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On the web since fall 2000

Journal of Economic Sociology is indexed by Emerging Sources Citation Index (ESCI) from Web of Science™ Core Collection

Funded by the National Research University Higher School of Economics since 2007.

2025. Vol. 26. No. 1

Full text of the journal

Editor’s Foreword (Vadim Radaev)
P. 7–10

New Texts

Natalia Tikhonova
Specifics of the Financial Behaviour of Russians under the Influence of External Shocks in Recent Years
P. 11–38

The article describes the specifics of savings, credit, and debt behavior among representatives of the mass strata of the country’s population, as well as the dynamics of these changes from 2003 to 2023. It shows that this behavior is an important indicator reflecting not only the dynamics of Russians’ material wellbeing and their expectations for the future but also their perception of current events. New trends in the financial behavior of the mass strata, formed under the influence of recent external shocks, are revealed, including an increase in savings activity due to growing uncertainty about the future and a decrease in the share of individuals burdened by credit and debt, despite an increase in the volume of this burden among those who are tolerant of it. Additionally, it is shown that several provisions of classical concepts regarding the financial behavior of the population “work” in Russia with certain peculiarities. For example, while income levels affect the amount saved, they have little influence on saving activity itself. Savings, including substantial savings, are most common among older age groups (65+), rather than those nearing retirement age. Furthermore, savings are primarily accumulated not for specific expenditures but “for a rainy day.” Regarding factors influencing financial behavior, a decisive role among macro-level factors is played by feelings of uncertainty about personal and national futures. Consequently, even during periods of low income, in the presence of this uncertainty, individuals prefer to preserve their savings and reduce credit burdens. At the micro level, key determinants of savings behavior include planning horizons, subjective feelings of social and economic well-being, and approaching retirement age. In terms of credit and debt behavior, planning horizon is less significant, with general tolerance for debt coming to the fore.

New Translations

Stephan Moebius
Sociology in Germany. A History (excerpt)
P. 39–51

The book presented by Professor Moebius is dedicated to the history of sociology in Germany from the late 19th century to the present day. It reflects on the era of the German Empire, the processes of institutionalization during the Weimar Republic, and the profound rupture caused by National Socialism; however, the author primarily focuses on the period after 1945. The book examines intellectual, institutional, and conflictual directions and trends in the history of German sociology within economic, political, social, and cultural contexts.
Since the mid-1990s, theories and research projects aimed at studying social alienation, temporary or precarious employment, and xenophobia have gained prominence in sociological thought. Additionally, there has been a significant increase in gender studies and various fields of cultural studies. The landscape of sociological theories in Germany has evolved: whereas grand theories once dominated, there is now a trend toward rapidly changing sociological diagnoses of contemporary society. Professor Moebius raises questions about how these contemporary trends relate to the history of sociology.
What is the purpose of this discipline? According to his perspective, the history of sociology is significant because it reflects society and analyzes its professional self-descriptions. Sociology is essential as it examines social effects and their consequences, as well as related ideological perspectives, struggles, and antagonistic power relations within the sociological field. The sociological analysis of sociology’s history reveals the dynamics of social phenomena within the science of society, thereby enhancing orderliness, self-reflection, and clarity within this discipline.
The “Journal of Economic Sociology” publishes a brief excerpt titled “Contemporary Trends and Discussions” from the book.

Beyond Borders

Vadim Ustyuzhanin, Egor Fain, Andrey Korotayev
Impact of Economic Inequality on the Probability of Revolutionary Events: The World Experience from 1995 to 2021
P. 52–89

The article tests several hypotheses about the impact of wealth and income inequality, as well as inequality in human capital, on the risks of armed and unarmed revolutions. Using the revolutionary destabilization database from the Center for Stability and Risk Analysis (CSRA) at HSE University, along with data collected by Mark Beissinger, the study analyzes most countries worldwide from 1995 to 2021 and tests several hypotheses. The study has shown that income inequality—particularly wealth inequality— has a curvilinear inverted U-shaped relationship with the likelihood of both unarmed and armed revolutionary uprisings. The likelihood of revolutionary uprisings increases as income inequality (especially wealth inequality) rises, but only up to a certain level; further increases in such inequality lead to the elite concentrating a disproportionately high share of resources, enabling them to maintain power by using these resources to suppress opposition and/or coopt part of it. In the case of unarmed revolutions, this dependence is observed only for wealth inequality, while income inequality does not demonstrate a significant correlation with the probability of unarmed revolutionary uprisings. Conversely, for armed revolutions, the described relationship is evident for both wealth and income inequality. When considering inequality in access to education and healthcare—critical components of human capital growth—the risks of revolutionary destabilization for elites, driven by the hyperconcentration of consumption of these services in their hands, continue to grow with increasing inequality, regardless of how high it reaches. However, the benefits of this hyperconcentration are not straightforward, as it does not allow for co-optation and suppression of discontented individuals in the same manner as the concentration of wealth or income does. Consequently, any increase in inequality in access to education and healthcare—regardless of its magnitude—has a destabilizing effect, raising the likelihood of both armed and unarmed revolutionary uprisings.

Ilya Vaskin
The Guardian Council of Iran (1980-2022): Social and Professional Recruitment Factors
P. 90–112

The article analyzes the socio-demographic composition of the secular jurists and faqihs of the Iranian Guardian Council. The Guardian Council is a hybrid institution that performs the functions of an upper chamber of parliament, a constitutional court, and an electoral committee. The research employs a structural-demographic method. The research dataset consists of seven Guardian Councils, from 1980 to 2022, with 51 members and 123 appointments. The results of the study show that there are structural differences between secular jurists and fuqaha. Secular jurists are, on average, younger than fuqaha in terms of both minimum and maximum age. Fuqaha primarily study in seminaries, while secular lawyers attend universities and also receive degrees in France and Britain. Secular lawyers are not professionally homogeneous; among them are former employees of the courts, the prosecutor’s office, the state civil service, lawyers, and academics. The regional origins of secular jurists and fuqaha also differ significantly; they share only one unifying province, Isfahan, which may be due to the significant role of patrimonial ties in the recruitment of elites. Overall, this difference indicates the presence of two legal cultures: secular and Islamic, which are reflected in different socio-demographic patterns in recruiting members of the Guardian Council. The professionalization and socialization of these groups greatly influence their decision-making in various forms of social life, including the legislative branch to which the Guardian Council belongs. However, this study is limited to the secular jurists and fuqaha of the Council.

Debut Studies

Georgii Stalinov
The Practice of Reproducing Solidarity among Truckers, Couriers and Taxi Drivers
P. 113–142

Couriers, taxi drivers and truckers are atomized workers who move daily in public spaces outside of work collectives. Nevertheless, they are able to maintain community solidarity through self-organizing practices. I compare the practices of interaction and mutual assistance in three groups through the theory of structuration by E. Giddens. The work is based on observations and interviews collected on 45 trips with truckers, as well as a systematic review of scientific articles describing the self-organization of couriers and taxi drivers.
Truckers, couriers and taxi drivers reproduce labor solidarity through self-organization practices implemented “face to face” and in virtual space. I have typologized practices according to their functions and the level of altruism. I have categorized these practices according to their functions and levels of altruism. Of particular importance in reproducing self-organization within a community are spatial points where workers meet daily on their routes, communicate with each other during stops, and wait for orders. Solidarity encompasses large masses of logistics workers, as weak ties arise within the labor communities of entire cities or even states (among truckers), rather than in local offices and enterprises. Platform couriers and taxi drivers, due to their ability to manage their own time, have more freedom for self-organization than hired truckers who work under restrictions and rules imposed by employers. However, under conditions of spatial remoteness, employers are not always able to exercise control over the activities of their subordinates; therefore, “free spaces” are formed in which employees can violate established rules with impunity.

New Books

Anna Banko
How Beautiful Girls’ Labor Becomes Leisure: The Relational Work of Elite Parties Participants
Book review: Mears A. (2022) Ochen vazhnye lyudi. Status i krasota v mire elitnykh vecherinok [Very Important People: Status and Beauty in the Global Party Circuit], Moscow: AST (in Russian). 448 p.
P. 143–152

The continuous increase in global income inequality has led to the public censure of big money to demonstrate social status. However, rich people can spend large amounts of money without moral hazard at elite parties. A book by Ashley Mears, a professor of sociology at Boston University and the University of Amsterdam, ‘Very Important People: Status and Beauty in the Global Party Circuit’ is an ethnography based on interviews and field observations at VIP parties. The author attended over one hundred parties in New York, Miami, the Hamptons, St Tropez and Cannes between 2011 and 2013. The book reveals the inner dynamics of VIP parties: their participants and the hierarchy between them, the meanings that actors invest in parties and in their relationships with other participants. It raises the issue of gender inequality and shows how in the context of this inequality actors find benefits for themselves, not always expressed in monetary terms.
The review shows that the world of VIP parties is an aesthetic labor market. Here economic logic is deeply embedded in the social relations between actors. The concept of relational work is used to explain why the gender inequality between of male promoters and attractive girls is acceptable to actors. The process of relational work may be interesting for economic sociologists, along with the processes of accretion and conversion of various forms of capital. By applying these approaches, it is possible to offer an alternative to Ashley Mears’ critical discourse of relative gender inequality in the world of VIP.
The conclusion speculates on what the world of VIP parties might look like in the Russian context.

Supplements (in English)

Anna Tikhomirova
Consumption in the Сrisis Сontext: Literature Review
P. 154–180

Consumption is a focal element of modern society. Dynamic by nature, it reflects diverse societal changes facilitated by a variety of external factors, including crises. Consumption practices in times of crisis have drawn considerable scholarly attention and are reflected in the vast amount of research that requires systematization and generalization.
Given the significance of this topic, the research primarily aims to identify the main types of crises that draw scholarly attention in relation to consumption and to provide an overview of the scholarly literature focused on consumption practices during these crises. To achieve this goal, the mixed literature review approach, consisting of bibliometric analysis and systematic literature review, is adopted within the framework of the present study. In total, 48 multidisciplinary empirical research articles published between 2007 and 2024 and compiled using the set selection criteria, underwent analysis. In the selected corpus of research, three predominant types of crises are identified: economic/financial, energy, and COVID-19. This analysis extends beyond insights into consumer behavior, delving into crisis stressors, consumer coping practices, approaches to their analysis, and further research perspectives. The findings demonstrate a number of similarities and highlight significant differences in crisis discourses. The study contributes to the range of literature devoted to the analysis of consumption behavior in the crisis domain. It summarizes existing approaches and draws attention to existing research gaps and further research perspectives.

 
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