UC Berkeley Professor Researches “Soft Power”
A UC Berkeley Haas School of Business professor recently published his research on “soft power” which is the phenomenon of global influence in the form of pop cultural assets. It is in contrast to “hard power” which is a country’s military or economic might.
Professor Andrew Rose, who holds the Bernard T. Rocca, Jr. Chair in International Business & Trade, asserts that soft power can increase the exporting power of countries that wield it. The study is entitled Like Me, Buy Me: The Effect of Soft Power on Exports. Rose conducted his research over a seven year period ending in 2013.
“Countries are always concerned about their image, but the soft power effect has a very tangible commercial payoff. Germany is a much-admired country and an export powerhouse; North Korea and Iran are pariah states and both find it difficult to export goods,” said Rose.
Economists measure soft power with many methods, among them the use of surveys which ask citizens their opinions on other countries. One of the definitive surveying tools is the BBC WorldService/Globe Scan poll, which asked people in 33 countries what they thought of China, Britain, Russia, the United States, India, Japan, and Iran, France, and other countries in Europe. This survey began in 2006 and has been conducted annually ever since.
Over the course of his research, Rose discovered that a 1% net increase in a country’s soft power raises exports by about 0.8%. The United States is viewed to possess a high degree of soft power, though the perceptions of the US varied widely among the countries surveyed. 17% of Russians viewed the US as having a positive influence, compared with 83% of Ghanans.
About the Author
Maggie Boccella
Maggie Boccella, a lifelong resident of Philadelphia, is a freelance writer, artist and photographer. She has consulted on various film and multimedia projects, and she also serves as a juror for the city's annual LGBTQIA Film Festival.
