Review of “The Social Organization of Conspiracy”

This entry was posted in Social Network Analysis and tagged on by .

In this review I summarize „The Social Organization of Conspiracy: Illegal Networks in the Heavy Electrical Equipment Industry“ by Wayne E. Baker and Robert R. Faulkner from 1993 [1].

The paper studied how the structure of „secret societies“ involved in price-fixing effected the convinctions of participants. For this, the researchers used the conspiracy in the Heavy Electrical Equipment Industry in the 1950s, called „the most carefully studied corporate offenses in the history of the United States“ (Geis and Meier 1977, p. 68). The case involved 40 manufacturers (i.e. General Electric, Westinghouse) with more than 20 product lines included. Three major conspiracies were analysed: Switchgear and transformer with low information-processing and turbine with high information-processing inside – each with the same need of secrecy and avoidance of judicial dangerous direct contact with other competitors.

To understand the structure and characteristics of „secret societies“, let us first take a look at the economic theory under efficency constraints: Organizations with high information-processing, like turbines, work best decentralized. Ones with low information-processing are more efficient when hierarchical, like switchgear and transformer production.

The result shows major differences between „secret societies“ and legal activities. The turbine conspiracy with high information-processing was the most centralized one with lower possibility of sentencing. More difficult, ambiguous and complex tasks and decisions needed more centralized communication. The switchgear and transformer conspiracies were organized in a more decentral, two-tier structure. Easy tasks and regular orders led to self-organizing systems with a buffer between the command levels. Changing the perspective from the whole network to the different protagonists, four characteristics emerged, which significantly increased the probability of a guilty verdict. In descending order, these are: „1) Being in the thick of a conspiracy 2) participating in a decentralized conspiracy; 3) occupying a top-executive position and participating in a centralized conspiracy (turbines); 4) occupying the oppressed position in the middle of an organization“ (Baker & Faulkner, p. 854).

The research revealed, „that the structure of intercorporate secret societies does not follow the same underlying efficency logic as the organization of legal business activities“ (Baker & Faulkner, p. 854). The data for analyses of criminal activities like this are rare and often not reliable; so this first quantitative analyses of an intercorporate conspiracy breathed new life into to the development of network theory, industrial economic theory and organizational crime theory.

References

[1] Baker, Wayne E. and Faulkner, Robert R.: The Social Organization of Conspiracy: Illegal Networks in the Heavy Electrical Equipment Industry, 1993. American Sociological Review, Vol. 58, No. 6 (Dec., 1993), p. 837-860.

Further Informations

The review is also in the GitHub Repository.

Print Friendly, PDF & Email
26 Replies
Flattr this!

26 thoughts on “Review of “The Social Organization of Conspiracy””

  1. Wholesale 2016 New NBA jerseys Cheap From China

    of people work as international volunteers in Africa each and every year, and in fact, many unit. Christopher Reeve impressed a lot of people which keeps with constantly pushing vs most of how good Quinn’s accuracy will be? The WR corps along with TE Tony Moeaki can take client wants rather than what they have to offer.BP International, Inc. (BPIL) is a leading manufacturer

    Reply ↓
  2. Air Foamposite One Black White

    A smooth colorway coming for the ladies. The Girls Air Jordan Retro 12 Hyper Violet is just a week from making it into your closet and with the majority of this sneaker being black, its the perfect mixup to your Jordan rotation. Not like other bright Grade School colorways, the hits of Hyper Violet against the Black is the touch of character that will keep eyes locked on these kicks. Ladies, make sure youre rockin the latest with your girls and size down 1.5 for a good fit.From to:http://www.dragon-kicks.com

    Reply ↓
  3. Dragon kicks

    It’s been 12 years since the French Blue Air Jordan 12 last released,but luckily the shoe is returning once again this month. Official photos from Nike reveal that not much has changed for this classic colorway, except for the fact that it now releases under the brand’s recent remastering overhaul of the retro line. In addition, Jordan is bringing back the original shoe box from the first release of the 12 to further add to the nostalgia. 2016 is certainly shaping up to be a renaissance year for the Air Jordan 12, with the iconic Flu Game colorway also coming back for Spring. After a number of setbacks and delays, the Air Jordan 12 French Blue is finally releasing at retailers this Saturday, April 2nd. Following up the iconoclast that was the Air Jordan 11 was a difficult feat, but Tinker Hatfield manages to bring a refined sensibility with the Air Jordan 12 by implementing premium leather, an asymmetrical mudguard inspired by Japan’s rising sun flag, and carbon fiber on the outsole. The heel read Quality Inspired By The Greatest Player Ever’ and showcased a mature outlook from the Jumpman that recently claimed brand independence in 1997.http://www.dragon-kicks.net

    Reply ↓
  4. Air Jordan 6 Carmine

    For those that don’t know, the Air Jordan 12 French Blue is not an original color scheme but they did release back in 2004. Featuring white tumbled leather through the uppers. French Blue lands on the midsole and sole while hints of silver and varsity red are present.Dragonkicks At the time it isn’t known if the 2016 release will be exactly the same as the 2004. Adding to the original feel, Jordan Brand will package the shoes in the original Nike box but instead will swap for Jumpman branding. As well, the brand will bring back the Jordan 12 retro card.http://www.dragon-kicks.net

    Reply ↓
  18. ??????????????

    ??????????????????????????????????????????? ? ??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? ( ????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? ???????????????????????????????????????????? ????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? ??????????????????????????????????????????????? ?????????????

    Reply ↓

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *