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Call for papers

Conference on "Globalization and Economic Nationalism in Asia," December 3-4, 2009, Copenhagen

Arranged by: Asia Research Centre, Copenhagen Business School
Economic nationalism is not new. Mercantilist practices by European trading nations followed by protection of domestic industries in Europe and Japan and later in many Asian and developing countries in the post World War II period have characterized much of global capitalism. Economic nationalism has been justified on the basis of national security and the well-being of citizens. With the rise of neoliberal ideology and its practice by multinationals through foreign direct investments (FDI) for global economic integration, economic nationalism has been on the retreat, at least superficially, and in the context of the current global financial crisis, perhaps temporarily. Many Asian countries have benefited from global engagement: the four "Asian dragons,, followed by South East Asian economies, China since the reforms of 1979, and India since the reforms begun in the 1980s.
To some degree globalization has been credited with Asia's economic, political, technological, and cultural resurgence but economic nationalism has been and continues to be a factor of Asian development. We posit that new forms of economic nationalism are coming to light precisely because of vulnerabilities associated with globalization or additional opportunities that the world economy offers. In other words, economic nationalism coexists with globalization as disputes over trade, investment, balance of payments, exchange rate controls, immigration, and intellectual property rights persist. This new nationalism is not practiced with the usual tariff- and non-tariff-based instruments or with disincentives to foreign investment. Rather, anti-foreigner sentiment, backlash against offshoring, pressure to revalue currencies, promotion of domestic development, techno-nationalism, ethnic-based social networks, and national governments leveraging their diasporas for economic and political gains are some examples of contemporary forms of economic nationalism. We believe that the current global financial crisis can be expected to correct some of the past excesses of a deregulated economic system, which has focused more on growth and less on social policies, and thereby resurrect economic nationalism in new ways through policies of inclusive growth and development.
This conference calls for papers that directly address the significance of economic nationalism in Asia in an era of changing global capitalism. How economic nationalism has changed in the last 30 years in Asia and where and how it might be heading are central questions that this conference will try to address. Comparative, regional, and sectoral approaches as well as strong Asia-specific theoretical and empirical papers are most welcome. Given the nature of the theme, interdisciplinary, political-economic, sociological, and historically-sensitive analysis will be seen as the most appropriate. A non-exhaustive list of interrelated questions on the theme of Asian economic nationalism is presented below:
  1. Can we establish that economic nationalism is alive and well today among Asian countries?
  2. If not how has economic nationalism changed and what has replaced it?
  3. What is the popular perception of the role of the state in Asian countries under globalization?
  4. What is the political economy of different economic sectors that are still regulated based on nationalist arguments?
  5. What are the differences among Asian economies in the practices of economic nationalism?
  6. How do political parties at the national level influence economic nationalism?
  7. What are the responses of business associations and ethnic groups in responding to globalization and by extension to economic nationalism?
  8. Do businesses resort to economic nationalism through their organizational and managerial practices?
  9. What are the ways international competitive pressure undermines economic nationalism?
  10. What is the role of labor and national politics in economic nationalism?
  11. How do global institutions influence economic nationalism in Asia?
  12. What happens to social policy under globalization and under economic nationalism?
  13. Do larger countries have more political space to practice economic nationalism?
  14. What are the effects of exports and outsourcing on economic nationalism in advanced capitalist countries? Is there reverse economic nationalism?
  15. What is the relationship between economic nationalism and immigrants, both unskilled and professional?
  16. Can overseas citizens (diaspora) support or undermine economic nationalism in their home countries?
  17. How do national cultures, popular and otherwise, contribute to contemporary economic nationalism in Asia?
  18. What might be the effects of the global crisis on the theory and practice of economic nationalism in Asian countries, especially in terms of domestic social policies?
Abstracts:
Scholars who wish to present at the conference are invited to submit an expanded 5-page (double- spaced) abstract and a 100-200 words biography in pdf format electronically by July 27, 2009 to: arc@cbs.dk
Abstracts of the proposed papers should include:
  1. Title
  2. An indication of the subtheme to which it belongs (see 1-18 above)
  3. Keywords
  4. A clear discussion of the paper's argument and major conclusions
  5. Name(s) of author(s)
  6. Position and institutional affiliation
  7. Complete postal address, e-mail address, telephone, and fax number
Applicants will be notified about their submissions shortly after the deadline.
Abstracts (and papers) will be accepted for review on the condition that they have not been copyrighted or previously published. All submissions will be peer reviewed by a scientific committee and abstracts will be selected on the basis of relevance to the conference theme, intellectual contribution, and an overall balance among topics and countries/regions represented. Selected papers will be published as either an edited volume or in a special issue of a relevant journal.
Papers:
Complete papers of 7,000-10,000 words must be submitted by October 25, 2009. See Stylesheet GENA for details
Note:
The conference organizers will make every effort to provide economy airfare and accommodation for presenters whose papers are selected by the scientific committee.

Last updated by Bente Faurby 17/11/2009