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Page 1 of 5 © 2000, International Textile and Apparel Association, Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ITAA Proceedings, #57 – www.itaaonline.org 2000 Proceedings Cincinnati, OH USA UNEVEN INTERACTIONS: BEFORE NORMA RAE, BEYOND NEW ECONOMY Sara U. Douglas: Distinguished Scholar University of Illinois, Urbana, IL 61801 Diversity characterizes our interdisciplinary field. My own academic background includes a BS in textile commerce, an MS in textile science, and a Ph.D. in communications research. My research interests developed out of this education and include textile economics, international textile trade, public policy and legal analysis, and political economy. The term "uneven interactions" seems to connect these varied interests coherently. By uneven interactions I mean relationships between and among individuals, groups, and institutions characterized by differences in levels of power (that may be either perceived or real). Much of my research examines relationships between players in a triangle: transnational corporations (TNCs), civil societies, and nation‐states. What attracts me most in these relationships are various situations, each of which entails unequal interactions within, between, and among the players in the triangle—or situations between the players where one is disadvantaged and another is advantaged. My definitions for none of the above terms are unusual, but further explanation of some may be helpful. International political economy can be defined in many ways, but essentially it is a social science that deals with political science and economics together, as interrelated processes. By civil societies, I mean people—not just individuals but people in various collectivities. Separation of the two words in "nation‐state" serves to emphasize the two parts of "country": one, its "nation" or culture, referring to a group of people who share a sense of cultural identity, usually by language and heritage, and often territoriality; and two, its state, which is a legal concept that describes a social group that occupies a territory and is organized under common political institutions and a government. My approach to examination of triangular models often comes simply from questions I wish to explore rather than development of formal hypotheses. The methods or tools that I prefer to use are qualitative, mostly because of the nature of the research problems I select. These methods can be used to study groups, individuals, and institutions. One purpose of my projects always is to build theory or at least to contribute to that process. Theory building contributes value to a project in that it requires exploration, getting out into the field, and trying to understand how people change and actively contribute to change in their worlds. The purpose and challenge of grounded theory is to build theory that is faithful to the evidence.
Object Description
Title | ITAA Proceedings 2000 Distinguished Scholar Lecture |
Papers | Distinguished Scholar Lecture: Uneven Interations |
Authors | Douglas, Sara J. |
Corporate Author | International Textile and Apparel Association |
Date | 2000 |
Type [DCMIType] | text |
Type [IMT] | |
Collection | International Textile and Apparel Association Records, 1944-[ongoing];http://findingaids.lib.iastate.edu/spcl/manuscripts/MS342.pdf |
Location | Iowa State University Library Special Collections and University Archives; http://archives.lib.iastate.edu/ ; International Textile and Apparel Association: http://www.itaaonline.org/ |
Call Number | MS 0342 |
Format-Extent | PDF from Word doc; 5 pp. |
Identifier | 0342-ITAA-Proceedings.2000.Distinguished_Scholar_Lecture |
Rights | U.S. and international copyright laws protect this digital image. Commercial use or distribution of the image is not permitted without prior permission of the copyright holder. For permission to use this content, please contact the International Textile and Apparel Association at info@itaaonline.org or executivedirector@itaaonline.org. |
Format | |
File Size | 134990 Bytes |
Description
Title | Page 1 |
Collection | International Textile and Apparel Association Records, 1944-[ongoing];http://findingaids.lib.iastate.edu/spcl/manuscripts/MS342.pdf |
Transcription | Page 1 of 5 © 2000, International Textile and Apparel Association, Inc. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED ITAA Proceedings, #57 – www.itaaonline.org 2000 Proceedings Cincinnati, OH USA UNEVEN INTERACTIONS: BEFORE NORMA RAE, BEYOND NEW ECONOMY Sara U. Douglas: Distinguished Scholar University of Illinois, Urbana, IL 61801 Diversity characterizes our interdisciplinary field. My own academic background includes a BS in textile commerce, an MS in textile science, and a Ph.D. in communications research. My research interests developed out of this education and include textile economics, international textile trade, public policy and legal analysis, and political economy. The term "uneven interactions" seems to connect these varied interests coherently. By uneven interactions I mean relationships between and among individuals, groups, and institutions characterized by differences in levels of power (that may be either perceived or real). Much of my research examines relationships between players in a triangle: transnational corporations (TNCs), civil societies, and nation‐states. What attracts me most in these relationships are various situations, each of which entails unequal interactions within, between, and among the players in the triangle—or situations between the players where one is disadvantaged and another is advantaged. My definitions for none of the above terms are unusual, but further explanation of some may be helpful. International political economy can be defined in many ways, but essentially it is a social science that deals with political science and economics together, as interrelated processes. By civil societies, I mean people—not just individuals but people in various collectivities. Separation of the two words in "nation‐state" serves to emphasize the two parts of "country": one, its "nation" or culture, referring to a group of people who share a sense of cultural identity, usually by language and heritage, and often territoriality; and two, its state, which is a legal concept that describes a social group that occupies a territory and is organized under common political institutions and a government. My approach to examination of triangular models often comes simply from questions I wish to explore rather than development of formal hypotheses. The methods or tools that I prefer to use are qualitative, mostly because of the nature of the research problems I select. These methods can be used to study groups, individuals, and institutions. One purpose of my projects always is to build theory or at least to contribute to that process. Theory building contributes value to a project in that it requires exploration, getting out into the field, and trying to understand how people change and actively contribute to change in their worlds. The purpose and challenge of grounded theory is to build theory that is faithful to the evidence. |