博士 / 甲第465号 / 167p / 一橋大学

Malgré l’annonce répétée de leur disparition par de nombreux experts, les grossistes ont réussi à survivre aux évolutions de leur environnement. Trois études de cas approfondies de grossistes en fruits et légumes permettent de comprendre les ressources qui ont été mobilisées. L’analyse est conduite en utilisant la théorie néo-institutionnelle et en s’intéressant aux interactions spécifiques entre acteurs & institutions. Une empirie très fouillée éclaire des transformations qui ont affecté le champ des grossistes et les réponses spécifiques apportées par les acteurs locaux. Les résultats de l’analyse conduisent à une meilleure compréhension de la notion et du rôle des ressources dans le cadre des interactions avec l’institution. Cette thèse montre également l'intérêt des biographies institutionnelles pour comprendre les antécédents à l’action. Au final, ce travail décrit et explique les efforts des grossistes en fruits et légumes pour devenir des garants de la qualité alors même que beaucoup les croient obsolètes et les tenaient pour condamnés / Whilst experts have predicted the downfall of wholesaler, the latter has survived and e to environmental pressures. This thesis, consisting of three in-depth case studies, investigates into the resources mobilization underpinning wholesalers' survival. The meticulous empirical setting sheds light on the transformations impacting the wholesaling field and on local actors' specific responses. This thesis contributes to illuminate the meaning and role of resources vis-à-vis interactions with institutions. Moreover, it promotes the concept of Institutional Biography as a lens to better understand action origins. The model derived from my analyses describes and explains fruit and vegetables wholesalers’ efforts to become a guarantor for quality, despite prejudices about their inertia and predictions of their disappearance

Society and institutions of government reinforce norms that constrain the behavior of individuals. Heteropatriarchal norms traditionally favor the perspective of white, male, heterosexual, reason, judicial restraint, and democratic authority over their binary, and minority, counterparts: black, female, homosexual, desire, judicial activism, and individual rights. According to the theory of Queer New Institutionalism, these dichotomous pairs are mutually dependent upon each other for definition and maintenance. The perpetuation of these binarisms is made through language, often assumed and unquestioned. However, the use of sexualized language and metaphors are identified in efforts to draw suspicion and consternation for these minoritized Others. When the presence of an Other is missing, those that would reinforce these norms being to skirt the line between the pairings, taking the position of the individual they would otherwise criticize. By utilizing critical discourse analysis, Supreme Court nomination hearings during the 109th and 111th Congresses were reviewed for support for the theory of Queer New Institutionalism. Senators and witnesses before the committee operated within the constraints of binary thinking and instances of sexualized and gendered language, as well as metaphors, were used to perpetuate these norms and link the nominees to the suspicion surrounding Others.

This thesis explores constructions of meaning, or frames, surrounding the policy of women’s hours in public debates and municipal settings, using newspaper articles and municipal documents as main empirical sources. Departing from the puzzle of how women’s hours are depicted as both gender equitable and gender inequitable in the debate, the thesis draws on previous research of how gender equality and multiculturalism relates to each other, potentially producing tensions in policymaking and discourse. Although Sweden has often been noted for its exceptionality in both dimensions, research suggests that multiculturalism has lost its favorable status in Sweden. To understand the impact framing may have on institutions, analysis is grounded feminist discursive institutionalism. The analysis is realized in two steps. First, the analysis identifies four frames, two supporting and two opposing, most prominently used to construct and depict women’s hours in public debate. Second, the analysis zooms in on the three municipalities Västerås, Haninge and Västervik, exploring the relationship between framing and outcomes. The thesis finds that the frames of women’s hours are often involved in culturalist language, depicting women’s hours as a Muslim policy, or, implicitly, depicting women’s hours as a gender equal policy by connecting it to other women than Muslim. In relation to institutional outcomes, the thesis finds that if the policy is constructed in a Muslim-culturalist language - that is, diagnosed as a Muslim practice - it leads to disapproval. If the policy is constructed as a gender equal policy beneficial to “all” women, it seems more accessible to keep. In line with previous research, the findings are suggestive of how the idea of multiculturalism as a problem seems to have become salient while gender equality remains a highly attractive master frame, contributing to how the policy of women’s hours is adopted only if successfully connected to other groups of women than Muslim.

Situated at the heart of Africa, the DRC has been transformed into a battlefield where several African states and national armed movements are simultaneously fighting various wars. In order to achieve peace, security, and stability in the DRC, SADC intervened with the international collaboration of the UN and AU. The aim of this dissertation is to investigate SADC’s role in the DRC conflict resolution process from 1998 to 2003. A qualitative research method has been chosen and two theories, namely New Institutionalism theories and Rupesinghe’s model of conflict transformation were adopted. The research concludes that SADC military and diplomatic efforts to end the war have been positive. It is true that violence continues and peace remained fragile, but the conflict had ended. The weakness of the DRC government has allowed continued violence. As an organisation of states, SADC has not been able to do anything about this fragility. / Political Sciences / M.A. (International Politics)

從時代趨勢中洞悉到女性創業議題的重要 ，爰發現青輔會「飛雁專案」下之非預期性政策產出(「中華飛雁創業互助協會」)的關鍵地位與價值，於檢視該組織背後的脈絡因素中覺察到「新制度主義之鑲嵌性概念」與「動態社會資本理論建構」間不謀而合，除確立女性創業環境下公部門（青輔會）、非營利組織（中華飛雁創業互助協會）及個人(微型女性創業者)間之互為鑲嵌關係，更因該組織成立而點明女性創業之動態社會資本建構過程，調和過去二元價值對立的窘境，透過實務與理論間交互檢證，開創女性創業、非營利組織及社會資本理論間之新紀元。 / Owing to the key status and value of the Women Entrepreneurs Association of Taiwan (WEAT) and unpredictable policy output of the“Free & Yong Program ”of National Youth Commission of Executive Yuan (NYC), this paper seeks to identify the importance of current trend issue about women entrepreneurship. In viewing the inner factors of the organizational context, I find there’s a coincidence between the“ embedding concept of new institutionalism” and “dynamic construction of social capital theory”. It not only sets up the correlation among Gov (NYC), NPO（WEAT）and individual (women mircrobusinesses entrepreneurs), but also makes the process of dynamic construction of social capitals in women business clear, harmonizing the paradox of structural/rational dualism in the past. The Interviewing and case study design are mainly employed methods in this research to cross-check practice and theory and thus depicts a better interaction among women entrepreneurship, NPO and social capital theory.

I denna uppsats undersöker vi arbete med publik på Moderna Museet och Botkyrka konsthall genom att studera vilka logiker som gör anspråk på att reglera publikarbetet. Vi vill även se om publikarbetet påverkar kulturproduktionen inom institutionerna. Publiken, i rollen av medborgaren, har stått i centrum av den svenska kulturpolitiska retoriken sedan första hälften av 1900-talet. Språket har förändrats genom åren inom kulturfältet i och med införandet av nya begrepp och begreppsförflyttningar som t.ex. medborgarperspektiv, kulturell kvalitet, deltagande, dialog, kunder, effektivisering och resultatmätning. Bakom begreppen finns det handlingslogiker som formats av olika diskurser inom det kulturella fältet. En diskurs kan i korthet förklaras som det språk genom vilket vi tyder och förhåller oss till världen. Genom diskursanalys och nyinstitutionell teori kartlägger vi hur konstprofessionella-, demokratiska-, byråkratiska- och managementlogiken styr publikarbete på Moderna Museet och Botkyrka konsthall. Vårt resultat visar att det inte är en dominerande diskurs som tar anspråk på att styra och reglera konstinstitutionernas publikarbete. Vi kan däremot se att det är många olika logiker som existerar i en institutionell pluralism. Den demokratiska logiken har ett starkt grepp om publikarbetet, men de andra logikerna påverkar även val av hur man arbetar med publikarbete. Studien visar på att det är just publikarbetet som har fått bära statens och kommunens krav på att nå nya målgrupper och arbeta för mångfald samt tillgänglighet. Publikarbetet påverkar Moderna Museets och Botkyrka konsthalls kulturproduktion på olika sätt men på båda institutionerna har arbetet med publik en viktiga roll i legitimerandet av institutionernas verksamhet. / In this paper, we examine how Moderna museet and Botkyrka konsthall work with audience, by studying which logic claim to regulate the work with audience. We also want to see if their work with audience affects the production of culture within the institutions. The audience, in the role of citizens, has been the center of the rhetoric within Swedish cultural politics since the first half of the 20th century. The language has changed over the years in the cultural field with the introduction of new concepts and concept movement, such as citizen perspective, cultural quality, participation, dialogue, customers, efficiency and performance measurement. Behind the concept is the logics formed by various discourses in the cultural field. A discourse can be explained as the language through which we interpret and relate to the world. With discourse analysis and new institutional theory, we map how art professional-, democratic-, bureaucratic- and management logic controls the audience work in Moderna museet and Botkyrka Konsthall. The result shows there is a dominant discourse that claims to control and regulate the work within public art institutions. However, many different logics exist in an institutional pluralism. The democratic logic has a strong grip on the audience work, but the other logics also affect the choice of how to work with audience. This paper shows it is precisely the work with audience that had to bear the state and community’s requirements to reach new audiences and promote diversity and accessibility. The work with audience affects Moderna Museet and Botkyrka Konsthall in their cultural production in different ways, but the two institutions have been working with audience important role in the legitimization of institutions.

‘Corporate social responsibility’ (CSR) and ‘socially responsible investment’ (SRI) have become predominant frameworks connecting business to society that have spread across the globe. They comprise a shared set of ideas and practices, such as those promoted in global reporting standards and by international organisations such as the UN Global Compact. Nonetheless, both are constructed and reproduced by companies in relation to context-specific social institutions, including norms and conventions shaping company engagement in social issues. Using a neo-institutionalist theoretical framework, the thesis examines constructions of social responsibility in discourse and within institutional contexts, across regions that are not often compared in the research terrain: two West European welfare states (Sweden and the UK) and two emerging African economies (South Africa and Mauritius). The purpose of the thesis is to add to the literature on CSR and SRI with a sociologically informed perspective that is comparative and connects institutional theory with social constructionism and a Foucauldian perspective on power. The thesis analyses how perceptions of CSR and SRI are constructed in relation to the social institutions that encase companies’ engagement with social issues, such as national level welfare configurations and the institution of financial investments. The main argument in this thesis is that CSR and SRI need to be seen as contextually constructed, in discourse and practice, in ways that draw the boundaries and set the conditions for company engagement with social issues. The thesis comprises three articles. Article 1 is a content analysis of company self-reporting on CSR and the article examines how the content given to CSR relates to broader welfare configurations and as such differs in four national settings across the divide between emerging African economies and Western welfare states. Article 2 is a discourse analysis that examines interpretative repertoires occurring in company self-reporting across the same set of four countries. The interpretative repertoires are analysed as discursive practices where power intersects with the production of knowledge on CSR. Article 3 focuses on SRI and examines responsible investing as a form of institutional work that institutional investors engage in. Based on an interview study with institutional investors in Sweden, the article analyses institutional work as a process that has the effect of both institutional creation and maintenance and it connects these institutional processes to the construction of meaning on SRI. In its entirety the thesis contributes a sociological perspective on how prevailing understandings of corporate social responsibility come into being and are reproduced. / Uppfattningar om företags samhällsansvar har begreppsliggjorts i huvudsak genom idéer om ’corporate social responsibility’ (CSR) och ’ansvarsfulla investeringar’. Under de senaste decennierna har dessa begrepp utvecklats till att bli vanligt förkommande och har spridits över världen. Som globala koncept medför de en gemensam uppsättning av idéer och metoder, såsom de som förs fram i internationella standarder för företags CSR rapportering, och utav internationella organisationer såsom FN:s Global Compact. Ändå skiljer de sig åt mellan olika kontexter och är konstruerade och återges av företag i förhållande till sociala sammanhang. Begreppen ges mening i relation till sociala institutioner i form av normer och konventioner som redan omger företag och sociala frågor. Baserat på nyinstitutionell teori undersöker avhandlingen konstruktioner av samhällsansvar och ansvarstagande, i diskurs och i institutionella sammanhang, över regioner som inte ofta jämförs i forskningen kring skillnader i företags samhällsansvar: två Västeuropeiska välfärdsstater (Sverige och Storbritannien) och två tillväxtekonomier i södra Afrika (Sydafrika och Mauritius). Syftet med avhandlingen är att bidra till litteraturen kring CSR och ansvarsfulla investeringar med ett sociologiskt perspektiv som är jämförande och för samman institutionell teori med social konstruktionism och Foucaults perspektiv på makt. Avhandlingen analyserar hur föreställningar om CSR och ansvarsfulla investeringar konstrueras i förhållande till de sociala institutioner som omger företags engagemang i samhällsfrågor, och belyser speciellt vikten av samhällets välfärdssystem och konventioner kring finansiella investeringar som betydelsefulla för dessa begrepp. Huvudargumentet i denna avhandling är att CSR och ansvarsfulla investeringar måste ses som kontextuellt skapade, i diskurs och praxis, på ett sätt som drar gränserna och skapar förutsättningarna för företags engagemang i samhällsfrågor. Avhandlingen omfattar tre artiklar. Artikel 1 är en innehållsanalys av företags självrapportering om CSR och artikeln undersöker hur innehållet som ges till CSR i självrapporteringen relaterar till hur samhället i övrigt hanterar välfärd och sociala frågor. Artikeln visar på hur CSR på så sätt skiljer sig åt mellan fyra olika länder där två är tillväxtekonomier i södra Afrika och två är Västeuropeiska välfärdsstater. Artikel 2 är en diskursanalys som undersöker språkliga repertoarer (interpretative repertoires) som förekommer i företags självrapportering om CSR, i samma uppsättning av fyra länder. Repertoarerna analyseras som tillämpandet av diskurs och de synliggör hur makt är av betydelse i skapandet av diskurser kring CSR. Artikel 3 fokuserar på ansvarfulla investeringar och undersöker detta som en form av aktivt skapande och återskapande av samhällsinstitutioner. Baserat på en intervjustudie med institutionella investerare i Sverige analyseras ansvarfullt investerande som en process som på samma gång innebär både skapande av en ny social institution, ansvarsfulla investeringar, och återskapande av en existerande institution, finansiella investeringar. Skapandet av nya idéer inom ramarna för en existerande institution påverkar innebörden i ansvarsfulla investeringar. I sin helhet bidrar avhandlingen med ett sociologiskt perspektiv på hur uppfattningar om företags samhällsansvar skapas och återskapas. / <p>At the time of the doctoral defense, the following papers were unpublished and had a status as follows: Paper 1: Manuscript. Paper 2: Manuscript. Paper 3: Manuscript.</p>

Les cas d’entreprises touchées par des scandales financiers, environnementaux ou concernant des conditions de travail abusives imposées à leur main-d’œuvre, n’ont cessé de jalonner l’actualité ces vingt dernières années. La multiplication des comportements à l’origine de ces scandales s’explique par l’environnement moins contraignant, que leur ont offert les politiques de privatisation, dérégulation et libéralisation, amorcées à partir des années 1980. Le développement de la notion de responsabilité sociale des entreprises à partir des années 1980, en réaction à ces excès, incarne l'idée que si une entreprise doit certes faire des profits et les pérenniser elle se doit de les réaliser en favorisant les comportements responsables, éthiques et transparents avec toutes ses parties prenantes. Nous analysons dans cette thèse le processus par lequel, face à des dysfonctionnements et abus, touchant les conditions de travail de leur main d’œuvre ou leur gouvernance, des entreprises peuvent être amenées, ou non, à questionner et modifier leurs pratiques. Nous avons axé notre étude de cas sur deux entreprises aux trajectoires diamétralement opposées. La première entreprise, issue du secteur de la fabrication de vêtements et dont la crise concernait des atteintes aux droits des travailleurs, a surmonté la crise en réformant son modèle de production. La seconde entreprise, située dans le secteur des technologies de l'information et de la communication, a fait face à une crise liée à sa gouvernance d’entreprise, multiplié les dysfonctionnements pendant dix années de crises et finalement déclaré faillite en janvier 2009. Les évolutions théoriques du courant néo-institutionnel ces dernières années, permettent d’éclairer le processus par lequel de nouvelles normes émergent et se diffusent, en soulignant le rôle de différents acteurs, qui pour les uns, définissent de nouvelles normes et pour d’autres se mobilisent en vue de les diffuser. Afin d’augmenter leur efficacité à l’échelle mondiale, il apparaît que ces acteurs agissent le plus souvent en réseaux, parfois concurrents. L’étude du cas de cette compagnie du secteur de la confection de vêtement nous a permis d’aborder le domaine lié aux conditions de travail de travailleurs œuvrant au sein de chaînes de production délocalisées dans des pays aux lois sociales absentes ou inefficaces. Nous avons analysé le cheminement par lequel cette entreprise fut amenée à considérer, avec plus de rigueur, la dimension éthique dans sa chaîne de production. L’entreprise, en passant par différentes étapes prenant la forme d’un processus d’apprentissage organisationnel, a réussi à surmonter la crise en réformant ses pratiques. Il est apparu que ce processus ne fut pas spontané et qu’il fut réalisé suite aux rôles joués par deux types d’acteurs. Premièrement, par la mobilisation incessante des mouvements de justice globale afin que l’entreprise réforme ses pratiques. Et deuxièmement, par le cadre normatif et le lieu de dialogue entre les différentes parties prenantes, fournis par un organisme privé source de normes. C’est fondamentalement le risque de perdre son accréditation à la cet organisme qui a poussé l’entreprise à engager des réformes. L’entreprise est parvenue à surmonter la crise, certes en adoptant et en respectant les normes définies par cette organisation mais fondamentalement en modifiant sa culture d'entreprise. Le leadership du CEO et du CFO a en effet permis la création d'une culture d'entreprise favorisant la remise en question, le dialogue et une plus grande prise en considération des parties prenantes, même si la gestion locale ne va pas sans poser parfois des difficultés de mise en œuvre. Concernant le domaine de la gouvernance d’entreprise, nous mettons en évidence, à travers l’étude des facteurs ayant mené au déclin et à la faillite d’une entreprise phare du secteur des technologies de l’information et de la communication, les limites des normes en la matière comme outil de bonne gouvernance. La légalité de la gestion comptable et la conformité de l’entreprise aux normes de gouvernance n'ont pas empêché l’apparition et la multiplication de dysfonctionnements et abus stratégiques et éthiques. Incapable de se servir des multiples crises auxquelles elle a fait face pour se remettre en question et engager un apprentissage organisationnel profond, l'entreprise s'est focalisée de manière obsessionnelle sur la rentabilité à court terme et la recherche d'un titre boursier élevé. La direction et le conseil d'administration ont manqué de leadership afin de créer une culture d'entreprise alliant innovation technologique et communication honnête et transparente avec les parties prenantes. Alors que l'étude consacrée à l’entreprise du secteur de la confection de vêtement illustre le cas d'une entreprise qui a su, par le biais d'un changement stratégique, relever les défis que lui imposait son environnement, l'étude des quinze dernières années de la compagnie issue du secteur des technologies de l’information et de la communication témoigne de la situation inverse. Il apparaît sur base de ces deux cas que si une gouvernance favorisant l'éthique et la transparence envers les parties prenantes nécessite la création d'une culture d'entreprise valorisant ces éléments, elle doit impérativement soutenir et être associée à une stratégie adéquate afin que l'entreprise puisse pérenniser ses activités. / The case of companies affected by scandals related to financial, environmental, or exploitative labour conditions aspects have marked the last twenty years. The increasingly form of behaviour behind these scandals can be explained by the less restrictive environment offered by the privatization, deregulation and liberalization policies initiated in the 1980s. In order to prevent these derivatives and promote sustainable management, stakeholders and investors encourage the taking into consideration of three non-economic factors, known as the ESG Factors (Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance related). The development of the concept of Corporate Social Responsability since the 1980s, following these excesses, embodies the idea that if a company should certainly make profit and sustain it, it should achieve it by promoting responsible, ethical and transparent behavior with all its' stakeholders. We analyze, in this thesis, the process by which, in the face of malfunctions and abuse affecting labour working conditions or their governance, companies can be brought to, or not, question and change their practices. We have focused our case study on two companies with diametrically opposed trajectories. The first company, from the textile sector and whose crisis concerned the infringement of workers' rights, overcame the crisis by reforming its production model. The second company, from the information technology and communication sector and whose crisis was related to its corporate governance, multiplied the malfunctions for ten years until declaring bankruptcy on January 2009. Recent developments in the new institutionalism theory shed light on the process by which new standards emerge and spread, while emphasizing the role occupied by various actors in this process. Networks of actors are formed, in order to increase their efficiency in a global scale, where they define new ethical standards and mobilize in order to spread them. The first case study allowed us to address the field associated with the labour conditions of workers operating within the supply chain relocated in countries with ineffective or non-existent social laws. We analyzed the path through which this company was led to consider, with greater rigor, the ethical dimension in its supply chain. The company, going through various steps in the form of an organizational learning process, was able to overcome the crisis by reforming its practices. It became apparent that this process was not spontaneous and that it was settled following the roles played by two types of actors. Firstly, by the constant mobilization of Global Justice Movements, in order for the company to reform its practices, and secondly, by the normative framework and place for dialogue between the different stakeholders, offered by a private organization source of standards. Basically, the risk of losing its accreditation was what led the company to undertake reforms. The company was able to overcome the crisis by adopting, and respecting, the standards defined by this private authority. The company managed to overcome the crisis, albeit by adopting and complying with these norms, but fundamentally by changing its corporate culture. The leadership of the CEO and the CFO has allowed the creation of a corporate culture that encourages questioning, dialogue and a greater consideration of the stakeholders, even if local management may sometimes pose a number of issues or difficulties. Concerning the dimension related to corporate governance, we highlight, through the study of factors leading to the decline and bankruptcy of the second case study, the limits of the standards as a tool for good governance. The lawfulness of accounting and the company's compliance to the governance standards did not prevent the emergence and proliferation of shortcomings and of strategic and ethical issues. Unable to take advantage of the multiple crises it faced in order to challenge and engage a deep organizational learning, the company obsessively focused on the short-term profitability and the search for a higher share. Management and the Board of Directors have failed to show some leadership in creating a corporate culture that would combine technological innovation and an honest and transparent communication with stakeholders. Thus, it appears that there are two types of behaviours raised by companies: the first type, which can be induced, controlled and which is favourable to the regulatory process; and the second type, which is more strategic, more difficult to control and less amenable to be regulated. While the first case study illustrates the case of a company that, through a strategic change, has been able to address the challenges imposed by its’ environment, the second one reflects the opposite situation. Based on these two cases, it appears that if a governance, promoting ethics and transparency towards stakeholders, requires the creation of a corporate culture valuing these elements, it must support and be associated with the right strategy so that the company can sustain its activities.

L’objectif de cette thèse doctorale est de contribuer à l’ensemble de la recherche sur les agences de notation. Elle couvre les trois aspects : théorique, conceptuel et empirique. La première partie se focalise sur le Néo-Institutionnalisme. Le Capitalisme d’État propre au marché chinois a été mis en avant, et un bilan comparatif a été dressé entre les marchés chinois et européens. Une analyse dynamique nous permet ensuite d’illustrer l’interaction des agences de notation avec les autorités régulatrices, les émetteurs de titres financiers, et les investisseurs. Dans la seconde partie, nous avons réalisé une vaste revue de la littérature, et proposé d’ajouter les spécificités institutionnelles chinoises aux variables déjà prises en compte dans les études. Au niveau de la méthodologie, certains outils qualitatifs et quantitatifs ont été envisagés. Diverses approches sont choisies en fonction du contenu de chacun des chapitres : le rôle, la stratégie et l’impact des agences de notation en Chine.Premièrement, par une approche comparative, nous avons montré qu'en Chine, le rôle des agences de notation ne se limitait pas à celui qui leur est habituellement assigné. Il semble aussi que les agences de notations se laissent tenter par le « rating shopping », le « split rating » et le « rating inflation », sous la pression des émetteurs. En revanche, les investisseurs sont relativement prudents lors de « multiples ratings ». Deuxièmement, nous avons mis en évidence que les agences de notation internationales ont tendance à noter plus strictement que les agences locales. Nous nous sommes rendu compte que les comportements stratégiques variaient d’une à l’autre, lorsque l’on étudie les déterminants des notations initiales des émetteurs. Troisièmement, en menant une étude d’événements sur le marché chinois des actions, nous avons trouvé des rendements anormaux significatifs sur quelques sous-échantillons des « modifications de notation », après avoir adopté différentes méthodes d’estimation, et mené divers tests paramétriques et non-paramétriques. Enfin, les analyses et résultats que nous avons apportés au cours de chaque chapitre empirique, ont enrichi en retour, nos discussions sur l’environnement institutionnel du marché chinois / In this Ph.D. thesis, we aim to contribute to the entire research on CRAs, with theoretical, conceptual and empirical aspects. We used the New-institutionalism as a theoretical frame of reference to justify the importance to have a good understanding of Chinese institutional characteristics. Chinese State-capitalism and Socialist-market economics, along with the interaction of CRAs with regulators, issuers and investors are devoted to setting the stage. We implemented various methodological approaches that seemed the most appropriate, on the sample that the most suitable, according to each of the objectives that we set, to better comprehend CRAs’ role, strategy and impact, under Chinese market context.Firstly, we found that CRAs were not expected to play “their main role” in assessing the credit default risk for market investment in China, as they are usually assigned to do so in Europe, and other developed countries. After running the frequency test, to register the words most used in the written regulatory and normative documents, we concluded that the expectation of roles of CRAs was also different in Continental China and in Hong Kong. At the expectation of issuers, CRAs also seem to play a role in rating “shopping”, in split rating, and even in rating inflation. Investors are very cautious to the multiple ratings. Secondly, by using logistic models, we found that global CRAs tend to rate more strictly than local CRAs, ceteris paribus. We also realized that the strategical behaviors of Chinese local CRAs are distinctive one from the other, when we studied the determinants “behind” initial issuer ratings. These findings confirmed the preliminary quantitative tests that we executed on the descriptive data. Thirdly, we failed to find informative impact of credit rating changes on the stock market, through a classic event study relying on the market model. Even if we refined the methodology by completing GARCH to OLS estimation model, and non-parametric tests to parametric tests, we only found significant outcomes in some subsamples, and for negative watch-lists.In the end, the analyses we led and the findings we reported from each of these empirical chapters have contributed to enrich, in return, our discussion of Chinese institutional characteristics