The Origins of Nonliberal Capitalism


Book Description

"In The Origins of Nonliberal Capitalism, German sociologists and American and Japanese political scientists draw extensively on the work of economists and historians from their home countries, as well as from the United Kingdom and France. The contributors analyze the historical origins of nonliberal capitalism in Germany and Japan from two perspectives: the emergence and survival of a capitalism that does not assume liberal ideas and ideology; and the causes of difference between the systems of Germany and Japan. They also outline the requirements for internally coherent national models of an embedded capitalist economy."--BOOK JACKET.




Varieties of Capitalism


Book Description

Applying the new economics of organisation and relational theories of the firm to the problem of understanding cross-national variation in the political economy, this volume elaborates a new understanding of the institutional differences that characterise the 'varieties of capitalism' worldwide.




Re-Forming Capitalism


Book Description

Wolfgang Streeck has written extensively on comparative political economy and institutional theory. In this book he addresses some of the key issues in this field: the role of history in institutional analysis, the dynamics of slow institutional change, the limitations of rational design and economic-functionalist explanations of institutional stability, and the recurrent difficulties of restraining the effects of capitalism on social order. In the classification of the 'Varieties of Capitalism' school, Germany has always been taken as the chief exemplar of a 'European', coordinated market economy. Streeck explores to what extent Germany actually conforms to this description. His argument is supported by original empirical research on wage-setting and wage structure, the organization of business and labor in business associations and trade unions, social policy, public finance, and corporate governance. From this evidence, Bringing Capitalism Back In traces the current liberalization of the postwar economy of democratic capitalism by means of an historically-grounded approach to institutional change. This is an important book in comparative political economy and key reading across the social sciences for academics, researchers, and advanced students of Political Economy, Sociology, comparative business systems.




The Oxford Handbook of Comparative Institutional Analysis


Book Description

It is increasingly accepted that 'institutions matter' for economic organization and outcomes. The last decade has seen significant expansion in research examining how institutional contexts affect the nature and behaviour of firms, the operation of markets, and economic outcomes. Yet 'institutions' conceal a multitude of issues and perspectives. Much of this research has been comparative, and followed different models such as 'varieties of capitalism', 'national business systems', and 'social systems of production'. This Handbook explores these issues, perspectives, and models, with the leading scholars in the area contributing chapters to provide a central reference point for academics, scholars, and students.




Liberal Leviathan


Book Description

In the second half of the twentieth century, the United States engaged in the most ambitious and far-reaching liberal order building the world had yet seen. This liberal international order has been one of the most successful in providing security and prosperity to more people, but in the last decade the American-led order has been troubled. Some argue that the Bush administration undermined it. Others argue that we are witnessing he end of the American era. In Liberal Leviathan G. John Ikenberry argues that the crisis that besets the American-led order is a crisis of authority. The forces that have triggered this crisis have resulted from the successful functioning and expansion of the postwar liberal order, not its breakdown.




Liberalism and the Welfare State


Book Description

Liberalism and the Welfare State investigates the thinking of liberal economists about welfare, focusing on Britain, Germany and Japan, each of which had a different tradition of economic thinking and different institutions for welfare provision.




State Capitalism and International Investment Law


Book Description

This book explores how State capitalism affects and reshapes international investment law. It sheds new light on the various ways States actively influence business and commercial activity globally by using sovereign investors such as state-owned enterprises and sovereign wealth funds or pension funds. With a diverse group of contributors from a broad range of countries, the book offers a fresh and timely look into the fundamentals of State capitalism, focusing in particular on its actors and processes, the contextual elements that surround it, and the new political economy that comes with it. The book is essential reading for researchers, regulators, policy makers, and practitioners interested in the different ways State capitalism challenges and changes international investment law. As geopolitical considerations increasingly affect global economic activity, delving into the intricacies of State capitalism has never been more timely.




Comparative Political Economy


Book Description

This major new text introduces the analytical tools required to understand and interpret 21st century advanced capitalism and its evolution in the wake of the global financial crisis. Placing Comparative Political Economy in the context of key concepts and theoretical debates in the long-established field of Political Economy, it maps the terrain, substantive focus and evolution of the comparative approach. Furthermore, it connects Comparative Political Economy systematically to the subfield of International Political Economy (IPE), making the case for cross-fertilisation between these closely related fields. Re-invigorating the debate in the wake of the global financial crisis and the dramatic political interventions that followed, this text offers an entirely fresh and holistic review of comparative political economy. Ben Clift, a leading figure in the field, rethinks the supposed boundaries between comparative and international political economy, highlighting the how disciplines complement each other in an era where economic activity is increasingly shaped by political and social influence. Upper-level undergraduates and postgraduates studying Comparative Political Economy or a subject related to Political Economy will find this book essential. As the topics and disciplinary themes covered by this text are broad, students of more general Politics or International Relations courses will also be well served by this text.




The Political Economy of the European Union


Book Description

The core business of the European Union is the creation of an integrated European market. The scale of this project is enormous, covering a wide variety of national ‘models' of capitalism, many of which are marked by a heavy reliance on non-market institutions to govern and co-ordinate economic activity. This book introduces students to the fundamentals of European Union policy towards these national political economic governance institutions and the challenges arising from this evolving relationship. Chapter One examines the role of institutions in governing capitalist systems. Chapter Two explores the evolution of the EU's liberal ambition over the last five decades. Subsequent chapters then analyse the development of EU policy in relation to the governance of product, financial and labour markets. What sort of restructuring has it sought to achieve? How great a challenge do EU policies present to national practices? How effective have been its strategies of Europeanisation? In short, to what extent has it effected a liberal transformation in the institutional governance of European capitalism? At issue are fundamental questions concerning the power and status of nation-states in the context of the most ambitious experiment in co-operative regional integration yet witnessed.