Division of Labour and Welfare

Intended as a supplementary text for students, this book provides a starting point for the study of comparative economic systems. The author selects three types of economic system - capitalism, centralized socialism and decentralized workers' management - and systematically assesses their ability to achieve certain objectives. He begins by defining economy and economic system, explains what is meant by division of labour and suggests criteria for evaluating the success of each system in solving the problems raised by that division. The suitability of each system is examined first under ideal conditions and then under increasingly realistic and more adverse conditions. Finally, proposals for reform and modified versions of the systems are considered. In his analysis, the author also illustrates the ways in which economic arrangements matter not only to societies' economic performances, but to virtually all aspects of people's lives. The question is considered of whether economic systems should be viewed as objects of choice by societies and collectives and whether it is possible to understand them in a manner free of ideological bias.Table of ContentPart 1 The nature of economic systems and some criteria for evaluation: economic systems; the division of labour and its benefits; costs of the division of labour; economic goals and criteria of evaluation. Part 2 Capitalism: institutional premises and features; capitalism and the evaluative criteria - the ideal case; counter-arguments and problems, assuming perfect competition; counter-arguments and problems, relaxing perfect competition; modified capitalism; the performance of modified capitalism. Part 3 Centrally planned socialism: institutional premises and features; Marxian thought and the rationale for centralized socialism; centralized socialism and the evaluative criteria - the ideal case; problems of centralized socialism I - relaxing the people-state identity; imperfect information and grounded rationality; modifications and reforms. Part 4 Workers self-management: institutional premises and features; sources of the self-management impulse; performance of the self-managed economy - the ideal case; self-management, relaxing ideal conditions; variants and hybrids. Part 5 Final considerations.