Theorising the effect of transition on female labour force in the European semiperiphery: an interdisciplinary methodology

Avlijaš, Sonja (2018) Theorising the effect of transition on female labour force in the European semiperiphery: an interdisciplinary methodology. Sociologija, 60 (1). pp. 35-49. ISSN 0038-0318

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Abstract

This article presents an interdisciplinary methodological framework that I developed to theorise and empirically test the drivers of female labour force participation in post-socialist Eastern Europe. As I attempted to apply existing theories from consolidated capitalist economies onto the Eastern European cases, I faced the dilemma of either having to label the Eastern European cases as ‘deviant’, because they were not fitting into the pre-existing Western-centric theoretical categories, or having to build a more useful theoretical abstraction which would reflect the Eastern European post-socialist reality. Being interested in the on-theground socioeconomic development of Eastern Europe rather than validation of Western-centric theories in the East, I chose the latter option. My aim was to open the black box of transition and address this theoretical gap between Western theory and Eastern reality of gender and labour markets, while providing an answer to a specific research question. To achieve that, I embarked on a study of the history of explanations in the social sciences, an elaboration of a theory-oriented mode of explanation, and the development of a mixed methods empirical strategy which combined statistical analysis with qualitative case studies. Ovaj članak predstavlja interdisciplinarni metodološki okvir koji sam razvila da bih mogla da teoretizujem, a potom i empirijski testiram pokretače ženske radne snage u post-socijalističkoj istočnoj Evropi. Pokušavajući da primenim postojeć e teorije nastale u kontekstu konsolidovanih kapitalističkih ekonomija na zemlje istočne Evrope, suočila sam se sa dilemom da ili da istočnoevropske zemlje označim kao „devijantne“, jer se nisu uklapale u već postojeć e zapadno-centrične teorijske okvire, ili da izgradim novu, korisniju teoriju koja bi bolje odražavala istočnoevropsku postsocijalističku realnost. Kako me je interesovao socioekonomski razvoj istočne Evrope, a ne validacija zapadno-centričnih teorija na istoku, izabrala sam drugu opciju. Cilj je bio da otvorim crnu kutiju tranzicije i da premostim teoretski jaz između zapadne teorije i istočne realnosti u oblasti roda i tržišta rada, uz istovremeno pružanje odgovora na konkretno istraživačko pitanje. Da bih to postigla, analizirala sam različite pristupe objašnjavanju u društvenim naukama, i ponudila novu teoriju aktivne strukturacije ženske radne snage koju sam nakon toga testirala kombinacijom statističke analize i kvalitativnih studija slučaja.

Item Type:	Article
Official URL:	http://www.sociologija.org/admin/published/2018_60...
Additional Information:	© 2019 The Author
Divisions:	European Institute
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > HM Sociology H Social Sciences > HN Social history and conditions. Social problems. Social reform
Date Deposited:	10 Jun 2019 11:27
Last Modified:	12 Dec 2024 01:47
URI:	http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/100999

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