Comparative Economic Systems

This book explores the major topics in comparative economic systems, using an approach that is similar to that of Janos Kornai, the Hungarian economist. The text is organized in three parts, the first is a discussion of property rights and the role of the state in the context of historical evolution. Part two examines the varieties of socialist organization. It begins with the basic ideas envisioned by Marx and Engels and proceeds to analyze the Hungarian, Chinese, Soviet, East German and Yugoslavian alternatives. The author discusses the current reform movement in socialist economies, the causes of change, the reasons for past failures and the barriers to successful reform in the future. Part three presents the capitalist alternatives, including discussion of the Japanese, Swedish and West German economies. The author considers the use of industrial policy in these countries as a means of coping with market failure.