The Contested Relationship of Democracy and the Economy : Debates on Economic and Industrial Democracy in Finland and Sweden, 1960s–1990s

This study analyzes the contested and changing relation of democracy and the economy in Finnish and Swedish political thought and rhetoric from the 1960s until the 1990s. More specifically, it investigates how composite concepts such as ‘economic democracy,’ ‘industrial democracy’ and ‘enterprise democracy’ have been used in past political debates, what kinds of beliefs and concrete practices they have been related to, how they have been legitimized and criticized, and how their role has changed in political thought and rhetoric. The study utilizes theories and methods of conceptual history, combined with a broader approach to ‘history of thought.’ Concepts are analyzed as parts of semantic fields or ideational constellations, where their meaning, reference and valuation are shaped in relation to other concepts and beliefs. These constellations are reproduced, challenged and changed in everyday language use. The study’s empirical focus in Sweden and Finland allows contrasting political thought and the use of concepts as well as reflecting on possible conceptual transfers. The source material consists of books, articles and governmental documents dealing with economic and industrial democracy. Special attention is paid to the programs, manifestos and statements of political parties and labor market organizations. The main focus is on Social Democrats and Conservatives, as well as employer and trade union confederations. For most of the 20th century, ‘economic democracy’ was a key political concept in Finland and Sweden. Most groups agreed on the goal of giving citizens more power over economic decisions, but the concrete meaning of economic democracy was deeply contested. For the left, the concept meant societal planning and steering of the economy, as well as the power of employees in the workplace. For the right, economic democracy referred to the dispersion of private ownership to wider ranks of people, and consultative cooperation between employees and employers. In the 1990s, economic democracy practically vanished from the Finnish and Swedish political language. This is explained with dilemmas, such as economic crises, which challenged the existing beliefs and concepts of historical agents. Instead of democratization, national economies were to be liberalized and marketized in order to survive in global competition. In the new world of free capital flows, old ideas of economic democracy were set aside from mainstream political rhetoric. For advocates of the free market economy, it was safer to emphasize people’s economic role as free consumers and to separate this from their role as democratic citizens in the political sphere.

Grantor dc:publisher

Valtiotieteellinen tiedekunta

Year dc:date.issued

2019

Author dc:creator

• Kärrylä, Ilkka

Statement dc:rights

• Julkaisu on tekijänoikeussäännösten alainen. Teosta voi lukea ja tulostaa henkilökohtaista käyttöä varten. Käyttö kaupallisiin tarkoituksiin on kielletty.
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• Publikationen är skyddad av upphovsrätten. Den får läsas och skrivas ut för personligt bruk. Användning i kommersiellt syfte är förbjuden.

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Identifier URI

URN:ISBN:978-951-51-3414-1

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:helda.helsinki.fi:10138/306578