Netzwerke: Paradigmatische Grundlage chinabezogener Wirtschaftsforschung? Eine kritische Betrachtung ausgewählter Literatur

Abstract

The concept of "networks" has gained prominence in recent analytical studies of China and the Asia-Pacific. This paper surveys the theoretical and empirical issues raised by the network-approach by means of reviewing some recent literature. After sketching the boom of that idea not only in Asian studies but also in other fields, the theoretical content is discussed: "Networks" simply refer to any kind of social interaction which is not covered by the ideal-typical classes of the anonymous market and the perfect hierarchical order. Networks are thus a universal social phenomenon and by no means confined to a specific cultural area. However, there may be culturally specific kinds of networks. In the Chinese case, the idea of networks is even linked with the concept of Chinese identity. Yet, a survey of some important contributions does not lead to a clear conclusion, because there is no discussion of the possible influence of different customary belief systems on behavior, apart from a stylized and idealized use of the concept of "Confucianism". Nor does research in social psychology provide any clear empirical proof of a specifically Chinese approach towards networking. Instead, empirical research seems to suffer from a hermeneutical circle between positivistic methodologies and "indigenization" of analytical categories. The paper reaches the conclusion that the concept of networks as a culturally specific phenomenon is flawed unless it is linked with detailed comparative studies by inter-cultural research teams.