Critical Methods in Political and Cultural Economy offers students and scholars the first methods book for the critical school of International Political Economy (IPE). What does it mean to 'do' critical research? How do we write about the evidence we present? This volume explores our shared critical ethic to demonstrate how methods are transformative and reimagines research strategies as both an embodied practice and a social process. By presenting methodologically informed ways of researching, enriched by real-life accounts from academics doing empirical research, the volume seeks to forge a new collaborative path that builds a critical ethic and modes of inquiry within International Political Economy. Substantive chapters advance the pluralism of the critical school of cultural political economy and seek to articulate its nascent research ethic. Short autobiographical vignettes articulate the professional journeys of contributors who 'do' critical political economy. There is practical advice on how to develop evidence from an iterative reflexive research strategy. Using this innovative format offers a guide to methods in critical political economy by engaging directly with the people doing research, not only as technical practice but also as lived experience. The combination of research and practice presented throughout the book offers an extensive and authoritative framework for evaluating how methods are part of critical research and will be essential reading for all students and scholars of IPE.

This book examines how decisions made by the Conservative government during the COVID19 pandemic have increased economic inequality in the UK. Decades of austerity, asset-based welfare and financialization had already exacerbated social divisions in the UK prior to the pandemic. The political blueprint behind these measures combined Privatized Keynesianism and the Asset Economy. To explain, economists have highlighted that inequality derives from the fact that income from wealth increases at a faster rate than income from wages. The ensuing political assumption is that - in the face of pressures on public finances - promoting asset ownership is the best alternative to government-funded welfare schemes. What this meant, as the pandemic unfolded, was that when tough decisions about resource allocation needed to be made, the UK Treasury and the Bank of England found almost unlimited funds to rescue and protect asset-holders and middle-income homeowners, whilst reverting to a narrative of "misfortune" for the asset-less poor. This book assesses the political decisions taken by UK policymakers during 2020-21 and their consequences. In doing so, it challenges policymakers and the informed public to re-consider the morality of inequality, and to make alternative decisions to promote a more ecologically sustainable, caring, equal and prosperous society.

More than 25 experts from around the world have contributed to this unique and provocative book. In a series of illuminating short essays, each author has presented a striking image as an invitation to consider the ghosts of colonialism and imperialism in today's global economy. In defiance of those who claim that today's capitalist system is free of racism and exploitation, this book shows that the past is not behind us, it defines our world and our lives. This book takes the reader on a global tour, from Malaysia to Canada, from Angola to Mexico, from Libya to China, from the City of London to the Australian outback, from the deep sea to the atmosphere. Along the way we meet the financiers, artists, advertisers, activists and everyday people who are grappling with the entangled legacies of empire. -- .

Critical Methods in Political and Cultural Economy offers students and scholars the first methods book for the critical school of International Political Economy (IPE). What does it mean to 'do' critical research? How do we write about the evidence we present? This volume explores our shared critical ethic to demonstrate how methods are transformative and reimagines research strategies as both an embodied practice and a social process. By presenting methodologically informed ways of researching, enriched by real-life accounts from academics doing empirical research, the volume seeks to forge a new collaborative path that builds a critical ethic and modes of inquiry within International Political Economy. Substantive chapters advance the pluralism of the critical school of cultural political economy and seek to articulate its nascent research ethic. Short autobiographical vignettes articulate the professional journeys of contributors who 'do' critical political economy. There is practical advice on how to develop evidence from an iterative reflexive research strategy. Using this innovative format offers a guide to methods in critical political economy by engaging directly with the people doing research, not only as technical practice but also as lived experience. The combination of research and practice presented throughout the book offers an extensive and authoritative framework for evaluating how methods are part of critical research and will be essential reading for all students and scholars of IPE.

Most accounts of the current financial crisis tell a story of deregulation, out-of-control markets and irresponsible speculation. But few of those works have done more than regurgitate the newspaper coverage. In contrast, The Great Credit Crash digs deeper, drawing on some of the most prominent radical analysts of the modern market to foreground the key questions that are still waiting to be answered. This volume presents a more complete and convincing analysis of the recent economic disaster, which is revealed as a product of a social order built during the triumphalist years of neoliberal capitalism. The contributors assess current events and political responses, critically examining official rhetoric and hegemonic narratives to point the way to an understanding of the crisis beyond the subprime headlines.