‘Studies on Income and Social Inequality Must Include an Analysis of Business Elites’
Dr. Julián Cárdenas, a Researcher at Freie Universität Berlin, has devoted much of his career to studying business networks. A participant on the ‘Business Networks’ panel at the XVII April International Academic Conference on Economic and Social Development on April 21, he recently agreed to speak with the HSE news service about his research interests, in particular his focus on elite business networks and how they differ around the world.
— Could you please say a few words about your area of research?
— I am working on people networking, specifically on business elite networks. My emphasis is on why networks of business elites are different around the world and how social impacts affect the way business elites relate to one another.
— Does education play a significant role when it comes to joining the business elite?
— Most business elites – directors of top corporations – attend exclusive private schools and usually complete postgraduate programs at North American universities. Educational institutions are also places for social networking.
— Have you discovered any differences among business elites in different countries or regions?
— Of course. Business elites are not homogeneous around the world, especially in how they organize. Business elites form cohesive networks in some countries – Italy, Spain, France, Germany, and Mexico – and form dispersed or fragmented networks in others – the United Kingdom, the US, Switzerland, Brazil, and Colombia. The institutional frameworks where business elites and large corporations are embedded – business-state relations, the financial system and degree – all influence the configuration of business elite networks.
— What kind of a link have you found between business elites and social inequality? Is this something that can be avoided? Or is it a kind of competition that could be a driving force for economic and social development?
— Surprisingly, I have found that under certain conditions (strong state, economic development), income inequality is lower in economies where business elites are more cohesive.
My main purpose is to draw attention to the fact that studies on income and social inequality must include an analysis of business elites: the way they organize, the links with political elites and so on. The effect of business elite networking on social inequality is not direct, but elites build the institutions that over the long term may have positive or negative effects on social inequality.
— What has brought you to this year’s April Conference at HSE?
After receiving an email alert about the event, I decided that it would be a good opportunity to present my work and discuss it in an international and multidisciplinary environment.
Anna Chernyakhovskaya, specially for HSE News service
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