In the name of harmony and prosperity: Labor and gender politics in Taiwan's recent economic restructuring.
Item
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Title
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In the name of harmony and prosperity: Labor and gender politics in Taiwan's recent economic restructuring.
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Identifier
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AAI9946187
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identifier
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9946187
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Creator
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Lee, Anru.
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Contributor
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Adviser: June Nash
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Date
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1999
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Language
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English
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Publisher
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City University of New York.
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Subject
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Anthropology, Cultural | Women's Studies | Sociology, Industrial and Labor Relations | Economics, Labor | Sociology, Social Structure and Development
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Abstract
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Taiwai's industrial sector has witnessed a drastic restructuring since the late 1980s. After several decades of successful export-oriented industrialization, Taiwan faces intensified competition from other recently industrializing nations in Asia. To reinvigorate the process of capital accumulation, Taiwanese manufacturers developed cost-effective strategies, including exploring new sources of cheap labor. They also relocate production overseas and import foreign workers to the country. As a result, the Taiwanese economy has become increasingly internationalized and transnationalized.;In the wake of this industrial restructuring, several paradoxes were apparent, among them was the contradictory phenomena of labor shortage and plant relocation. Centered in the paradox between manufacturers' complaint of labor shortage and the fact of plant relocation and subsequent lay-offs, this dissertation examines the labor and gender politics in the recent economic restructuring. The major goal of this dissertation is to contribute to a deeper understanding of East Asian political economy and modernity. This is approached in two directions. First, through the recent change in Taiwan's industrial sector, and Taiwan's new role in the Asian Pacific regional economy, we observed a renewed phase of capital accumulation. The strategies implemented to respond to these challenges shed light on the long-standing questions of East Asian development Concomitantly, by looking at the contradictions in cultural belief and social relations brought to light by the recent restructuring, we are able to see closely the specific dynamics between global economic forces and Taiwan's own cultural and social systems. This in turn increases our knowledge of the nature of contemporary industrial capitalism and its diversity of forms, as it penetrates to almost all comers of the earth and affects most of the world's societies and economies. My guiding premise is that cultural differences have a profound effect on local variations of global industrialization. This case study of Taiwan differs not only from the process of industrialization in the West but also from other Asian societies.
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Type
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dissertation
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Source
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PQT Legacy CUNY.xlsx
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degree
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Ph.D.
