Articulating Polanyi’s work with feminist economics: tools to analyse third sector’s organisations
(2009) XXIV National Conference of Labour Economics Faculty of Economics – University of Sassari — Location: Sassari (24.September.2009)
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- Abstract
- Traditional approaches of third sector organisations are generally centred on their socio-economical dimension and are considered as private not for profit initiatives, producing services and goods in an incidental relation with their environment. In this article, we are pleading for an approach of TSO based on their double dimension, socioeconomical and political. We consider them as institutions capable of action on their context, as collective expression means with specific integration in the public space and able to interact with the public regulation. The article has the objective to demonstrate the relevance of the Polanyian analysis grid to approach this double dimension, through two concepts: on one hand the concept of « political embeddedness » and on another hand, the one of « articulation of different forms of integration », highlighted by the adoption of a substantive definition of economics. Among these forms, “householding” has generally been neglected in ulterior analysis of Polanyi (1983 [1944]) as well as in the studies that use the Polanyian approach to analyse social economics. However, it refers to what feminist literature calls « domestic work » or care, meaning the production (generally) by women of free services (and goods) that are designed for kin’s. A rereading of this form of integration within a feminist background and gender relations demonstrate its interest for TSO, particularly for the ones who are implicated in proximity services where the kin is regularly mobilised. We will start with a presentation of the « substantive approach » adopted by Polanyi, which allows him to make emerge what he calls « different forms of integration » on the basis of which societies are organising their economy. This being stated, we will present two contributions of Polanyi in the study of TSO: the concept of embeddedness and the mobilisation, by TSO, of different forms of integration. We will notice that, in certain activities like care, TSO mobilise “householding”. We will end up our article by suggesting that a study in terms of gender relation would allow to refine a bit more the grid of analysis inspired by the substantive approach of the author.
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Degavre, F. (2009). Articulating Polanyi’s work with feminist economics: tools to analyse third sector’s organisations. XXIV National Conference of Labour Economics Faculty of Economics – University of Sassari, Sassari. https://hdl.handle.net/2078.5/27581