Competition: What It Is and Why It Happens

Description

The spread of competition into all areas of society is one of the master trends of modern society. Yet, social scientists have played a surprisingly modest role in the analysis of its implications as the discussion of competition has largely been confined to the narrow context of economic markets. This book opens up competition for the study of social scientists. The central message of the book is that competition seems ubiquitous but it should not be taken for granted or be naturalized as an inevitable aspect of human existence. Its emergence, maintenance, and change are based on institutions and organizational efforts, and a central challenge for social science is to learn more about these processes and their outcomes. With the use of a novel definition of competition, more fundamental questions can be addressed than merely whether or not competition works. How is competition constructed—and by whom? Which institutional and organizational foundations need to be considered? Which behaviours result from competition? What are its consequences? Can competition be removed? And, how do these factors vary with the object of competition—be it money, attention, status, or other scarce and desired objects? The chapters in the book investigate these and more questions in studies of competition among and within schools, universities, multinational corporations, auditors, waste-disposal firms, and fashion designers and users. The chapters are written by scholars from several social science fields: management, organization studies, sociology, anthropology, and education. Title_Pages Preface List_of_figures_and_tables List_of_contributors A_new_understanding_of_competition Competition_as_sense_making Competition_by_mutual_adjustment The_origins_of_competition_institution_and_organization Convincing_others_that_they_are_competing_the_case_of_schools Constructing_competition_for_status_sports_and_higher_education Avoiding_competition_the_effects_of_rankings_in_the_food_waste_field Competition_and_auditing_esteemed_but_incompatible_ideas The_allure_of_prizes_how_contests_trap_us_in_competitive_relationships The_organization_of_competition_and_noncompetition_in_schools Cooperating_while_competing_in_multinational_corporations Reversing_competition_the_case_of_corporate_governance Debunking_the_holy_trinity_competition_individualism_and_meritocracy Competition_unbundled_taking_stock_and_looking_forward Index