Stefan Fritsch | Bowling Green State University (original) (raw)

Papers by Stefan Fritsch

Review of International Political Economy, Feb 25, 2010

... DOI: 10.1080/09692290902725002 Candace Archer a & Stefan Fritsch a pages 103-128. ...... more ... DOI: 10.1080/09692290902725002 Candace Archer a & Stefan Fritsch a pages 103-128. ... Some notable contributions include Raynolds et al. (2002, 2007), Fridell (2007a, 2007b), Jaffee (2007), and Hudson and Hudson (2003). ...

SAGE Publications, Inc. eBooks, Oct 11, 2012

Springer eBooks, Nov 25, 2016

Technological evolution has impacted foreign policy decision-making processes at the micro level ... more Technological evolution has impacted foreign policy decision-making processes at the micro level by facilitating data gathering and speeding up decision-making processes, thus adding another window on government behavior and international conflict. A technology-driven skill revolution has also contributed to the emergence of new actors (non-governmental organizations and individuals), and technological evolution has reshaped armed conflict and related decision-making processes.

Global power shift, 2014

Departing from Kranzberg’s thesis that technology is neither good, nor bad, nor neutral, this cha... more Departing from Kranzberg’s thesis that technology is neither good, nor bad, nor neutral, this chapter argues that technology as a multi-facetted—and ultimately deeply political—phenomenon impacts the global system in a variety of ways, thereby representing a formidable conceptual challenge to the disciplines of International Relations and International Political Economy. In order to theorize questions of systemic evolution between transformation and continuity, the goals and capabilities of actors, system conditions as well as technology-inherent aspects have to be analyzed in an integrated—and often interdisciplinary—way. The chapter argues that a combination of major perspectives of Science and Technology Studies and different theories of International Relations/International Political Economy enable us to highlight the ambivalence of technology and technology-related aspects of global politics and economics, such as power, interdependence, systemic interaction capacity and the socially constructed meaning/interpretation of technology. While focusing on the case of information and communication technologies, the chapter will demonstrate that by defining technology as an ambivalent endogenous core component of the global system, instead of relegating it to the role of a value-neutral external and residual variable, technology itself increasingly becomes the contested terrain on which security, economic and identity struggles play out.

Austrian Journal of Political Science, 2005

Obwohl Technologie viele Bereiche der internationalen Beziehungen/internationalen politischen Öko... more Obwohl Technologie viele Bereiche der internationalen Beziehungen/internationalen politischen Ökonomie entscheidend mitbeeinflusst, wird ihrer Rolle in den theoretischen Diskussionen nur wenig Aufmerksamkeit zuteil. Trotzdem sie für zahlreiche systemtransformierende Prozesse (Globalisierung/Transnationalisierung) mitverantwortlich zu machen ist, wird Technologie in der Regel als passives, exogenes und apolitisches Artefakt, das quasi von außen in das internationale System hineinwirkt, konzipiert. Stattdessen plädiert der Beitrag dafür, Technologie in ihren mannigfaltigen Erscheinungsformen und Auswirkungen als einen endogenen, sprich, systemimmanenten und politisch relevanten Faktor zu begreifen, der auch fest im internationalen System verhaftet ist und dort wirkt, parallel dazu und in zunehmendem Maße aber erst auf globaler Ebene hinsichtlich seiner systemischen Auswirkungen effizienter beeinflusst und (re)reguliert werden kann. Im Vordergrund des Beitrags steht der Versuch aufzuzeigen, inwiefern Ergebnisse sozialwissenschaftlicher Technikforschung (Technikphilosophie, Techniksoziologie, Technikgeschichte) Theoriediskussionen der Internationalen Beziehungen substantiell bereichern könnten.

Business and Politics, Apr 1, 2015

Contemporary discussions in the comparative political economy of innovation revolve specifically ... more Contemporary discussions in the comparative political economy of innovation revolve specifically around the question of globalization's impact on the observable diversity of innovation patterns, institutionally grounded comparative advantages of firms and countries as well as their evolution over time. The paper develops the concept of "contingent institutional adaptation" to trace institutional evolution at the firm level. It advances the idea that contingent adaptation can cause institutional hybridization, an evolutionary path defined by change and continuity, thereby offering a more nuanced concept of institutional evolution over time. In a historic single-case study the paper investigates the German Siemens AG and its efforts to remain on the cutting-edge of major information and communication technologies in two time periods (1847-1914; 1989-2013), both marked by institutional adaptations resulting in hybridization. Ultimately, institutional hybridization led to Siemens' retreat from all information and communication technology sectors.

Oxford Research Encyclopedia of International Studies

Traditionally, international relations (IR) conceptualized technology primarily as a static, neut... more Traditionally, international relations (IR) conceptualized technology primarily as a static, neutral, and passive tool, which emanates from impenetrable black boxes outside the international system. According to this predominant instrumental understanding of technology, IR “added” technology as a residual variable to existing explanatory frameworks. Consequently, qualitative systemic change—as well as continuity—could only be addressed within existing models and their respective core variables. Subsequently, traditional approaches increasingly experienced difficulties to adequately capture and explain empirically observable systemic changes in the form of growing interdependence, globalization, or trans-nationalization, as well as a plethora of technology-induced new policy challenges. Contrary to traditional conceptualizations, a growing number of scholars have instead embarked on a project to open the “black box” by redefining technology as a highly political and integral core com...

Global Society, 2008

... all Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), (5) the Convention against Torture (CAT ..... more ... all Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), (5) the Convention against Torture (CAT ...Milton Friedman, “The Social Responsibility of Business is to Increase its Profits”, in ... Economist, “Profit and the Public Good: A Survey of Corporate Social Responsibility” (22 January ...

Review of International Political Economy

This paper engages Adam Smith's reflections concerning the moral and economic dimensions ... more This paper engages Adam Smith's reflections concerning the moral and economic dimensions of business-society relations in the context of the Multinational Corporation (MNC). The paper argues that Smith formulates a pronounced moral criticism of prevailing corporate business practices, which emphasize profit while de facto undermining the moral underpinnings and social cohesion of commercial society. Rather than simply promoting selfish profit maximization by individuals, businesses, and society at large, Smith's work reveals a deeply entangled analysis of the complex interplay between material interests, moral aspects of human behavior, and Smith's overall goal of broad socioeconomic welfare. The balancing of moral and material motivations requires the social embeddedness of economic exchange within normative community frameworks. In this context, the sociopsychological process of moral approbation via Smith's impartial spectator mechanism has the potential to temper humans' tendency for excessive (material) self-love. Smith's scrutiny of internationally active corporations problematizes a range of institutional and governance issues and their implications for the moral bonds between individuals, MNCs, and global society. Most importantly, Smith worries about the potentially negative impact of increasingly anonymous and emotionally distant economic relationships between market participants on their ability to reckon with the moral consequences of their actions. Building on Smith's entangled perspective, the paper proposes a normatively grounded framework to critically contend with contemporary efforts to redefine corporate citizenship in the global economy.

Review of International Political Economy, 2022

This paper engages Adam Smith's reflections concerning the moral and economic dimensions of busin... more This paper engages Adam Smith's reflections concerning the moral and economic dimensions of business-society relations in the context of the Multinational Corporation (MNC). The paper argues that Smith formulates a pronounced moral criticism of prevailing corporate business practices, which emphasize profit while de facto undermining the moral underpinnings and social cohesion of commercial society. Rather than simply promoting selfish profit maximization by individuals, businesses, and society at large, Smith's work reveals a deeply entangled analysis of the complex interplay between material interests, moral aspects of human behavior, and Smith's overall goal of broad socioeconomic welfare. The balancing of moral and material motivations requires the social embeddedness of economic exchange within normative community frameworks. In this context, the sociopsychological process of moral approbation via Smith's impartial spectator mechanism has the potential to temper humans' tendency for excessive (material) self-love. Smith's scrutiny of internationally active corporations problematizes a range of institutional and governance issues and their implications for the moral bonds between individuals, MNCs, and global society. Most importantly, Smith worries about the potentially negative impact of increasingly anonymous and emotionally distant economic relationships between market participants on their ability to reckon with the moral consequences of their actions. Building on Smith's entangled perspective, the paper proposes a normatively grounded framework to critically contend with contemporary efforts to redefine corporate citizenship in the global economy.

Review of International Political Economy, 2022

This paper engages Adam Smith's reflections concerning the moral and economic dimensions of busin... more This paper engages Adam Smith's reflections concerning the moral and economic dimensions of business-society relations in the context of the Multinational Corporation (MNC). The paper argues that Smith formulates a pronounced moral criticism of prevailing corporate business practices, which emphasize profit while de facto undermining the moral underpinnings and social cohesion of commercial society. Rather than simply promoting selfish profit maximization by individuals, businesses, and society at large, Smith's work reveals a deeply entangled analysis of the complex interplay between material interests, moral aspects of human behavior, and Smith's overall goal of broad socioeconomic welfare. The balancing of moral and material motivations requires the social embeddedness of economic exchange within normative community frameworks. In this context, the sociopsychological process of moral approbation via Smith's impartial spectator mechanism has the potential to temper humans' tendency for excessive (material) self-love. Smith's scrutiny of internationally active corporations problematizes a range of institutional and governance issues and their implications for the moral bonds between individuals, MNCs, and global society. Most importantly, Smith worries about the potentially negative impact of increasingly anonymous and emotionally distant economic relationships between market participants on their ability to reckon with the moral consequences of their actions. Building on Smith's entangled perspective, the paper proposes a normatively grounded framework to critically contend with contemporary efforts to redefine corporate citizenship in the global economy.

Advancing Interdisciplinary Approaches to International Relations, 2016

Technological evolution has impacted foreign policy decision-making processes at the micro level ... more Technological evolution has impacted foreign policy decision-making processes at the micro level by facilitating data gathering and speeding up decision-making processes, thus adding another window on government behavior and international conflict. A technology-driven skill revolution has also contributed to the emergence of new actors (non-governmental organizations and individuals), and technological evolution has reshaped armed conflict and related decision-making processes.

Oxford Research Encyclopedia of International Studies, 2017

Generally considered one of the central driving forces behind globalization, communication has pr... more Generally considered one of the central driving forces behind globalization, communication has provided the backbone for deep integration of global trade, finance, culture, and so on. Although the importance of knowledge, information, and communication has been widely accepted in contemporary economic and political thought, their economic function only became the subject of scientific interest from a variety of disciplinary perspectives during the 1930s and 1940s. From the early 1950s on, a growing body of scholarly work from various disciplines began to investigate the role of information and communication for the political economy of empires, states, business enterprises, and individuals. Aside from the generally growing economic significance of information and communication for the economic development of societies, the commodification of information itself has become the subject of investigation by political economists. And since various technologies form the basis of internatio...

Cyberwar, Netwar and the Revolution in Military Affairs, 2006

Technology, defined as the accumulation of knowledge and artefacts for realizing human objectives... more Technology, defined as the accumulation of knowledge and artefacts for realizing human objectives in specifiable and reproducible ways,2 has always played a vital, if not central, role in international relations (IR) or international political economy (IPE). The history of the human race offers countless examples of this with regard to military, economic, social and cultural developments.3 The most profound effect of technological progress, especially since the fifteenth century, has been an increased density of the international system, caused by increasing and more rapid interaction. During the twentieth century, interaction capacities culminated in two important technological inventions: (1) nuclear weapons of mass destruction and their carrier systems; and (2) electrical and, later, electronic information and communication technologies (ICTs). The development of ICTs started in the second half of the nineteenth century (telegraph and telephone). Since the 1940s ICTs have spread to areas such as microelectronics and, computer technology (hardware), as well as related software development. Processes of convergence with telecommunication technologies and optoelectronics since the 1970s, enabled by the basic technological principle of digital binary code, have formed the basis for fundamental transformations in transnational politics, communication, finance, trade, production and culture.

21st Century Political Science: A Reference Handbook

International Studies Review, 2014

wiscnetwork.org

... countries' legitimate concerns over non-trade issues in less developed countries... more ... countries' legitimate concerns over non-trade issues in less developed countries, such as labor conditions, environmental destruction or gender discrimination, and actual trade ... developedcountries (LDCs) benefit from trade directly. Certification standards assure ...

Review of International Political Economy, Feb 25, 2010

... DOI: 10.1080/09692290902725002 Candace Archer a & Stefan Fritsch a pages 103-128. ...... more ... DOI: 10.1080/09692290902725002 Candace Archer a & Stefan Fritsch a pages 103-128. ... Some notable contributions include Raynolds et al. (2002, 2007), Fridell (2007a, 2007b), Jaffee (2007), and Hudson and Hudson (2003). ...

SAGE Publications, Inc. eBooks, Oct 11, 2012

Springer eBooks, Nov 25, 2016

Technological evolution has impacted foreign policy decision-making processes at the micro level ... more Technological evolution has impacted foreign policy decision-making processes at the micro level by facilitating data gathering and speeding up decision-making processes, thus adding another window on government behavior and international conflict. A technology-driven skill revolution has also contributed to the emergence of new actors (non-governmental organizations and individuals), and technological evolution has reshaped armed conflict and related decision-making processes.

Global power shift, 2014

Departing from Kranzberg’s thesis that technology is neither good, nor bad, nor neutral, this cha... more Departing from Kranzberg’s thesis that technology is neither good, nor bad, nor neutral, this chapter argues that technology as a multi-facetted—and ultimately deeply political—phenomenon impacts the global system in a variety of ways, thereby representing a formidable conceptual challenge to the disciplines of International Relations and International Political Economy. In order to theorize questions of systemic evolution between transformation and continuity, the goals and capabilities of actors, system conditions as well as technology-inherent aspects have to be analyzed in an integrated—and often interdisciplinary—way. The chapter argues that a combination of major perspectives of Science and Technology Studies and different theories of International Relations/International Political Economy enable us to highlight the ambivalence of technology and technology-related aspects of global politics and economics, such as power, interdependence, systemic interaction capacity and the socially constructed meaning/interpretation of technology. While focusing on the case of information and communication technologies, the chapter will demonstrate that by defining technology as an ambivalent endogenous core component of the global system, instead of relegating it to the role of a value-neutral external and residual variable, technology itself increasingly becomes the contested terrain on which security, economic and identity struggles play out.

Austrian Journal of Political Science, 2005

Obwohl Technologie viele Bereiche der internationalen Beziehungen/internationalen politischen Öko... more Obwohl Technologie viele Bereiche der internationalen Beziehungen/internationalen politischen Ökonomie entscheidend mitbeeinflusst, wird ihrer Rolle in den theoretischen Diskussionen nur wenig Aufmerksamkeit zuteil. Trotzdem sie für zahlreiche systemtransformierende Prozesse (Globalisierung/Transnationalisierung) mitverantwortlich zu machen ist, wird Technologie in der Regel als passives, exogenes und apolitisches Artefakt, das quasi von außen in das internationale System hineinwirkt, konzipiert. Stattdessen plädiert der Beitrag dafür, Technologie in ihren mannigfaltigen Erscheinungsformen und Auswirkungen als einen endogenen, sprich, systemimmanenten und politisch relevanten Faktor zu begreifen, der auch fest im internationalen System verhaftet ist und dort wirkt, parallel dazu und in zunehmendem Maße aber erst auf globaler Ebene hinsichtlich seiner systemischen Auswirkungen effizienter beeinflusst und (re)reguliert werden kann. Im Vordergrund des Beitrags steht der Versuch aufzuzeigen, inwiefern Ergebnisse sozialwissenschaftlicher Technikforschung (Technikphilosophie, Techniksoziologie, Technikgeschichte) Theoriediskussionen der Internationalen Beziehungen substantiell bereichern könnten.

Business and Politics, Apr 1, 2015

Contemporary discussions in the comparative political economy of innovation revolve specifically ... more Contemporary discussions in the comparative political economy of innovation revolve specifically around the question of globalization's impact on the observable diversity of innovation patterns, institutionally grounded comparative advantages of firms and countries as well as their evolution over time. The paper develops the concept of "contingent institutional adaptation" to trace institutional evolution at the firm level. It advances the idea that contingent adaptation can cause institutional hybridization, an evolutionary path defined by change and continuity, thereby offering a more nuanced concept of institutional evolution over time. In a historic single-case study the paper investigates the German Siemens AG and its efforts to remain on the cutting-edge of major information and communication technologies in two time periods (1847-1914; 1989-2013), both marked by institutional adaptations resulting in hybridization. Ultimately, institutional hybridization led to Siemens' retreat from all information and communication technology sectors.

Oxford Research Encyclopedia of International Studies

Traditionally, international relations (IR) conceptualized technology primarily as a static, neut... more Traditionally, international relations (IR) conceptualized technology primarily as a static, neutral, and passive tool, which emanates from impenetrable black boxes outside the international system. According to this predominant instrumental understanding of technology, IR “added” technology as a residual variable to existing explanatory frameworks. Consequently, qualitative systemic change—as well as continuity—could only be addressed within existing models and their respective core variables. Subsequently, traditional approaches increasingly experienced difficulties to adequately capture and explain empirically observable systemic changes in the form of growing interdependence, globalization, or trans-nationalization, as well as a plethora of technology-induced new policy challenges. Contrary to traditional conceptualizations, a growing number of scholars have instead embarked on a project to open the “black box” by redefining technology as a highly political and integral core com...

Global Society, 2008

... all Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), (5) the Convention against Torture (CAT ..... more ... all Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), (5) the Convention against Torture (CAT ...Milton Friedman, “The Social Responsibility of Business is to Increase its Profits”, in ... Economist, “Profit and the Public Good: A Survey of Corporate Social Responsibility” (22 January ...

Review of International Political Economy

This paper engages Adam Smith's reflections concerning the moral and economic dimensions ... more This paper engages Adam Smith's reflections concerning the moral and economic dimensions of business-society relations in the context of the Multinational Corporation (MNC). The paper argues that Smith formulates a pronounced moral criticism of prevailing corporate business practices, which emphasize profit while de facto undermining the moral underpinnings and social cohesion of commercial society. Rather than simply promoting selfish profit maximization by individuals, businesses, and society at large, Smith's work reveals a deeply entangled analysis of the complex interplay between material interests, moral aspects of human behavior, and Smith's overall goal of broad socioeconomic welfare. The balancing of moral and material motivations requires the social embeddedness of economic exchange within normative community frameworks. In this context, the sociopsychological process of moral approbation via Smith's impartial spectator mechanism has the potential to temper humans' tendency for excessive (material) self-love. Smith's scrutiny of internationally active corporations problematizes a range of institutional and governance issues and their implications for the moral bonds between individuals, MNCs, and global society. Most importantly, Smith worries about the potentially negative impact of increasingly anonymous and emotionally distant economic relationships between market participants on their ability to reckon with the moral consequences of their actions. Building on Smith's entangled perspective, the paper proposes a normatively grounded framework to critically contend with contemporary efforts to redefine corporate citizenship in the global economy.

Review of International Political Economy, 2022

This paper engages Adam Smith's reflections concerning the moral and economic dimensions of busin... more This paper engages Adam Smith's reflections concerning the moral and economic dimensions of business-society relations in the context of the Multinational Corporation (MNC). The paper argues that Smith formulates a pronounced moral criticism of prevailing corporate business practices, which emphasize profit while de facto undermining the moral underpinnings and social cohesion of commercial society. Rather than simply promoting selfish profit maximization by individuals, businesses, and society at large, Smith's work reveals a deeply entangled analysis of the complex interplay between material interests, moral aspects of human behavior, and Smith's overall goal of broad socioeconomic welfare. The balancing of moral and material motivations requires the social embeddedness of economic exchange within normative community frameworks. In this context, the sociopsychological process of moral approbation via Smith's impartial spectator mechanism has the potential to temper humans' tendency for excessive (material) self-love. Smith's scrutiny of internationally active corporations problematizes a range of institutional and governance issues and their implications for the moral bonds between individuals, MNCs, and global society. Most importantly, Smith worries about the potentially negative impact of increasingly anonymous and emotionally distant economic relationships between market participants on their ability to reckon with the moral consequences of their actions. Building on Smith's entangled perspective, the paper proposes a normatively grounded framework to critically contend with contemporary efforts to redefine corporate citizenship in the global economy.

Review of International Political Economy, 2022

This paper engages Adam Smith's reflections concerning the moral and economic dimensions of busin... more This paper engages Adam Smith's reflections concerning the moral and economic dimensions of business-society relations in the context of the Multinational Corporation (MNC). The paper argues that Smith formulates a pronounced moral criticism of prevailing corporate business practices, which emphasize profit while de facto undermining the moral underpinnings and social cohesion of commercial society. Rather than simply promoting selfish profit maximization by individuals, businesses, and society at large, Smith's work reveals a deeply entangled analysis of the complex interplay between material interests, moral aspects of human behavior, and Smith's overall goal of broad socioeconomic welfare. The balancing of moral and material motivations requires the social embeddedness of economic exchange within normative community frameworks. In this context, the sociopsychological process of moral approbation via Smith's impartial spectator mechanism has the potential to temper humans' tendency for excessive (material) self-love. Smith's scrutiny of internationally active corporations problematizes a range of institutional and governance issues and their implications for the moral bonds between individuals, MNCs, and global society. Most importantly, Smith worries about the potentially negative impact of increasingly anonymous and emotionally distant economic relationships between market participants on their ability to reckon with the moral consequences of their actions. Building on Smith's entangled perspective, the paper proposes a normatively grounded framework to critically contend with contemporary efforts to redefine corporate citizenship in the global economy.

Advancing Interdisciplinary Approaches to International Relations, 2016

Technological evolution has impacted foreign policy decision-making processes at the micro level ... more Technological evolution has impacted foreign policy decision-making processes at the micro level by facilitating data gathering and speeding up decision-making processes, thus adding another window on government behavior and international conflict. A technology-driven skill revolution has also contributed to the emergence of new actors (non-governmental organizations and individuals), and technological evolution has reshaped armed conflict and related decision-making processes.

Oxford Research Encyclopedia of International Studies, 2017

Generally considered one of the central driving forces behind globalization, communication has pr... more Generally considered one of the central driving forces behind globalization, communication has provided the backbone for deep integration of global trade, finance, culture, and so on. Although the importance of knowledge, information, and communication has been widely accepted in contemporary economic and political thought, their economic function only became the subject of scientific interest from a variety of disciplinary perspectives during the 1930s and 1940s. From the early 1950s on, a growing body of scholarly work from various disciplines began to investigate the role of information and communication for the political economy of empires, states, business enterprises, and individuals. Aside from the generally growing economic significance of information and communication for the economic development of societies, the commodification of information itself has become the subject of investigation by political economists. And since various technologies form the basis of internatio...

Cyberwar, Netwar and the Revolution in Military Affairs, 2006

Technology, defined as the accumulation of knowledge and artefacts for realizing human objectives... more Technology, defined as the accumulation of knowledge and artefacts for realizing human objectives in specifiable and reproducible ways,2 has always played a vital, if not central, role in international relations (IR) or international political economy (IPE). The history of the human race offers countless examples of this with regard to military, economic, social and cultural developments.3 The most profound effect of technological progress, especially since the fifteenth century, has been an increased density of the international system, caused by increasing and more rapid interaction. During the twentieth century, interaction capacities culminated in two important technological inventions: (1) nuclear weapons of mass destruction and their carrier systems; and (2) electrical and, later, electronic information and communication technologies (ICTs). The development of ICTs started in the second half of the nineteenth century (telegraph and telephone). Since the 1940s ICTs have spread to areas such as microelectronics and, computer technology (hardware), as well as related software development. Processes of convergence with telecommunication technologies and optoelectronics since the 1970s, enabled by the basic technological principle of digital binary code, have formed the basis for fundamental transformations in transnational politics, communication, finance, trade, production and culture.

21st Century Political Science: A Reference Handbook

International Studies Review, 2014

wiscnetwork.org

... countries' legitimate concerns over non-trade issues in less developed countries... more ... countries' legitimate concerns over non-trade issues in less developed countries, such as labor conditions, environmental destruction or gender discrimination, and actual trade ... developedcountries (LDCs) benefit from trade directly. Certification standards assure ...