THE POLITICAL ECONOMY OF GLOBAL RESTRUCTURING

The Political Economy of Global Restructuring argues that the study of political economy, and the classical perspective it offers, will become increasingly relevant as we approach the 21st century. The dramatic events in Eastern Europe, the resurgence of an invigorated market capitalism and the prospect of integrated trading and financial communities are challenging the orientation towards positivism and model-building which dominates mainstream economics.

Economic Organization and Production, the first volume of The Political Economy of Global Restructuring, views the transition towards privatization and market driven economies in Central and Eastern Europe as the first opportunity for rethinking and reshaping economic science since Keynes wrote the General Theory. Taking their lead from Adam Smith's perception of the prerequisites for an ideally functioning market system, both the papers and the editorial introduction to this volume suggest that the newly privatized economies should employ instrumental analysis to ensure 'a plentiful revenue or subsistence for the people'.