Alternatives to CapitalismJon Elster, Karl O. Moene The essays in this provocative collection survey and assess institutional arrangements that could be alternatives to capitalism as it exists today. The agreed point of departure among the contributors is that on the one hand, capitalism leads to unemployment, a lack of autonomy in the workplace, and massive income inequalities; while on the other hand, central socialist planning is characterized by underemployment, inefficiency, and bureaucracy. In Part I, various alternatives are proposed: profit-sharing systems, capitalism combined with some central planning, worker-owned firms in a market economy, or the introduction of the elements of market economy into a centrally planned economy as has occurred recently in Hungary. Part II provides a theoretical analysis and assessment of these systems. |
Contents
Internal subcontracting in Hungarian enterprises | 39 |
Profitsharing capitalism | 61 |
The unclearing market | 71 |
Strong unions or worker control? | 83 |
The role of central planning under capitalism and market socialism | 98 |
Criteria | 111 |
Are freedom and equality compatible? | 113 |
Selfrealisation in work and politics the Marxist conception of the good life | 127 |
Public ownership and private property externalities | 159 |
Common terms and phrases
Able and Infirm activities agents allocation Andrea argue argument Axiom bargaining capital capitalist firm central planning competition consumption contract coop cooperatives cost criteria decision direct democracy discussion distribution effect efficiency Elster employees endorphins environment equal-division mechanism equilibrium example external freedom function G. A. Cohen Grabber's higher hired Hungarian Hungary incentive income increase individual industry inequality inside contracting investment Jon Elster labour market land leisure macroeconomic market socialism Marx means of production ment Mondragon nomic Nozick opponent process optimal organisation output price participation participatory partnership members percent performance political preferences principle Prisoner's Dilemma private ownership private property problem profit profit-sharing public ownership realisation reason require rice second economy Section sector self-actualisation self-management self-ownership self-realisation shares short-run skills socialist society subcontracting Sziráczki task theory threat point tion tive trade union utility VGMs wage welfare workers