Doctoral Dissertation Research: Business Unity and Anti-Corporate Social Movement Protests in the U.S., 2000-2010

Suny At Stony Brook, Stony Brook NY

Investigators

Abstract

Michael Schwartz Tarun Banerjee SUNY at Stony Brook What determines how large corporations in the U.S. respond to social protest against them? Firms show a lot of variation in their strategies, sometimes accommodating demands, and at other times, taking strong stands against concessions or even retaliating against protesters. Why do these firms respond so differently? This research studies the influence of social relations of the corporate elite. Do firms undertake differing strategies based on individual firm-level factors or do they also develop these strategies socially? If they do so socially, do the corporate elite show unity in their strategies? The research incorporates organizational sociology and economic theory to identify relevant firm-level characteristics that impact responses to protests. Social movement theory is incorporated to assess the influence protests may have on firms. Finally, unity theory is used to explain the impact of networks formed between companies. The researchers will used these networks to test whether unified behavior is not just the convergence of individual interest but is socially constructed and results from collective action. Logistic multi-level random effects models will be run, with a protest against a firm in the sample as the unit of analysis. The research also builds a database of protests in the U.S. from 2000 to 2010. This study has two main scholarly contributions. First, this is the most in-depth study on the strategies of the business elite around protests. Previous research has been limited by protest type or impact. Second, this is the first study to quantify the role of corporate networks in their strategies against protests. While it is understood that corporations are not asocial independent actors, no quantitative studies of protests have yet measured the influence of their social relations on their responses to protest. Broader Impacts Currently there is an incomplete understanding of the political actions of firms, and activists operate without full knowledge of the degree to which the social relations of firms impede or aid their efforts. Given the prominence of anti-corporate protests (under the Occupy Wall Street banner as well as others), this is a consequential time for many movements and policy actors. The time period under study covers significant political and economic occurrences -- including the 2007 financial collapse and housing crisis, the shrinking of the public sector, and the increasing consolidation of political and economic power by large corporations -- further confirming the need for research to better understand the phenomena of large corporations and those that oppose them.