Futures Of European Capitalism, The

Description: In this path-breaking book, the author argues that European countries' political-economic policies, practices, and discourses have changed profoundly in response to globalization and Europeanization, but they have not converged. Although national policies may now be more similar, especially where they follow from common European policies, they are not the same. National practices, although moving in the same general direction toward greater market orientation, continue to be differentiable into not just one or even two but three varieties of capitalism. And national discourses that generate and legitimate changes in policies and practices not only remain distinct, they matter. The book is a tour de force which combines sophisticated theoretical insights and innovative methods to show that European countries generally, but in particular Britain, France, and Germany (for which the book provides lengthy case studies), have had very different experiences of economic adjustment, and will continue to do so into the future. Review: 'The Futures of European Capitalism' is an excellent contribution both to comparative political economy and the burgeoning literature on ideas and political change. It s sure to become a standard reference for scholars in both working areas. Perspectives on Politics ... this is a very rich work addressing one of the most complex theoretical and policy debates of our times. It is likely to become a seminal text and one of interest to a broad audience ranging from European specialists to scholars working in a plethora of subfields of comparative and international studies. Governance ... a theoretically insightful empirically rich and methodologically innovative account of how institutions, interests, cultural norms and discourses come together to produce (or impede) political economic change. That Schmidt manages to bring in all of these explanatory factors in a rigorous and systematic manner while writing in an engaging, narrative style is just one of the remarkable qualities of her scholarship. Her mastery of the literature as well as her first-hand knowledge of the complex political landscape in Europe and the depth and breadth of the analysis assure a broad audience ranging from comparative political economists and Europeanists to IPE scholars and economists and business specialists as well. Governance Vivien Schmidt has produced one of the most interesting and distinctive assessments of the impact of Europeanization and globalization and the related economic convergence debates since the topic emerged as one of - if not the - most pressing issues on the comparative political economy research agenda. Governance ... a major benchmark study of welfare states and the problems of adjustment ... provides lucid and valuable analyses of contemporary capitalism. West European Politics It is an especially useful work for graduate courses on comparative or international political economy. European Union Studies Association Table of Contents: Introduction: European Pathways to the Adjustment; PART I: THE POLICIES OF ECONOMIC ADJUSTMENT; The Challenges of Globalization and Europeanization: The Impact on National Autonomy and Control; The Economic Dynamics and Institutional Mechanics of Policy Adjustment in Britain, Germany, and France; PART II: THE PRACTICES OF ECONOMIC ADJUSTMENT; Still Three Models of Capitalism? The Impact of Changing Policies and Growing Pressures on Economic Practices; The Dynamics of Adjustment in Economic Practices in Britain, Germany, and France; PART III: THE POLITICS OF ECONOMIC ADJUSTMENT; Discourse as Framework for Analysis: Policy Construction and Legitimation for Changing Policies and Practices; The Role of Discourse in the Political Dynamics of Adjustment in Britain, France, and Germany; Conclusion: The Futures of European Capitalism