Relations between Estonia and Finland have been very strong traditionally. Their geographical pro... more Relations between Estonia and Finland have been very strong traditionally. Their geographical proximity has facilitated the exchange of goods as well as ideas. Finland has a major stake in the Estonian economy – Finland is Estonia’s number one trade partner. Finnish organizations make up about a quarter of all foreign direct investment in Estonia. The two countries also share very strong cultural ties. Both peoples are of Finno-Ugrian origin, they speak similar languages. Many Estonians speak the Finnish language fluently. Although Estonia is a Baltic state from a geographical point of view, Estonians consider themselves more Nordic than Baltic. Yet, despite these similarities, Finnish companies operating in Estonia face major communication challenges with their Estonian business units. Half a century of Soviet occupation has left its mark. On the one hand it had introduced the lasting legacy of Soviet management style. On the other hand, it has led to widespread prejudice against E...
This article focuses on the methodological issues arising from interviewing elites, with an empha... more This article focuses on the methodological issues arising from interviewing elites, with an emphasis on gaining access, acquiring trust, and establishing rapport. I argue the central importance of preinterview preparation, which is essential to enhance the researcher’s knowledgeability. The success of interviewing elites hinges on the researcher’s knowledgeability of the interviewee’s life history and background. It enhances the researcher’s positionality and decreases the status imbalance between researcher and researched. The researcher’s positionality is dynamic; it shifts over the course of research. Moreover, positionality is not solely determined externally in the context of an insider/outsider dichotomy but is on a continuum that can be proactively influenced by the researcher. These issues are discussed with reference to recent research on postsocialist transition in Estonia, which involved interviews with political and economic elites. These experiences will be of interest ...
The focus of this article is Estonia’s post-socialist economic transition and the reasons behind ... more The focus of this article is Estonia’s post-socialist economic transition and the reasons behind the liberal nature of the country’s economic policies. I argue that the self-image of a nation plays a significant role in shaping its economic policies. Objectives associated with economic nationalism can be achieved through various means that can include strategies of economic liberalism as well. Thus, the concepts of economic nationalism and economic liberalism are not a dichotomy. I examine the construction of the Estonian self-image through the discourses of radical individualism and industriousness, historical suffering, desire for freedom and return to Europe and sense of abandonment. By showing how these discourses interact with the liberal paradigm, I claim that Estonian policy-makers chose liberal economic policies because they perceived them to most effectively serve their objectives. When economic policies are examined in view of the national self-image and motivation of poli...
Relations between Estonia and Finland have been very strong traditionally. Their geographical pro... more Relations between Estonia and Finland have been very strong traditionally. Their geographical proximity has facilitated the exchange of goods as well as ideas. Finland has a major stake in the Estonian economy – Finland is Estonia’s number one trade partner. Finnish organizations make up about a quarter of all foreign direct investment in Estonia. The two countries also share very strong cultural ties. Both peoples are of Finno-Ugrian origin, they speak similar languages. Many Estonians speak the Finnish language fluently. Although Estonia is a Baltic state from a geographical point of view, Estonians consider themselves more Nordic than Baltic. Yet, despite these similarities, Finnish companies operating in Estonia face major communication challenges with their Estonian business units. Half a century of Soviet occupation has left its mark. On the one hand it had introduced the lasting legacy of Soviet management style. On the other hand, it has led to widespread prejudice against E...
North-eastern Estonia and its centre, the town of Narva, had traditionally been a significant cen... more North-eastern Estonia and its centre, the town of Narva, had traditionally been a significant centre for industry and transit cargo between Russia and the West. The region's contribution to national output had been substantial. During World War II, Narva was virtually destroyed. The ...
This article focuses on the methodological issues arising from interviewing elites, with an empha... more This article focuses on the methodological issues arising from interviewing elites, with an emphasis on gaining access, acquiring trust, and establishing rapport. I argue the central importance of preinterview preparation, which is essential to enhance the researcher’s knowledgeability. The success of interviewing elites hinges on the researcher’s knowledgeability of the interviewee’s life history and background. It enhances the researcher’s positionality and decreases the status imbalance between researcher and researched. The researcher’s positionality is dynamic; it shifts over the course of research. Moreover, positionality is not solely determined externally in the context of an insider/outsider dichotomy but is on a continuum that can be proactively influenced by the researcher. These issues are discussed with reference to recent research on postsocialist transition in Estonia, which involved interviews with political and economic elites. These experiences will be of interest to social scientists working on elites because it focuses on meeting the challenges of interviewing elites from establishing contact through to postinterview follow-up.
North-eastern Estonia and its centre, the town of Narva, had traditionally been a significant cen... more North-eastern Estonia and its centre, the town of Narva, had traditionally been a significant centre for industry and transit cargo between Russia and the West. The region's contribution to national output had been substantial. During World War II, Narva was virtually destroyed. The ...
The great financial crisis of 2008 and the ensuing global economic and financial turmoil have lau... more The great financial crisis of 2008 and the ensuing global economic and financial turmoil have launched a search for ‘models’ for recovery. The advocates of austerity present the Baltic states as countries that, through discipline and sacrifice, showed the way out of crisis. They have proposed the ‘Baltic model’ of radical public sector cuts, wage reductions, labor market reforms and reductions in living standards for other troubled eurozone countries to emulate. Yet, the reality of the Baltic ‘austerity fix’ has been neither fully accepted by its peoples, nor is it fully a success. This book explains why and what are the real social and economic costs of the Baltic austerity model.We examine each of the Baltic states by connecting national-level studies within a European and global political economy, thereby delivering comparative breadth that supersedes localized understandings of the crisis. Thus, for each of the three Baltic states, individual chapters explore the different economic and social dimensions of neoliberal post-communism, and the subsequent wider global economic and financial crisis in which these new open-market economies have found themselves especially vulnerable. The ‘austerity model’ adopted by Baltic national governments in response to the crisis reveals the profound vulnerabilities created by their unwavering commitment to free market solutions, not least in terms of the significant ‘exit’ of their labor forces.Today ‘recovery’ appears to be on the horizon. We look beyond basic financial metrics claiming a success story for the Baltic austerity model to reveal the damaging economic and social consequences, first of neoliberal policies adopted during transition, and latterly of austerity measures based on ‘internal devaluation.’ Combined, these policies undermine the possibility of longer-term recovery, and even social and economic sustainability, not to mention successful integration in the now-faltering wider European project.
Neoliberal economic policies focus on supply-side measures emphasising the role of the market in ... more Neoliberal economic policies focus on supply-side measures emphasising the role of the market in efficient resource allocation. Neoliberal policies advocate the case for a minimalist, non-interventionist government, stating that social welfare can be best advanced by promoting individual ...
Relations between Estonia and Finland have been very strong traditionally. Their geographical pro... more Relations between Estonia and Finland have been very strong traditionally. Their geographical proximity has facilitated the exchange of goods as well as ideas. Finland has a major stake in the Estonian economy – Finland is Estonia’s number one trade partner. Finnish organizations make up about a quarter of all foreign direct investment in Estonia. The two countries also share very strong cultural ties. Both peoples are of Finno-Ugrian origin, they speak similar languages. Many Estonians speak the Finnish language fluently. Although Estonia is a Baltic state from a geographical point of view, Estonians consider themselves more Nordic than Baltic. Yet, despite these similarities, Finnish companies operating in Estonia face major communication challenges with their Estonian business units. Half a century of Soviet occupation has left its mark. On the one hand it had introduced the lasting legacy of Soviet management style. On the other hand, it has led to widespread prejudice against E...
This article focuses on the methodological issues arising from interviewing elites, with an empha... more This article focuses on the methodological issues arising from interviewing elites, with an emphasis on gaining access, acquiring trust, and establishing rapport. I argue the central importance of preinterview preparation, which is essential to enhance the researcher’s knowledgeability. The success of interviewing elites hinges on the researcher’s knowledgeability of the interviewee’s life history and background. It enhances the researcher’s positionality and decreases the status imbalance between researcher and researched. The researcher’s positionality is dynamic; it shifts over the course of research. Moreover, positionality is not solely determined externally in the context of an insider/outsider dichotomy but is on a continuum that can be proactively influenced by the researcher. These issues are discussed with reference to recent research on postsocialist transition in Estonia, which involved interviews with political and economic elites. These experiences will be of interest ...
The focus of this article is Estonia’s post-socialist economic transition and the reasons behind ... more The focus of this article is Estonia’s post-socialist economic transition and the reasons behind the liberal nature of the country’s economic policies. I argue that the self-image of a nation plays a significant role in shaping its economic policies. Objectives associated with economic nationalism can be achieved through various means that can include strategies of economic liberalism as well. Thus, the concepts of economic nationalism and economic liberalism are not a dichotomy. I examine the construction of the Estonian self-image through the discourses of radical individualism and industriousness, historical suffering, desire for freedom and return to Europe and sense of abandonment. By showing how these discourses interact with the liberal paradigm, I claim that Estonian policy-makers chose liberal economic policies because they perceived them to most effectively serve their objectives. When economic policies are examined in view of the national self-image and motivation of poli...
Relations between Estonia and Finland have been very strong traditionally. Their geographical pro... more Relations between Estonia and Finland have been very strong traditionally. Their geographical proximity has facilitated the exchange of goods as well as ideas. Finland has a major stake in the Estonian economy – Finland is Estonia’s number one trade partner. Finnish organizations make up about a quarter of all foreign direct investment in Estonia. The two countries also share very strong cultural ties. Both peoples are of Finno-Ugrian origin, they speak similar languages. Many Estonians speak the Finnish language fluently. Although Estonia is a Baltic state from a geographical point of view, Estonians consider themselves more Nordic than Baltic. Yet, despite these similarities, Finnish companies operating in Estonia face major communication challenges with their Estonian business units. Half a century of Soviet occupation has left its mark. On the one hand it had introduced the lasting legacy of Soviet management style. On the other hand, it has led to widespread prejudice against E...
North-eastern Estonia and its centre, the town of Narva, had traditionally been a significant cen... more North-eastern Estonia and its centre, the town of Narva, had traditionally been a significant centre for industry and transit cargo between Russia and the West. The region's contribution to national output had been substantial. During World War II, Narva was virtually destroyed. The ...
This article focuses on the methodological issues arising from interviewing elites, with an empha... more This article focuses on the methodological issues arising from interviewing elites, with an emphasis on gaining access, acquiring trust, and establishing rapport. I argue the central importance of preinterview preparation, which is essential to enhance the researcher’s knowledgeability. The success of interviewing elites hinges on the researcher’s knowledgeability of the interviewee’s life history and background. It enhances the researcher’s positionality and decreases the status imbalance between researcher and researched. The researcher’s positionality is dynamic; it shifts over the course of research. Moreover, positionality is not solely determined externally in the context of an insider/outsider dichotomy but is on a continuum that can be proactively influenced by the researcher. These issues are discussed with reference to recent research on postsocialist transition in Estonia, which involved interviews with political and economic elites. These experiences will be of interest to social scientists working on elites because it focuses on meeting the challenges of interviewing elites from establishing contact through to postinterview follow-up.
North-eastern Estonia and its centre, the town of Narva, had traditionally been a significant cen... more North-eastern Estonia and its centre, the town of Narva, had traditionally been a significant centre for industry and transit cargo between Russia and the West. The region's contribution to national output had been substantial. During World War II, Narva was virtually destroyed. The ...
The great financial crisis of 2008 and the ensuing global economic and financial turmoil have lau... more The great financial crisis of 2008 and the ensuing global economic and financial turmoil have launched a search for ‘models’ for recovery. The advocates of austerity present the Baltic states as countries that, through discipline and sacrifice, showed the way out of crisis. They have proposed the ‘Baltic model’ of radical public sector cuts, wage reductions, labor market reforms and reductions in living standards for other troubled eurozone countries to emulate. Yet, the reality of the Baltic ‘austerity fix’ has been neither fully accepted by its peoples, nor is it fully a success. This book explains why and what are the real social and economic costs of the Baltic austerity model.We examine each of the Baltic states by connecting national-level studies within a European and global political economy, thereby delivering comparative breadth that supersedes localized understandings of the crisis. Thus, for each of the three Baltic states, individual chapters explore the different economic and social dimensions of neoliberal post-communism, and the subsequent wider global economic and financial crisis in which these new open-market economies have found themselves especially vulnerable. The ‘austerity model’ adopted by Baltic national governments in response to the crisis reveals the profound vulnerabilities created by their unwavering commitment to free market solutions, not least in terms of the significant ‘exit’ of their labor forces.Today ‘recovery’ appears to be on the horizon. We look beyond basic financial metrics claiming a success story for the Baltic austerity model to reveal the damaging economic and social consequences, first of neoliberal policies adopted during transition, and latterly of austerity measures based on ‘internal devaluation.’ Combined, these policies undermine the possibility of longer-term recovery, and even social and economic sustainability, not to mention successful integration in the now-faltering wider European project.
Neoliberal economic policies focus on supply-side measures emphasising the role of the market in ... more Neoliberal economic policies focus on supply-side measures emphasising the role of the market in efficient resource allocation. Neoliberal policies advocate the case for a minimalist, non-interventionist government, stating that social welfare can be best advanced by promoting individual ...
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Papers by Robert Mikecz