The current dynamics of world economy show remarkable changes in the socio-economics of credit provision and entrepreneurship. If the emergence of the sharing economy is fostering innovative models of collaborative agency, networking and venture business, economic actors are also looking for a more sustainable development, able to foster profitability as well as community welfare. This book investigates Islamic social finance as a paramount example of this economy under change, where the balance between economic efficiency and social impact is contributing to the transformation of the market from an exchange- to a community-oriented institution. The collected essays analyse the social dimension of entrepreneurship from an Islamic perspective, highlighting the extent to which the rationales of "sharing," distribution and cooperation, affect the conceptualization of the market in Islam as a place of "shared prosperity." Moving from the conceptual "roots" of this paradigm to its operative "branches," the contributing authors also connect the most recent trends in the financial market to Shari'ah-based strategies for community welfare, hence exploring the applications of Islamic social finance from the sharing economy, FinTech and crowdfunding to microcredit, waqf, zakat, sukuk and green investments. An illuminating reference for researchers, practitioners and policy-makers dealing with the challenges of a global market where not only is diversity being perceived as a value to be fostered, but also as an important opportunity for a more inclusive economy for everybody.

Despite the Great Recession, slightly different forms of global capitalism are still portrayed as the only game in town by the vast majority of people in power in the world today. Unbridled growth, trade liberalisation, and competition are advocated as the only or best ways of organizing the contemporary world. Unemployment, yawning gaps between rich and poor, political disengagement, and environmental devastation are too often seen as acceptable 'side effects' of the dominance of neo-liberalism. But the reality is that capitalism has always been contested and that people have created many other ways of providing for themselves. This book explores economic and organizational possibilities which extend far beyond the narrow imagination of economists and management theorists. Chapters on co-operatives, community currencies, the transition movement, scrounging, co-housing and much more paints a rich picture of the ways in which another word is not only possible, but already taking shape. The aim of this companion is to move beyond complaining about the present and into exploring this diversity of organisational possibilities. Our starting point is a critical analysis of contemporary global capitalism is merely the opening for thinking about organizing as a form of politics by other means, and one that can be driven by the values of solidarity, freedom and responsibility. This comprehensive companion with an international cast of contributors gives voice to forms of organizing which remain unrepresented or marginalised in organizational studies and conventional politics, yet which offer more promising grounds for social and environmental justice. It is a valuable resource for students, activists and researchers interested in alternative approaches to economy and society in a variety of disciplinary and interdisciplinary fields.

The still chaotic states of the former Soviet Union, a growing China, and the divergent nations of Eastern Europe are striving to radically transform their economies. In their quest to become more integrated with the global economy, they are making historic changes to move toward market-based, private-enterprise systems. In this book, Barry P. Bosworth and Gur Ofer provide a balanced assessment of the progress of integration among the formerly centrally planned economies. So far, the results of the reform process range from amazing success in China to economic and political disarray in the states of the former Soviet Union. The authors outline the key issues that any successful reform program must address and the sequence in which these reforms should take place.

A volume of Brookings' Integrating National Economies Series

Stigma is a corrosive social force by which individuals and communities throughout history have been systematically dehumanised, scapegoated and oppressed. From the literal stigmatizing (tattooing) of criminals in ancient Greece, to modern day discrimination against Muslims, refugees and the 'undeserving poor', stigma has long been a means of securing the interests of powerful elites. In this radical reconceptualisation Tyler precisely and passionately outlines the political function of stigma as an instrument of state coercion. Through an original social and economic reframing of the history of stigma, Tyler reveals stigma as a political practice, illuminating previously forgotten histories of resistance against stigmatization, boldly arguing that these histories provide invaluable insights for understanding the rise of authoritarian forms of government today.

This book is a methodologically self-conscious and intellectually ambitious effort to advance the social science debate on postcommunist transformation beyond the limitations of its first decade. Offering theoretically innovative and empirically current analyses of fundamental economic, cultural, and political problems of systemic change and reform in central and Eastern Europe, the authors broaden and deepen the research agenda by developing a set of interrelated approaches that are cross-disciplinary, sociologically informed, historically comparative, and global. The bookOs major substantive themes revolve around problems of postcommunist socioeconomic transformations. Specifically, the book explores postcommunist systemic change, the role of religion and collective identity, the significance of trust and economic culture, patterns of state-economy interactions in enterprise restructuring, the context of EU expansion, the strengths and weaknesses of economic theory and neoliberal doctrine, and the history of ideas in the postcommunist transformation debate. Bringing together leading experts in the field to illustrate the fruitfulness of multidisciplinary analysis in understanding socioeconomic transitions, this work will be valuable for economists, sociologists, and political scientists alike.

This book presents current theories of European integration, such as federalism, neo-functionalism and liberal intergovernmentalism with their strengths and weaknesses. It is then argued that the combination of republican theory with public good theory, the res publica of public goods, could better explain European integration. Public good theory has, however, to be adopted in order to make it applicable to European republicanism. Finally, the book demonstrates how this new framework can influence further academic debates, such as on sovereignty and monetary integration, externalities of a common European market and the driving force of European integration. It is maintained that as the republican approach does not follow a pure economic logic, there remains space for political considerations and motivations. In this topical and interdisciplinary book, the author combines many important strings of European integration theory, history, economics and political sciences, which are clearly brought together into a coherent analytical discourse. Its strength is the interdisciplinary interaction between politics and economics, as well as theoretical and practical issues which are of high relevance for public debate in Europe. This book will be of interest to scholars and students interested in economic integration, as well as history and political philosophy.

Contrary to much Marxist thought, the author does not view socialism as an antithesis to capitalism, and in this text argues that socialism is, among other things an objective development of capitalism. As capitalism develops it creates the premises for social development which are also the bases for a socialist and democratic construction of society. Drawing on economics, urban geography, political theory and Marxism, the text examines the evolution of capitalism from its early industrial to its present urban and global forms. How Marx understood the economy as a unity of production, distribution, exchange and consumption engaged in social reproduction is also considered. The contradictory evolution of US corporations and urban development from 1945 to the present is explored. The author argues that urban space involves requirements for social and individual reproduction which extend well beyond limits inherent in transnational corporate private appropriation. Using his arguments, the author makes the case that economic expansion can now best be secured by forms of development that take us beyond the limits of capitalism and point towards a democratic and socialist society.

In this new collection of his most acute and durable political writing, readers will recognize the spirit of indignation and hope Goodman first roused in the 1960s with "Growing Up Absurd." "Stoehr tells his Goodman's] story well.This is the genuine kind of decentralism."--"The Nation"

European market integration was originally seen as the way to overcome national enmities in the wake of World War II. Over time, it acquired the purpose of social melioration as well. Today, the advanced market societies are richer than they have ever been, yet each is driven by social and economic divisions as some groups thrive while others lose ground. The tension between the social demand for equity and security, and the market's drive to burst the bonds of state regulation both internally and at the border post, has taken on new complexity. It is this issue that underlies domestic political struggles over privatisation, safety-net programmes, immigration policies and trade agreements. Will European Union survive the stresses of high employment and the strains of German unification? These are some of the questions Dusan Pokorny considers in this second volume of his exploration of the efficiency-justice conundrum.

Originally published in 1974. This book provides a rigorous and detailed introductory treatment of the theory of difference equations and their applications in the construction and analysis of dynamic economic models. It explains the theory of linear difference equations and various types of dynamic economic models are then analysed. Including plenty of examples of application throughout the text, it will be of use to those working in macroeconomics and econometrics.

This book, first published in 1986, is an important contribution to the economic analysis of new firms. It emphasises the importance of analysing the economic inter-relationship between new and established firms. These links are especially relevant in the assessment of the employment effects of formation activity.

Concern over conglomerate mergers increased dramatically in the latter part of the twentieth century. An acceleration in conglomerate merger activity rekindled firms' takeover fears and swamped trustbusters, and attention focused on the political and economic issues surrounding conglomerate mergers. Of particular importance is the possibility that conglomerate mergers may increase aggregate concentration and eventually create a 'zaibatsu' economy. This book, first published in 1984, addresses the issue by examining the mutual forbearance hypothesis. More specifically, do multi-market contacts among diversified firms affect market competition?

This book, first published in 1936, analyses the then-recent phenomenon of industrial combination. Concentration was new. Industrial combination was new. The interlocking of finances was new. The role of banks in regard to industry was new. The domination of financial capital over large sectors of industry was new. The author examines the new industrial system as it was, on the cusp of new world-economic conditions, resulting from and manifesting themselves in a revolution in transport, the creation of concentrated mass supply and mass demand, changes in the distribution of raw material supplies and the adaption of the technical and economic structure of the industrial unit to these new conditions.

Max Weber, recognized as one of the world's most important sociologists, saw his life's work as nothing less than the comparative analysis of world civilizations. Above all, he was fascinated by the differing historical paths traced by Western civilization and the civilizations of the East. In his famous essay, The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, he addressed the forces behind that dramatic and enormous transformation of human life and society known as the Industrial Revolution. Weber's thesis proposes a causal link between the forces of the 'protestant ethic' and the 'spirit of capitalism' that lay behind the Industrial Revolution.This important book offers a sophisticated analysis of Weber's key concepts and an in-depth study as to their formulation in the early modern period. Michael Lessnoff proposes an original and essential distinction between the protestant 'work' and 'profit' ethics and examines the logical relation between them. He looks at Adam Smith's work on the relation between morals and capitalism, comparing Smith's 'spirit of capitalism' to Weber's. Lessnoff also considers the significance of the 'protestant ethic' in the modern world. As one of the first books of its kind to offer a complex analysis of the Weber thesis and using a large body of previously neglected evidence, The Spirit of Capitalism and the Protestant Ethic will be welcomed by historians of religion and economics and by all sociologists.

Looking back from the perspective of the mid-1990s, it is hard to believe that Soviet power for so long presented a threat and a challenge to the capitalist system. This book examines the assumptions of Soviet post-war economic theory and policy, traces the Soviets' analysis of Western economic development from the post-war period through to the easing of international relations, and explains why the Soviets themselves believed they were going to outperform the West.

Looking back from the perspective of the mid-1990s, it is hard to believe that Soviet power for so long presented a threat and a challenge to the capitalist system. This book examines the assumptions of Soviet post-war economic theory and policy, traces the Soviets' analysis of Western economic development from the post-war period through to the easing of international relations, and explains why the Soviets themselves believed they were going to outperform the West.

This book comprises a collection of well-researched essays on selected contemporary economic and finance issues in China, making a timely contribution to the intellectual intercourse regarding the implications of China's rise. These essays analyze issues related to the state of China's ecology, real estate market, inbound and outbound FDI, income inequality, etc., and offer analysis on the policy and institutional causes of those issues. Readers will be able to infer their implications for business opportunities in China and the tradeoff / tension between economic growth and social welfare. Moreover, this book introduces an array of data and data sources useful to scholars and practitioners interested in studying the Chinese model of economic growth. This book will be a valuable resource to journalists and scholars trying to gain insight into China's extraordinary pace of growth in the past three decades.

The life-worlds and personal experiences of workers and employees in three enterprises in East Berlin at the moment of political and economic upheaval stand at the centre of the book. It sets out in 1989 at the moment of the fall of the Berlin Wall, witnessing the confrontations with the market economy and examining the reinterpretations of the socialist past as the political and economic changes take place. Disenchantment with Market Economics captures a unique moment in history and unveils myths and promises of liberal market economy from the perspective of those who lived through the break down of the planned economy at their workplaces in East Berlin. While Western managers regarded the expansion of their businesses towards Eastern Europe as a civilizing mission, the East German employees reacted with complex strategies of individual adaptation and resistance.

This title was first published in 2002. Portugal experienced rapid and dramatic change over the final decades of the twentieth century. After the turbulence that followed the 1974 revolution, the 1980s and 1990s provided a period of unprecedented political stability and economic modernization during which Portugal converged rapidly with the wealthier member states of the European Union. This important new volume offers a timely focus on this recent period. Written for a wide audience by a multidisciplinary team of experts, the book provides an accessible overview and analysis of the key dimensions of recent economic and political change in Portugal and identifies the tensions and policy challenges that rapid change has produced. In so doing the book reveals something of the complexity of contemporary Portugal: an outward looking modern, democratic and European state, but one where the legacy of its recent traditional, colonial and often inward looking past continues to influence and shape its development in the twenty-first century.

In what has universally been recognized as a classic of institutional economics, John R. Commons combined the skills of a professional economist, the sensibilities of an American historian, and the passion of an active participant in the conflicts of individuals, self-interest of groups, and function of voluntary associations.

The aim of this volume is to work out an evolutionary and behavioral theory of value. In order to do so thoroughly, Commons examines the decisions of the courts. Doing so compelled an examination of what the courts mean by reasonable value. Commons found that the answer was tied up with a notion of reasonable conduct. It was Commons who carried the study of the habits and customs of social life to the next stage: the decisions of the courts that are based on custom and that profoundly impact the nature and function of the economic system as such.

Reviewing Legal Foundations of Capitalism, Wesley Mitchell declared that Commons carried this "analysis further along his chosen line than any of his predecessors. Into our knowledge of capitalism he has incorporated a great body of new materials which no one else has used adequately." And writing in the same American Economic Review twenty-one years later, Selig Perlman noted that "To Commons the workingmen were not abstract building blocks out of which a favored deity called History was to shape the architecture of the new society, but concrete beings with legitimate ambitions for a higher standard of living and for more dignity in their lives." This edition is graced with a special introduction that places Commons in proper academic as well as intellectual context.

This title was first published in 2000: The Asian financial crisis and its aftermath provide a crucible in which Chinese diaspora capitalism has been tested, and a prism through which its strengths and weaknesses may be seen in a different light. The papers collected in this volume are in many ways still tentative. Some represent work-in-progress reports on as yet uncompleted research. In other cases, outcomes explored are still unclear or have not even yet fully unfolded. The aim is to focus on the consquences for diaspora Chinese capitalists and to start trying to identify losers and winners in the new landscape, re-evaluating their business culture, strategies and modes of operation, and their likely future direction and potential. The book begins by setting the scene for the Asian crisis and the achievements of the "Asian miracle". It then goes on to examine the causes of the financial crash, the firms that were able to ride the crisis, the Taiwanese economy as a whole, the fortunes of diaspora ventures in China, the small and medium enterprises at the heart of Chinese diaspora capitalism, the impact of the crisis on large Chinese business groups, and finally, the book debunks the theory that the rise of East Asia was initiated by Japan.

Volume 40C of Research in the History of Economic Thought and Methodology features a symposium on the work of the controversial French economist Francois Perroux, edited by Katia Caldari and Alexandre Mendes Cunha, and a collection of book reviews of David M. Levy and Sandra J. Peart's (2020) Towards an Economics of Natural Equals: A Documentary History of the Early Virginia School.

This book extends current research on the political economy of modern China, with particular regard to agricultural development and its role in economic transition. It uses Neoclassical principles to re-interpret agricultural growth and technological change under complex market institutions with empirical studies on China and selected East Asian economies. The text also questions how technological advances in China contribute to the Great Divergence debate. Through a comparative analysis of agricultural technical changes in the planting of rice paddies in Japan, Taiwan and China, Du finds that different market institutions and structures have given rise to considerable diversity of agricultural change between different economies in terms of the nature, timing and duration of technological transition. Such diversification has, in turn, affected the trajectories of agricultural and wider economic growth. Here, Du reflects on the nature of contemporary Chinese economic development and extends observations on agricultural transition to the entirety of Asia, finding that the nature, timing, and time-span of agriculture technology transitions have varied considerably across different economies.

This book is a methodologically self-conscious and intellectually ambitious effort to advance the social science debate on postcommunist transformation beyond the limitations of its first decade. Offering theoretically innovative and empirically current analyses of fundamental economic, cultural, and political problems of systemic change and reform in central and Eastern Europe, the authors broaden and deepen the research agenda by developing a set of interrelated approaches that are cross-disciplinary, sociologically informed, historically comparative, and global. The book s major substantive themes revolve around problems of postcommunist socioeconomic transformations. Specifically, the book explores postcommunist systemic change, the role of religion and collective identity, the significance of trust and economic culture, patterns of state-economy interactions in enterprise restructuring, the context of EU expansion, the strengths and weaknesses of economic theory and neoliberal doctrine, and the history of ideas in the postcommunist transformation debate. Bringing together leading experts in the field to illustrate the fruitfulness of multidisciplinary analysis in understanding socioeconomic transitions, this work will be valuable for economists, sociologists, and political scientists alike."

This title was first published in 2000: Since 1998, there have been many diagnoses, studies and theories attempting to explain the East Asian economic crisis and the impact on major economic and financial sectors. This text aims to fill a gap in the literature by examining the effects on small and medium-sized enterprises. From early 1998, unemployment figures in the region rose rapidly although large enterprises were not as yet engaged in corporate restructuring. Registered small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and microenterprises were a major source of this unemployment, especially among unskilled and seasonal workers. This volume covers the debate in five ways. An introductory chapter presents an overview of the SME international experience both in OECD and developing economies. Part I looks at the economic and social contribution of SMEs in Thailand before and after the 1997-1998 crisis and Part II reviews government policy and SME promotion initiatives. Part III explores the assumption that local SMEs linked to large firms have been more resilient, while the concluding chapter suggests a range of policies which have been derived from experiences in places other than Thailand.