This paper seeks to advance the study of organizational values by analyzing the role of values in... more This paper seeks to advance the study of organizational values by analyzing the role of values in a Danish political party called The Alternative, a party claiming to be guided by values rather than ideology. Inspired by recent work in organizational psychology, I group The Alternative's values into two categories: vision values and humanity values. Through an empirical investigation, I show how the vision values encourage members to take initiative in realizing their own political ideas, while the humanity values encourage them to remain morally inclusive towards people with different views. The combination of vision and humanity values allows The Alternative to maintain commitment from members who might otherwise feel marginalized by the emergence of dominant ideas within the party. The paper's contribution consists in highlighting the importance of using qualitative methods to study how values influence commitment and to expose the political dimension of this relationship.
The recent proliferation of Web 2.0 applications and their role in contemporary political life ha... more The recent proliferation of Web 2.0 applications and their role in contemporary political life have inspired the coining of the term ‘open-source politics’. This article analyzes how open-source politics is organized in the case of a radical political party in Denmark called The Alternative. Inspired by the literature on organizational space, the analysis explores how different organizational spaces configure the party’s process of policy development, thereby adding to our understanding of the relationship between organizational space and political organization. We analyze three different spaces constructed by The Alternative as techniques for practicing open-source politics and observe that physical and digital spaces create an oscillation between openness and closure. In turn, this oscillation produces a dialectical relationship between practices of imagination and affirmation. Curiously, it seems that physical spaces open up the political process, while digital spaces close it down by fixing meaning. Accordingly, we argue that open-source politics should not be equated with online politics but may be highly dependent on physical spaces. Furthermore, digital spaces may provide both closure and disconnection between a party’s universal body and its particular body. In conclusion, however, we propose that such a disconnection might be a precondition for success when institutionalizing radical politics, as it allows parties like The Alternative to maintain their universal appeal.
Drawing on concepts rooted in cybernetics and anarchist political theory, this article argues tha... more Drawing on concepts rooted in cybernetics and anarchist political theory, this article argues that the shift in Occupy Wall Street from being a physical protest camp in late 2011 to an online movement in 2012 coincided with a shift in social media activity. Analysis of Facebook activity suggests a move from functional to anatomical hierarchy and a corresponding move from many-to-many communication to one-to-many communication. In conclusion, we argue that this development served to undermine the movement's anarchist principles of organization.
In this paper, we compare the political anatomy of two distinct enactments of (left-ist) radical ... more In this paper, we compare the political anatomy of two distinct enactments of (left-ist) radical politics: Occupy Wall Street, a large social movement in the United States, and The Alternative, a recently elected political party in Denmark. Based on Ernesto Laclau's conceptualization of 'the universal' and 'the particular', we show how the institutionalization of radical politics (as carried out by The Alternative) entails a move from universality towards particularity. This move, however, comes with the risk of cutting off supporters who no longer feel represented by the project. We refer to this problem as the problem of particularization. In conclusion, we use the analysis to propose a conceptual distinction between radical movements and radical parties: While the former is constituted by a potentially infinite chain of equivalent grievances, the latter is constituted by a prioritized set of differential demands. While both are important, we argue that they must remain distinct in order to preserve the universal spirit of contemporary radical politics.
The objective of this paper is essentially two-folded. First and foremost, the paper seeks to dis... more The objective of this paper is essentially two-folded. First and foremost, the paper seeks to discuss and problematize the conventional view on political participation as something primarily involving voting and formal party membership. The paper departs from the assumption that the bulk of academic literature on democracy has been overly preoccupied with conventional channels for political participation, and that this myopic view has turned a blind eye towards important enactments of democratic engagement. Building on the discourse theory of Ernesto Laclau and Chantal Mouffe, the paper thus proposes a conceptualization of ‘alternative’ political participation as something involving counter-hegemonic articulations that strive to challenge the current constitution of society. The second objective of the paper is to propose a typological sketch of the organization of alternative political participation. The purpose of the typology is to provide a framework for exploring the many ways in which alternative political participation is currently being enacted. Based on two mutually constitutive axes (a political and an organizational), the typology describes four types of alternative political organizations. These ‘ideal types’ are then exemplified through four illustrative cases. Two of these cases – The Alternative and Occupy Wall Street – are finally examined in detail.
Megen forskning har beskæftiget sig med, hvordan sociale og organisatoriske processer ændres, når... more Megen forskning har beskæftiget sig med, hvordan sociale og organisatoriske processer ændres, når de finder sted i virtuelle rum. Denne artikel tager udgangspunkt i innovationsprocesser, hvor aktører forsøger at etablere virtuelle verdner som platform for professionel kommunikation, men i stedet for at fokusere på kommunikationsprocesser internt i virtuelle verdner vil artiklen stille spørgsmålstegn ved dikotomien mellem den fysiske og den virtuelle verden og undersøge materialitetens betydning for organiseringen af det virtuelle. Ved at anlægge et perspektiv inspireret af Aktør Netværks Teori vil artiklen argumentere for, at fysiske steder og objekter ikke blot fungerer som kontekst
for innovationsprocesser, men tværtimod inddrages som strategiske ressourcer, der aktivt medskaber de virtuelle verdner. Empirisk funderes analysen i fem danske virksomheder og viser, hvordan virksomhederne benytter sig af fysiske steder og objekter
som strategisk ressource i innovationsprocessen. Hermed bidrager artiklen til litteraturen omkring innovation inden for nye medier såsom virtuelle verdner.
This paper seeks to advance the study of organizational values by analyzing the role of values in... more This paper seeks to advance the study of organizational values by analyzing the role of values in a Danish political party called The Alternative, a party claiming to be guided by values rather than ideology. Inspired by recent work in organizational psychology, I group The Alternative's values into two categories: vision values and humanity values. Through an empirical investigation, I show how the vision values encourage members to take initiative in realizing their own political ideas, while the humanity values encourage them to remain morally inclusive towards people with different views. The combination of vision and humanity values allows The Alternative to maintain commitment from members who might otherwise feel marginalized by the emergence of dominant ideas within the party. The paper's contribution consists in highlighting the importance of using qualitative methods to study how values influence commitment and to expose the political dimension of this relationship.
The recent proliferation of Web 2.0 applications and their role in contemporary political life ha... more The recent proliferation of Web 2.0 applications and their role in contemporary political life have inspired the coining of the term ‘open-source politics’. This article analyzes how open-source politics is organized in the case of a radical political party in Denmark called The Alternative. Inspired by the literature on organizational space, the analysis explores how different organizational spaces configure the party’s process of policy development, thereby adding to our understanding of the relationship between organizational space and political organization. We analyze three different spaces constructed by The Alternative as techniques for practicing open-source politics and observe that physical and digital spaces create an oscillation between openness and closure. In turn, this oscillation produces a dialectical relationship between practices of imagination and affirmation. Curiously, it seems that physical spaces open up the political process, while digital spaces close it down by fixing meaning. Accordingly, we argue that open-source politics should not be equated with online politics but may be highly dependent on physical spaces. Furthermore, digital spaces may provide both closure and disconnection between a party’s universal body and its particular body. In conclusion, however, we propose that such a disconnection might be a precondition for success when institutionalizing radical politics, as it allows parties like The Alternative to maintain their universal appeal.
Drawing on concepts rooted in cybernetics and anarchist political theory, this article argues tha... more Drawing on concepts rooted in cybernetics and anarchist political theory, this article argues that the shift in Occupy Wall Street from being a physical protest camp in late 2011 to an online movement in 2012 coincided with a shift in social media activity. Analysis of Facebook activity suggests a move from functional to anatomical hierarchy and a corresponding move from many-to-many communication to one-to-many communication. In conclusion, we argue that this development served to undermine the movement's anarchist principles of organization.
In this paper, we compare the political anatomy of two distinct enactments of (left-ist) radical ... more In this paper, we compare the political anatomy of two distinct enactments of (left-ist) radical politics: Occupy Wall Street, a large social movement in the United States, and The Alternative, a recently elected political party in Denmark. Based on Ernesto Laclau's conceptualization of 'the universal' and 'the particular', we show how the institutionalization of radical politics (as carried out by The Alternative) entails a move from universality towards particularity. This move, however, comes with the risk of cutting off supporters who no longer feel represented by the project. We refer to this problem as the problem of particularization. In conclusion, we use the analysis to propose a conceptual distinction between radical movements and radical parties: While the former is constituted by a potentially infinite chain of equivalent grievances, the latter is constituted by a prioritized set of differential demands. While both are important, we argue that they must remain distinct in order to preserve the universal spirit of contemporary radical politics.
The objective of this paper is essentially two-folded. First and foremost, the paper seeks to dis... more The objective of this paper is essentially two-folded. First and foremost, the paper seeks to discuss and problematize the conventional view on political participation as something primarily involving voting and formal party membership. The paper departs from the assumption that the bulk of academic literature on democracy has been overly preoccupied with conventional channels for political participation, and that this myopic view has turned a blind eye towards important enactments of democratic engagement. Building on the discourse theory of Ernesto Laclau and Chantal Mouffe, the paper thus proposes a conceptualization of ‘alternative’ political participation as something involving counter-hegemonic articulations that strive to challenge the current constitution of society. The second objective of the paper is to propose a typological sketch of the organization of alternative political participation. The purpose of the typology is to provide a framework for exploring the many ways in which alternative political participation is currently being enacted. Based on two mutually constitutive axes (a political and an organizational), the typology describes four types of alternative political organizations. These ‘ideal types’ are then exemplified through four illustrative cases. Two of these cases – The Alternative and Occupy Wall Street – are finally examined in detail.
Megen forskning har beskæftiget sig med, hvordan sociale og organisatoriske processer ændres, når... more Megen forskning har beskæftiget sig med, hvordan sociale og organisatoriske processer ændres, når de finder sted i virtuelle rum. Denne artikel tager udgangspunkt i innovationsprocesser, hvor aktører forsøger at etablere virtuelle verdner som platform for professionel kommunikation, men i stedet for at fokusere på kommunikationsprocesser internt i virtuelle verdner vil artiklen stille spørgsmålstegn ved dikotomien mellem den fysiske og den virtuelle verden og undersøge materialitetens betydning for organiseringen af det virtuelle. Ved at anlægge et perspektiv inspireret af Aktør Netværks Teori vil artiklen argumentere for, at fysiske steder og objekter ikke blot fungerer som kontekst
for innovationsprocesser, men tværtimod inddrages som strategiske ressourcer, der aktivt medskaber de virtuelle verdner. Empirisk funderes analysen i fem danske virksomheder og viser, hvordan virksomhederne benytter sig af fysiske steder og objekter
som strategisk ressource i innovationsprocessen. Hermed bidrager artiklen til litteraturen omkring innovation inden for nye medier såsom virtuelle verdner.
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Papers by Emil Husted
mutually constitutive axes (a political and an organizational), the typology describes four types of alternative political organizations. These ‘ideal types’ are then exemplified through four illustrative cases. Two of these cases – The Alternative and Occupy Wall Street – are finally examined in detail.
for innovationsprocesser, men tværtimod inddrages som strategiske ressourcer, der aktivt medskaber de virtuelle verdner. Empirisk funderes analysen i fem danske virksomheder og viser, hvordan virksomhederne benytter sig af fysiske steder og objekter
som strategisk ressource i innovationsprocessen. Hermed bidrager artiklen til litteraturen omkring innovation inden for nye medier såsom virtuelle verdner.
mutually constitutive axes (a political and an organizational), the typology describes four types of alternative political organizations. These ‘ideal types’ are then exemplified through four illustrative cases. Two of these cases – The Alternative and Occupy Wall Street – are finally examined in detail.
for innovationsprocesser, men tværtimod inddrages som strategiske ressourcer, der aktivt medskaber de virtuelle verdner. Empirisk funderes analysen i fem danske virksomheder og viser, hvordan virksomhederne benytter sig af fysiske steder og objekter
som strategisk ressource i innovationsprocessen. Hermed bidrager artiklen til litteraturen omkring innovation inden for nye medier såsom virtuelle verdner.