Peer-Reviewed Publications
You can find papers that are under review or in progress here. All my publications (including non-peer reviewed papers) are listed on my CV.
Two Sides of the Same Coin: Why and How Equitable Distribution and Representation Matter for Innovation in Real Places (w/ Dan Breznitz)
The broad social desirability of innovation is increasingly being questioned, particularly in rich, industrially advanced nations. While there is much research on the distributional consequences of innovation-led growth, societal representation in the production of innovation has received considerably less attention despite being just as vital when aiming to advance the social good. By drawing on Hanna F. Pitkin’s (1967) work on democratic representation, we distinguish different forms of representation and assess when it is truly meaningful in the production of innovation. We argue that the equitable representation, which requires both “descriptive” and “substantive” forms, is not only normatively but also functionally desirable. Among other things, it can enhance product–market fit and technology adoption, boosting business performance and growth. It can also lead to a fairer mid- to long-term distribution of innovation rents by expanding the base of innovators. Therefore, we view equitable representation and distribution as two sides of the same coin; that is, innovation-led growth benefiting the social good in real places. We introduce “representation-sensitive innovation policies” as targeted policy tools to benefit innovation-led growth and, at the same time, facilitate more equitable representation.
Conducting a Street-Intercept Survey in an Authoritarian Regime: The Case of Myanmar
In this research note, I share my experiences conducting a street-intercept survey in Yangon, Myanmar. The prestudy aimed to measure postmaterialism among Burmese using Roland Inglehart’s four-item measure. The article discusses the key features and advantages of the street-intercept survey method in difficult sociopolitical environments, the design and implementation of the study, as well as the results of the survey. Moreover, the ethics one ought to consider in authoritarian regimes are emphasized. The prestudy confirmed the feasibility and the advantages of the street-intercept survey method in Myanmar. At the same time, in Myanmar, difficulties in the translation of Inglehart’s items raise questions regarding the applicability of this particular measure. This note will be useful for researchers intending to collect survey data in Myanmar and other authoritarian regimes.
Introducing the Myanmar Protest Event Dataset: Motivation, Methodology and Research Prospects
This article presents the Myanmar Protest Event Dataset, a unique dataset on protest assemblies in transitional Myanmar/Burma. The data contents were derived from the most visible forms of assembly – demonstrations, protest marches and labour strikes – and collected through a protest event analysis of local news reports. The coded variables range from information on the actual moment of the protest event, such as participants, issue, duration and location, to the aftermath, including variables related to legal consequences for protesters and the success of protesters’ claims, and many others. Besides a concise description of the research design and data collection process, this article discusses methodological strengths and weaknesses of the dataset.
Protest and Democratization in Myanmar (German)
Myanmar has been perceived to be in a sociopolitical and economic transition since the semi-civilian government under President Thein Sein took office in 2011. Amongst other things, for a representative democracy to function, citizens have to have the freedom to express their opinions and deliberate them with fellow citizens. This requires the secure granting of fundamental civil liberties, as prescribed in the freedom of expression, association, and assembly. Hence, once in the process of democratization, a formerly authoritarian state has to make significant improvements in the granting and protection of these rights too. To empirically test whether Myanmar has made such improvements since 2011 is the goal of a greater research project I am working on. This research note introduces the project and summarizes first findings. By combining knowledge on legal reforms and protest data from the Myanmar Protest Event Dataset, it is suggested that, in Myanmar, the de jure exercisability and de facto exercise of fundamental civil liberties have significantly improved from 2011 to 2015. Informal methods of suppressing the right to protest, such as arbitrary violence, have increasingly descended while methods that are formally in accordance with the rule of law but still lack compliance with international human rights standards have ascended.