Development and Cooperation


	Contributions from the Column Books and Media UNEP atlas Shadow economies The future of development cooperation Globalisation, destabilisation and conflicts 07/2005		Globalisation: New Perspectives Peter Jüngst: „Raubtierkapitalismus“? Globalisierung, psychosoziale Destabilisierung und territoriale Konflikte (Predator capitalism, globalisation, psychosocial destabilisation and territorial conflicts). Giessen, Psychosozial-Verlag 2004, 262 pp., ¤ 24.90, ISBN 3-89806-345-3 Much has already been written about the consequences of globalisation. Peter Jüngst opens up a new line of discussion by tackling the psychodynamic aspects of globalisation with recourse to the psychoanalysis of Erich Fromm, the figurational sociology of Norbert Elias and the aggression theories of Konrad Lorenz. Whereas past scholars saw territorial, national and cultural conflicts primarily from the psychodynamic of those groups and their leaders who were directly taking part, the author now takes this one step further. Jüngst claims that the political and economic processes which are expressed in globalisation are determined by an escalating psychosocial dynamic, of which those involved remain largely unconscious. According to Jüngst, the basis of this dynamic is a paranoid-schizoid “predatory capitalism”, which is driven by the speculative “greed” of the shareholder ideology. The advanced Western societies that it dominates are not able to develop the necessary “emphatic” and holistic points of reference, without which it is impossible to establish a just world. Furthermore, the paranoid-schizoid aspects of globalisation contribute to the escalation of territorial conflict – with disastrous consequences for both the societies concerned and the entire human race. Jüngst explains his theory by referring to the rapid changes in production processes and escalating work-pressure issues that have occurred under post-Fordism. These changes are responsible for deregulation in production locations and for the erosion of the legal and contractual controls which previously determined the psychosocial compromise of the welfare state. Contemporary management concepts and the heavy pressures placed on managers, the relentless struggle for growth, top positions and pure survival, have all destabilised and undermined psychosocial compromise. The results are felt worldwide. Peter Jüngst’s work is an excellent critical reflection on a fresh perspective of globalisation. The dialogue he has introduced should be continued. Jos Schnurer