2010. Vol. 11. No. 1

The article is devoted to a new organizational form of a large private agricultural enterprise (or «oligarchozes») originated from post-Soviet collective-owned enterprises (kolkhozes). The fi eldwork was conducted in several villages of Perm region in 2008. The author tries to  fi nd answers on the following questions: where did «oligarchozes» come from? what relations are being formed between local rural communities, the state and new Russian rural oligarchs? what are major similarities and differences between old-type postkolkhozes and new «oligarchozes»?

What makes organizations so similar? We argue that the engine of bureaucratization and rationalization has moved from the competitive marketplace to the state and the professions. Once a set of organizations emerges as a fi eld, an unusual paradox arises: trying to change them actors make organizations similar. We describe three isomorphic processes — coercive, mimetic, normative — contributing to this outcome. Then we formulate hypotheses about the impact of resource centralization and dependency, goal ambiguity and technical uncertainty, and professionalization and structuration on isomorphic change. Finally we suggest some implications for theories of organizations and social change.

The paper investigates market culture from the structural perspective. This analysis focuses on the Magadan grocery retail trade represented by four different organizational types: open-air market, traditional grocery store, supermarket, and chain stores. The author raises the following questions: how do social ties’ configurations reflect the market culture? How do social practices of market actors turn out to be an important principle of structuration of the market culture?

The paper describes how the market meets culture in modern Russian cinema through the technologies of product placement. Interpreting data of the expert interviews and using content analysis of modern Russian blockbusters, the author reveals peculiarities of product placement in contemporary Russian cinema. Commercialisation of domestic film production industry is also analysed.product placement

Economic sociologists demonstrate an increasing interest to the issues of pricing in the consumer goods markets. This paper presents a systemiс overview of studies in economic sociology on pricing. It relates new research to the classical sociological concepts and indicate key research problems for the new economic sociology in the fi eld.