Political Parties, Growth and Equality: Conservative and Social Democratic Economic Strategies in the World Economy

by Carles Boix

Overview

This book describes the contrasting economic strategies pursued by conservative and social democratic governments. The current literature on political economy maintains that, due to the globalization of the economy and each country's institutional structures, parties hardly affect the economy. Examining all advanced countries since the 1960s, Professor Boix shows instead that partisanship and electoral politics play a fundamental role in the selection of policies to generate long-term growth and economic competitiveness. The book reinvigorates the claim that democratic arrangements matter.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780521584463
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	06/13/1998
Series:	Cambridge Studies in Comparative Politics
Pages:	296
Product dimensions:	5.98(w) x 9.02(h) x 0.83(d)

Table of Contents

1. Introduction; 2. Political parties and the structural conditions of the economy; 3. Supply-side economic strategies in a comparative perspective (I). Public investment and the formation of human capital; 4. Supply-side economic strategies in a comparative perspective (II). The public business sector and tax strategies; 5. The social democratic project: macroeconomic stability and state intervention in Spain; 6. The political and electoral dimensions of the PSOE's economic strategy; 7. Turning around the postwar consensus: defining a new economic framework in Britain; 8. The political and electoral dimensions of the conservative economic strategy; 9. Political parties, electoral coalitions, and domestic institutions; 10. Conclusion.

Editorial Reviews

"Overall, this is an important contribution to the study of electoral competition and political parties and to the significant role still played by politics in economic management in the context of globalization." Canadian Journal of Political Science

From the Publisher