Democracy and the Market: Political and Economic Reforms in Eastern Europe and Latin America (Studies in Rationality and Social Change) [Paperback]

Adam Przeworski (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 052142335X | ISBN-13: 978-0521423359 | Publication Date: July 26, 1991

The quest for freedom from hunger and repression has triggered in recent years a worldwide movement toward political democracy and economic rationality. Never have so many people experimented with democratic institutions. At the same time, traditional strategies of economic development have collapsed in Eastern Europe and Latin America and entire economic systems are being transformed on both continents. What should we expect in the countries that venture on the paths to democracy and markets? Will these transitions result in democracies or in new dictatorships? What economic system, new or old, will emerge? This major book analyzes recent events in Eastern Europe and Latin America, focusing on transitions to democracy and market-oriented economic reforms. The author underscores the interdependence of political and economic transformations and draws on extensive local data as part of his analysis. A distinctive feature of the book is that it employs models derived from politics, economics, and game theory. This book will be of particular interest to scholars and graduate students in political science and sociology.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Przeworski has written a very interesting book that is at times even exciting to read. He systematizes the interests of socially relevant groups in reform processes using simple game theoretic tools which allow him to proceed on an abstract level as well as on a more concrete one, illustrating his systematization with examples from both Latin America and Eastern Europe." Constitutional Political Economy

"Przeworski is a wise and insightful analyst unusually well placed to observe the transitions in both Eastern Europe and Latin America closely and thus, perhaps, uniquely qualified to theorize about them. The strength of the book lies in the effort to create general models of processes that are usually treated descriptively." American Political Science Review

"This razor-sharp little book by a cosmopolitan University of Chicago scholar is part of a remarkable series of studies on rationality and technical change at whose heart is the theoretical perspective of the 'multiple self': a self that loves justice as well as economic gain." Boston Globe

"Democracy and the Market is a genuinely path-breaking book. Przeworski's analyses are complex and subtle, and one cannot do justice to them in a brief review. The volume spans the globe and disciplines alike, ranging comfortably from Santiago to Bucharest and from economics to poltical philosophy, and provides us with an impressive analytical road map through the various transitions and their aftermaths." Ellen Comisso, Contemporary Sociology

"The books offers interesting and intellectually challenging reading. It can be proposed to a wide academic audience including scholars of comparative politics and economics, students and analysts....The vivid and, I dare say, charming style of writing, with many brilliantly inserted short anecdotes, contributes to the high quality of reading." Adam Török, Slavic Review

Book Description

The quest for freedom has triggered a worldwide movement toward political democracy and economic rationality. This major study analyzes recent events in Eastern Europe and Latin America, focusing on transitions to democracy and market-oriented economic reform.

Product Details

• Paperback: 228 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press (July 26, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 052142335X
• ISBN-13: 978-0521423359
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #389,926 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sophisticated, profound, and interesting!!!!, June 20, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Democracy and the Market: Political and Economic Reforms in Eastern Europe and Latin America (Studies in Rationality and Social Change) (Paperback)

Przeworski's writing is always penetrating. This is the best work that I've ever read in the literature of political economy and comparative politics. Although his approach is too much immersed in rational-choice, he knows the history of political philosophy. Although he is basically a Marx-oriented scholar, he correctly understand what neo-classical theories are lacking. Adam Przeworki is a rare intellectual who combine science with philosophy. <Democracy and the Market> is worth buying and worth reading although somehow technical.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Best political economy, June 15, 2006

By 

Frank S. Fang "Author of 'China Fever'" (Chicago) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Democracy and the Market: Political and Economic Reforms in Eastern Europe and Latin America (Studies in Rationality and Social Change) (Paperback)

I read this book in 1995 and I have never found a better one in analyzing democratization since then. His idea on democracy as a result of "spontaneous compliance" is so powerful that nothing else can actually stimulate more on a research direction for the preconditions of democratization process in countries like China.

It can be read together with his "Democracy and the Rule of Law", which addresses the question of why governments act or do not act according to laws, and interprets the rule of law as a strategic choice of actors with powerful interests (rather than as an exogenous constraint on politicians), and concludes that the rule of law emerges when no group is strong enough to dominate the others and political actors seek to resolve their conflicts by recourse to law.

Unfortunately, Adam Przeworski is later on obsessed with math, statistics, graphs, and aggregate analysis instead going deeper into specific political culture, which is yet another sad example of how mathematical academics continues to ruin more economists and political scientists (States and Markets: A Primer in Political Economy, 2003). The point is, applied mathematics and statistics concern with correlation, social scientists concern with causation. Mathematics and statistics are good tools, but social scientists are not technicians. If all they can do is applying mathematics and statistics without institutional analysis or policy analysis, they are in a wrong career.

4 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book, September 7, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Democracy and the Market: Political and Economic Reforms in Eastern Europe and Latin America (Studies in Rationality and Social Change) (Paperback)

Adam Przeworski is one of the top five political scientists of the world. "Democracy and the Market" is amazing and should be read by everybody that wants to know why democracies last (or don't). Przeworski is probably one of the few writers that compare the situation in East Europe with the situation in Latin America. And he does it perfectly. A bit technical at times but a very contemporary work of Political Science. A must buy.