States and Markets: A Primer in Political Economy

by Adam Przeworski

Overview

The purpose of this text is to introduce concepts for studying relationships between states and markets. The economy and the state are thus analyzed as networks of relationships between principals and agents, each occupying a particular position in the institutional structure. The book then analyzes systematically the effect of the organization of the state on the functioning of the economy. It isolates the conditions that trigger government's positive or negative responses to the economy.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780521828048
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	09/01/2003
Pages:	236
Product dimensions:	5.98(w) x 9.02(h) x 0.67(d)

Table of Contents

1. Introduction; Part I. Decentralized Mechanisms: 2. Market miracles and market failures; 3. Incomplete markets, imperfect information; 4. Principal-agent framework; Part II. Centralized Mechanisms: 5. The state; 6. Governments and private agents: regulation; 7. Politicians and bureaucrats: oversight; 8. Citizens and politicians: representation; Part III. The State and the Economy: 9. Government and economic growth; 10. Government and redistribution; 11. Government and insurance; 12. Epilogue; 13. Additional references.

Editorial Reviews

"Przeworski has the ambition to address the big questions, the ability to answer them, and the tenacity to make the answers correct. This book is part of a dying breed: it is a general introduction with enough depth that even the most advanced reader can learn something from it. Written in a feisty, accessible style, it puts the political back into political economy." Michael Munger, Duke University

"I would have been very excited to encounter this book early in my graduate training. It would have crystallized things that have taken me a whole career to understand. This book could and should be a central core text in political science graduate training. In addition to its virtues as a text, there is a lot of innovation and intellectual leadership in this volume." William Keech, Carnegie-Mellon University

"A rare opportunity to view firsthand how modern theoretical developments in economics and politics are beginning to blend and complement one another, from one of the established scholars in the field. In his lucid, conversational style, Przeworski offers a highly readable account of the main ideas in the field, which both educates and stimulates new thinking." Dilip Mookherjee, Boston University

"This is a book that will open doors for many students of politics and that will likely become an indispensable text in the field." Political Science Quarterly

From the Publisher