Alena Ledeneva, "The Global Encyclopaedia of Informality, Volume I: Towards Understanding of Social and Cultural Complexity"
2018 | ISBN-10: 1911307886, 1911307894 | 452 pages | PDF | 10 MB
2018 | ISBN-10: 1911307886, 1911307894 | 452 pages | PDF | 10 MB
Broadly defined as “ways of getting things done,” the invisible yet powerful concepts of “informal practices” tend to escape articulation in official discourse. These practices include emotion-driven exchanges of gifts or favours and tributes for services, interest-driven know-how (from informal welfare to informal employment), identity-driven practices of solidarity, and power-driven forms of co-optation and control. Yet, the possible paradox of the indiscernibility of these informal practices is their ubiquity. Alena Ledeneva’s wholly unique two-volume work collaborates with over two hundred scholars across five continents, illustrating how informal practices are deeply embedded across the globe yet still remain underestimated in policy-making procedures.