STRUCTURAL POWER AND THE CONSTRUCTION OF MARKETS: THE CASE OF RHYTHM AND BLUES

Timothy J Dowd

doi:10.1016/S0195-6310(03)21006-1

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Comparative Social Research

ISSN: 0195-6310
Series editor(s): Dr Fredrik Engelstad

Subject Area: Sociology and Public Policy

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STRUCTURAL POWER AND THE CONSTRUCTION OF MARKETS: THE CASE OF RHYTHM AND BLUES

Document Information:
Title:	STRUCTURAL POWER AND THE CONSTRUCTION OF MARKETS: THE CASE OF RHYTHM AND BLUES
Author(s):	Timothy J Dowd
Volume:	21 Editor(s): Fredrik Engelstad ISBN: 978-0-76230-885-9 eISBN: 978-1-84950-155-2
Citation:	Timothy J Dowd (2003), STRUCTURAL POWER AND THE CONSTRUCTION OF MARKETS: THE CASE OF RHYTHM AND BLUES, in Fredrik Engelstad (ed.) Comparative Studies of Culture and Power (Comparative Social Research, Volume 21), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, pp.147-201
DOI:	10.1016/S0195-6310(03)21006-1 (Permanent URL)
Publisher:	Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Article type:	Chapter Item
Extract:	Realist and constructionist accounts also diverge in their treatment of power. Realists often gloss over the role of power in markets, or they treat it as an impediment to the smooth functioning of markets (see Adams & Brock, 1991). Constructionists treat power as a fundamental aspect of markets, with some demonstrating how power struggles define the path along which a market develops. A camp in economic sociology offers a notable example. Its proponents stress (implicitly or explicitly) the concept of structural power – “the ability to determine the context within which decisions are made by affecting the consequence of one alternative over another” (Roy, 1997, p. 13). When explaining the development of particular markets, they show that shifts in structural power can alter the impact of competition (Fligstein, 1990), demand (Zelizer, 1978), and technology (Dowd, 2002). Such studies thereby reveal the emergent nature of markets and highlight the constitutive role of power.