The authors analyze the nation‐state as a worldwide institution constructed by worldwide cultural and associational processes, developing four main topics: (1) properties of nation‐states that result from their exogenously driven construction, including isomorphism, decoupling, and expansive structuration; (2) processes by which rationalistic world culture affects national states; (3) characteristics of world society that enhance the impact of world culture on national states and societies, including conditions favoring the diffusion of world models, expansion of world‐level associations, and rationalized scientific and professional authority; (4) dynamic features of world culture and society that generate expansion, conflict, and change, especially the statelessness of world society, legitimation of multiple levels of rationalized actors, and internal inconsistencies and contradictions.

1. World society and the
nation state
ARBER YMERI
ARLIND REXHEPI

2. Introduction
- Proposition
- Nation states through four topics
- The example of the new discovered island
- Four theoretical approaches in analyzing the properties of world society and the nation state
- Conclusion

3. Proposition
- Many features of the contemporary nation-state derive from worldwide models constructed
and propagated through global cultural and associational process.
- Nation-states are not products of their own histories and internal forces, but are set forth by
the world model, which shapes nation-states through cultural and associational processes, in
the arenas of their identities, structures, and behaviors

4. The example of new discovered island
- Imagine that an unknown society on an unknown island is discovered what changes, (if any)
would occur?
- A government would soon form, with many ministries and agencies
- Official recognition by other states and admission to the UN would ensue
- The society would be analyzed as an economy, with standards types of data, organizations
- Its people would be formally reorganized as citizens with many familiar rights
- While children, the elderly, the poor would be granted special protection
- Modern educational, medical, scientific and family law institutions would be developed

5. The example of new discovered island
- what would be unlikely to happen?
- The possibilities for an imperial rush to colonize the island would be rare
- Only few people would argue that the natives needed only modest citizenship or human rights

6. 1. Four theoretical approaches in analyzing
the properties of world society and N.S.
- Microrealist analysis – assume that the nation-state is a natural, purposive, and rational actor
in an essentially anarchic world. Power and interest come first, leaving little room for culture.
Culture is almost irrelevant it can be only local or national but not global.
- Macrorealist analysis – see the nation state as the creature of worldwide systems of economic
or political power, exchange and competition. Money and force, power and interests, are the
engines of global change.

7. 2. Four theoretical approaches in analyzing
the properties of world society and N.S.
- Microphenomenological analysis - conceptualize the nation-state as the product of national
cultural and interpretive systems. The state is embedded in institutions whose cultural character
matters, but these institutions reflect world processes only indirectly or not at all.
- Macrophenomenological analysis – se the nation-state as culturally constructed and
embedded rather than as the unanalyzed rational actor depicted by realists. Culture is
substantially organized on a worldwide basis.

8. 1. Theoretical background - Culture
- For realist perspective, the world is either:
◦ anarchic where actors pursue interests without interferences from an overarching authority
structure
◦ or Networked where actors intentionally construct interdependent systems of economic and
political competition from the ground up
Realist Perspective view culture functionally, as expressive material that integrates collectivities
or supports the domination of powerful actors.
- Microphenomenological analysts take culture and interpretation more seriously but restrict
them to action processes operating at local or national levels.
Microphenomenological analysts give greater attention to culture’s perspective but limit their
scope to local situational knowledge and reality construction

9. 2. Theoretical background - Culture
Example:
- The social scientific theories explain the way how things work even though this theory may not
mesh well with practical experience
- For example, conventional schooling insist that formal education is necessary for economic
growth, technical innovation, citizen loyalty, and democratic institutions. This justification was
never questioned even though some studies in education’s effect on economic growth suggest
that this functional relationship is weak.
- In our island society, the implementation of world theories of development without visiting
and studying the place would be not effective.

10. 1. Properties of the culturally constituted
Nation-state
1 - Isomorphism (equal) and Isomorphic change: it can be explained with the example of island
which despite all the possible configurations of local economic forces, power relationships, and
forms of traditional culture it might contain, would rather decide to have standardized form and
be similar to other a hundred other nation states.
◦ For example, education, human rights, environmental policies, health care etc.
2 - Rational Actorhood: nation-states present themselves as responsible actors. They claim all
the features of the rational state actor:
◦ Territorial boundaries and a demarcated population
◦ Sovereign authority
◦ Standardized purposes like collective development, social justice and the protection of individual rights,
authoritative, law-based control systems etc.

11. 2. Properties of the culturally constituted
Nation-state
3 - Decoupling: nation states are modeled on an external culture that cannot simply be imported
wholesale as a fully functioning system, but they have to be adjusted/modified in order to fit to
domestic principles.
In other words nation states must decouple external elements that are inconsistent with local
practices, requirements and cost structures.
◦ In the imagined island society would find much easier to adopt external elements and then to adjust to
its internal requirements.
4 - Expansive structuration for example impoverished countries establish universities producing
overqualified personnel, or freeways leading nowhere. They provide forms of development that
are completely irrational

12. 1. Processes of world society’s impact on
Nation-states
1 - The construction of Nation-state identity and purpose: has to move toward universality of
the nation state form (imagined island too). Universality means that a rational nation state must
construct goals, data systems, ministry structures and policies to fit to worldwide models. They
can also achieve this by constructing national culture through traditions, museums, tourism and
national intellectual culture.
2 - Systematic maintenance of nation-state actor identity: If specific nation state is unable to
adopt proper policies the world society structures will provide help. For example the world
organization actively encourage countries to adopt population control policies that are justified
not as good for the world as a whole but as necessary for national development (UNESCO)

13. 2. Processes of world society’s impact on
Nation-states
3 - Legitimation of subnational actors and Practices: means implementation of world cultural
principles to follow the world trend. A good example is legitimating the human rights of gays and
lesbians. If a nation-state neglects to adopt these world-approved policies, domestic elements
will try to enforce conformity.
The world culture influences nation states not only their centers (for example government) but
also through direct connections between local actors and world culture.

14. 1. Elements of collective world society
… that link nation state with the world society
1 - Organizational Frame helps the imagined island to strengthen its position by becoming
member of the UN and this automatically creates connections with lot of non-governmental
organizations clustered around it (such as IMF, World Bank, General Agreement on tariffs and
trade GAAT etc.)
2 - Diffusion among Nation states – this means that the nation state can copy best practices of
other nations. The imagined island is expected to turn first to America, Japanese or European
models for much of their social restructuring. (For example for planning welfare program,
Sweden is the leader, for technology is Japan, automobile industry is Germany etc.)

15. 2. Elements of collective world society
3 - Associations, organizations and Social movements – for example governmental and
nongovernmental voluntary organizations. These organizations promote models of human
rights, consumer rights, environmental regulations, social and economic development and
human equality and justice. Our island will get a lot of experiences and aid from these
international organizations.
4 - Sciences and professions – in the world society scientist and professionals have become
central and prestigious participants to push forward the nation state development.
◦ Usually they are engaged in social life by offering their knowledge to different spheres such as natural
scientist, lawyers, medical professionals etc.

16. 1. Sources of dynamism and change in
world culture
… generates expansion, conflict, and change.
1 - The structure of multiple actors in a common frame - it explains a role of a group to which a
nation belongs. Let’s take the example of the island society which wishes to maintain distinctive
local patterns of gender differentiation for example. By doing this, it would be advised to apply
universalistic cultural principles of that sort (gender differentiation) and join with others in
generalizing this issue to the world level.
2 - Multiple levels of legitimated actor hood - Individuals and states legitimate each other. In
island societal for instance economists or biological analysts would discover any inequality, while
educational and sociological analysts would specify methods of correcting or managing these
problems. International organizations would send experts to mobilize movements to demand
solutions to the problems. The solutions would require structuration and in the long run cultural
or theoretical elaboration.

17. 2. Sources of dynamism and change in
world culture
3 - Cultural contradictions- beyond conflicts of interest among individuals or among states,
there are also contradictions inherent in widely valued cultural goods: equally vs. liberty,
progress vs. justice, standardizations vs. diversity etc. these contradiction elements are
integrated in different ways in different variants of world cultural models, within each national
society, even locally.
This can be explained by an example when an ecologist interpret economic and technical
development as a threat to the natural base of the entire system. As a summary analysis of the
expanded and changing culture of world society must take into account dynamic properties of
world culture as such, not just interaction and power relations among actors.

18. Conclusion
- The disaster of World War II may have been a key factor in the rise of global model of
nationally organized progress and justice, and the Cold War may well have intensified the forces
pushing human development to the global level.

19. Conclusion
- Our island would obviously become a candidate for full membership in the world community of
nations and individuals
- Human rights, state-protected citizen rights, and democratic forms would become natural
entitlements
- An economy would emerge, defined and measured in rationalized terms and oriented to
growth under state regulation
- A formal national polity would be essential, including a constitution, citizenship laws,
educational structures, and open forms for participation and communication

20. Thank you for your attention 