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EU local imprints: the case of south Central Europe

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posted on 2023-06-08, 05:05 authored by Bozena Krce Miocic, Goran Vlasic, Josef Langer
Papers in this volume can be read individually, but jointly create a story of EU interaction with accession state: both thorugh positive and negative impacts. Papers provide perspectives on the impact of EU accession on culture, primarily in terms of risk perception which was long viewed as highly undesirable in non-western countries, on education systems as important carriers of knowledge and culture, on communication and media which serve as a basis for creating public opinion and therefore generating potential for positive changes, and tourism as an important industry that has strongly transformed as a result of EU enlargements. The first set of contributions focuses on managing cultural changes at diffetrent levels to adjust the values and norms of interacting parties. One such important aspect is the risk tolerance of a nation (but also at other levels), as conseptualized by Hofsteade (1980). In an accession process, numerous risks are arising, such as unknown impacts of accession. However, risk exhibits important impact on adjusting the culture to market and entrepreneurial economy of the EU. As Alfirevi et al. indicate, for such changes some individuals, organizations, or even societies seem to have better starting positions 'to feign control over the uncontrollable' (Beck, 2002), i.e. to project and act upon the future-oriented insights". In their contribution they provide management approaches that provide insights primarily at corporate levels: how to manage the future in the face of uncertainties that accessions bring. In Wittine's contribution, discussion focuses on external perceptions of risk, i.e. on the perceptions of EU investors on political risks in Croatia. Although author discusses great potential benefits from accession in terms of reducing political risks, he stresses that "in the end, it is important to point out that mere EU accession is not the panacea that would heal the problems the Croatian economy faces today. Structural economic, legal and social reforms behind the accession are the ones issues that matter and the ones that would bring the biggest benefit."Although investments can have great positive impacts on local economiy, there are numerous potential risk associated with different goals of partnets from EU and accession country. In his contribution, Subic discusses the benefits and shortfalls of vigorous privatization and internationalization of banking sector. While having direct benefits from capital inflows, but also knowledge inflows, the risks that Croatian banking system incurred as a result of great control of international banks (primarily Italian and Austrian) required adjustment of Croatian National Bank to control their activities through college of supervisors. Moreover, control has to transcend borders as many of the strategic decisions regarding Croatian banks are made in EU countries. Strong integration of Croatian banking system into EU banking system created a great infrastructure for easier movement of capital to where the investment opportunities arise. Besides the tolerance for risk and managing risk, culture changed in several other aspects. Draskovic and Gnjidic discuss consumer attitudes toward environmental issues and adjustment of Croatian environmental management policies to EU directives. This issue grows in importance with elimination of borders which will enhance movement of tourists. As EU directives provide more guidelines and minimum requirements, touristis by changing locations make choices: whether to maintain environmental consciousness and inform themselves about the local regulations, or to ignore such practices while not in their home country. One of the issues that authors discuss is: who should be responsible for development / maintainance of environmentally friendly behaviours: individuals or institutionalized efforts? The last contribution in this section provides a more broad perspective on changes in attitudes of Croatian students between 1995

History

Publication status

  • Published

Publisher

Peter Lang GmbH

Pages

206.0

Place of publication

Frankfurt am Main

ISBN

9783631601761

Department affiliated with

  • Business and Management Publications

Notes

his is an edited book edited by Bozena Krce Miocic, Goran Vlasic, Josef Langer

Full text available

  • No

Peer reviewed?

  • No

Editors

Bozena Krce Miocic, Goran Vlasic, Josef Langer

Legacy Posted Date

2013-01-28

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