focusing on the Yeltsin-Putin regime shift in Russia, we find that the valuations of outside shareholders claims are significantly higher under the Putin regime than under the Yeltsin regime after controlling for industry and time effects. The findings suggest that the increasing cost of extracting private benefits outweigh the reduction in the value of political connections following the political regime change. The results are also consistent with changes in the risk of state expropriation. Our results show that effects driven by the political regime change complement the traditional view stating that increased ownership concentration improved the performance of Russian oligarch firms.