Wolfgang Streeck is a leading figure in comparative political economy and institutional theory. In this book he addresses some of the key arguments in these fields: the role of history in institutional analysis, the dynamics of slow institutional change, and the recurrent difficulties of restraining the effects of capitalism on social order.
In a world of increasing austerity measures, democratic politics comes under pressure. With the need to consolidate budgets and to accommodate financial markets, the responsiveness of governments to voters declines. However, democracy depends on choice. Citizens must be able to influence the course of government through elections and if a change in government cannot translate into different policies, democracy is incapacitated. Many mature democracies are approaching this situation as they confront fiscal crisis. For almost three decades, OECD countries have - in fits and starts - run deficits and accumulated debt. As a result, an ever smaller part of government revenue is available today for discretionary spending and social investment and whichever party comes into office will find its hands tied by past decisions. The current financial and fiscal crisis has exacerbated the long-term shrinking government discretion; projects for political change have lost credibility. Many citizens are aware of this situation: they turn away from party politics and stay at home on Election Day. With contributions from leading scholars in the forefront of sociology, politics and economics, this timely book will be of great interest to students and scholars throughout the social sciences as well as general readers.
WOLFGANG STREECK is the director of the Max Planck Institute for Social Research in Cologne and professor of sociology at the University of Cologne. He has previously held positions in Frankfurt, New York, Munster, and Berlin, and he was professor of sociology and industrial relations at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. He is an Honorary Fellow of the Society for the Advancement of Socio-Economics and a member of the Berlin Brandenburg Academy of Sciences as well as the Academia Europaea
In this book, 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 provocative political thinker asks if it will be with a bang or a whimper
Focusing on theories of institutional change, this collection features contributions from various disciplines that critique existing models for their inadequacy in analyzing national-level transformations. The authors argue for a new understanding of political economies evolving through incremental yet significant processes. They present a typology of institutional change that distinguishes between different models, providing valuable insights into mechanisms of social and political stability and broader evolution.
An anthology of long-read book reviews by one of the European left’s foremost political economists From the acclaimed author of How Will Capitalism End? comes an omnibus of long-form critical essays engaging with leading economists and thinkers. Critical Encounters draws on Wolfgang Streeck’s inimitable writing for the London Review of Books and New Left Review, among other publications. It opens with treatments of two contrasting historical eras—factory capitalism and financialization—and three of the world’s major economies: the United States, France and Germany. A middle section surveys the hollowing out of Western democracies and reviews Yanis Varoufakis’s “strange but indispensable” memoir of the eurozone crisis. Delving into the world of ideas, Streeck discusses the work of Quinn Slobodian, Mark Blyth, Jürgen Habermas and Perry Anderson. Finally, he zooms out to compare his home discipline of sociology to natural history, giving a remarkable and non-deterministic reading of Charles Darwin. In the preface, Streeck reflects on the art (or craft) of book reviewing and the continuing merits of the book form. Critical Encounters also includes a series of “Letters from Europe,” penned as the coronavirus descended upon the Continent.
Exploring the impact of globalization on state sovereignty, this book examines how states are adapting to maintain control in an interconnected world. It analyzes the evolving roles of national governments, the challenges posed by transnational forces, and the strategies employed by states to reclaim authority. Through various case studies, the text highlights the tension between global integration and local governance, offering insights into the future of state systems in a rapidly changing political landscape.
Targeted at academics, researchers, and advanced students, this book delves into the intersections of Social Sciences, with a strong emphasis on Political Economy, Sociology, and Institutional Theory. It offers insights into Comparative Business Systems, making it a valuable resource for those exploring complex social structures and economic interactions.
In the countries of the global north, workplace democracy may be thought of as a thing of the past. Today, working relations are regulated primarily by contract; workforces are increasingly fissured and fragmented. What are the consequences of this? How should we respond? Ruth Dukes and Wolfgang Streeck argue that the time is ripe to restate the principles of industrial democracy and citizenship for the post-industrial era. Considering developments within political economy, employment relations and labour law since the postwar decades, they trace the rise of globalization and the “dualisation” of labour markets - the emergence of a core and periphery of workers - and the progressive insulation of working relations from democratic governance. What these developments amount to, they argue, is an urgent need for political intervention to tame the new world of “gigging” and other forms of highly precarious work. This, according to the authors, will require far-reaching institution-building, designed to fill legal concepts such as “employment” with political substance. This eloquent call for a reimagining and renewal of the institutional and material conditions of freedom of association and the reinvention of industrial democracy will be crucial reading for anyone interested in work in the 21st century.