Handbook of Economic Stagnation

The Handbook of Economic Stagnation takes a broad view, including contributions from orthodox and heterodox economists who examine situations in countries and worldwide regions, including Japan and the Euro area. To be sure, stagnation is periodically relieved by short economic bursts usually brought on by unsustainable asset price bubbles. Once the bubbles burst, stagnation returns. This book's fresh, comprehensive approach to the topic makes it the premier source for anyone affected by these cycles. Synthesizes and organizes diverse perspectives about crisis economics and future economic growth Emphasizes the relationships among stagnation, international economics, and the global distribution of labor Includes Japan and the Euro zone as well as other countries and regions worldwide

This volume of contributions from some of the world's best-known international trade economists explores and analyzes the various aspects of commercial policy in a way that standard texts in international economics do not. It does this in two parts: the first part covers general approaches to commercial policy, including theoretical, institutional, historical, and empirical contributions, while the second part is comprised of country-specific and regional applications, including a series of case studies of key players in the international trading system and emerging markets.

Transition from central planning to a market economy, involving large-scale institutional change and reforms at all levels, is often described as the greatest social science experiment in modern times. As more than two decades have passed since the fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of the Soviet Union, it is now an excellent time to take stock of how the transition process has turned out for the economies that have moved on from socialism and the command economy. This new handbook assembles a team of leading experts, many of whom were closely involved in the transition process as policymakers and policy advisors, to explore the major themes that have characterized the transition process. After identifying the nature of initial conditions and the strengths and weaknesses of institutions, the varying paths and reforms countries have taken are fully analyzed – from the shock therapy, privatization or gradualism of the early years to the burning issues of the present including global integration and sustainable growth. Topics covered include the socialist system pre-transition, economic reforms, institutions, the political economy of transition, performance and growth, enterprise restructuring, and people and transition. The country coverage is also extensive, from the former socialist countries of the USSR and the satellite states of Central and Eastern Europe to the Asian countries of China, Vietnam and others. The rise of China as a key actor in the drama is chronicled, along with the emergence of a new, more confident, oil-rich Russia. The comparative prosperity of the Central European countries such as Poland and the Czech Republic is contrasted with the mixed fortunes of the former USSR, where some countries are stagnating while others boom. This Handbook of the Economics and Political Economy of Transition is the definitive guide to this new order of things in the former Communist world.

The Routledge Handbook of Modern Economic History aims to introduce readers to important approaches and findings of economic historians who study the modern world. Its short chapters reflect the most up-to-date research and are written by well-known economic historians who are authorities on their subjects. Modern economic history blends two approaches – Cliometrics (which focuses on measuring economic variables and explicitly testing theories about the historical performance and development of the economy) and the New Institutional Economics (which focuses on how social, cultural, legal and organizational norms and rules shape economic outcomes and their evolution). Part 1 of the Handbook introduces these approaches and other important methodological issues for economic history. The most fundamental shift in the economic history of the world began about two and a half centuries ago when eons of slow economic change and faltering economic growth gave way to sustained, rapid economic expansion. Part 2 examines this theme and the primary forces economic historians have linked to economic growth, stagnation and fluctuations – including technological change, entrepreneurship, competition, the biological environment, war, financial panics and business cycles. Part 3 examines the evolution of broad sectors that typify a modern economy including agriculture, banking, transportation, health care, housing, and entertainment. It begins by examining an equally important "sector" of the economy which scholars have increasingly analyzed using economic tools – religion. Part 4 focuses on the work force and human outcomes including inequality, labor markets, unions, education, immigration, slavery, urbanization, and the evolving economic roles of women and African-Americans. The text will be of great value to those taking economic history courses as well as a reference book useful to professional practitioners, policy makers and the public.

Featuring survey articles by leading economists working on growth theory, this two-volume set covers theories of economic growth, the empirics of economic growth, and growth policies and mechanisms. It also covers technology, trade and geography, and growth and socio-economic development.

This volume aims to illustrate the uniqueness of the economies of the countries and territories of the Caribbean as well as the similarities they share with other regions. While most countries in the region share many of the characteristics of middle-income countries, theirs is a matter of extremes. Their generally small size suggests a fragility not found elsewhere. While much of the world is beginning to feel some effects of climate change, the Caribbean is ground zero. These factors suggest a difficult road ahead, but the chapters presented in this volume aim to help spur the search for creative solutions to the region's problems. The chapters, written by expert contributors, examine the Caribbean economies from several perspectives. Many break new ground in questioning past policy mindsets, while developing new approaches to many of the traditional constraints limiting growth in the region. The volume is organized in four sections. Part I examines commonalities, including issues surrounding small economies, tourism, climate change and energy security. Part II looks at obstacles to sustained progress, for example debt, natural disasters and crime. In Part III chapters consider the specific role of external influences, including the USA and the European Union, China, as well as regional co-operation. The volume concludes in Part IV with country case studies intended to provide a sense of the diversity that runs through the region.

Handbook of the Economics of Population Aging, Volume 1A, provides the economic literature on aging and associated subjects, including social insurance and healthcare costs. This text explores the economic literature on aging and associated subjects, including social insurance, health care costs, the interests of policymakers, and the role of academics. As the first of two volumes, users will find it a great resource on the topics associated with the economics of aging. Together with its companion, volume 1B, this work includes literature that has appeared in general economics journals, in various field journals in economics, especially, but not exclusively, those covering labor market and human resource issues, information from interdisciplinary social science and life science journals, and data presented in papers by economists published in journals associated with gerontology, history, sociology, political science, and demography, amongst others. Provides the latest economics literature on aging and its associated subjects, including the aspects of social insurance and healthcare costs Includes valuable data from a variety of general economics journals and interdisciplinary social and life science publications Critical text for policymakers and academics that describes and analyzes valuable information since the inception of the study of the science of population aging in the late 1970s

øHandbook on Islam and Economic Life is a unique study, one of the first of its kind to consider Islam within a broader economic sphere. Covering a wide breadth of topics and research, it explores how Islam impinges upon and seeks to shape major aspect

This book examines the political and legal challenges of regional governance of the 28 countries of the European Union and the 48 in the Council of Europe. The contributions, dilemmas, and moral hazards from this record of nearly seven decades of regional inter-governmental institutions has kept the peace, but produced episodes of crisis from overstretching jurisdictions, thematically and geographically. Polarization between nationalist and integrative forces has displaced the idealistic aspirations of prior decades to build the rule of law and deter violence. Academics and policy makers will learn from the various legal and political efforts to integrate supranational and inter-governmental agencies with national political systems.

The Handbook of Major Events in Economic History aims to introduce readers to the important macroeconomic events of the past two hundred years. The chapters endeavour to explain what went on and why during the most significant economic epochs of the nineteenth, twentieth and early twenty-first centuries and how where we are today fits in this historical timeline. Its short chapters reflect the most up-to-date research and are written by well-known economists who are authorities on their subjects. The Handbook of Major Events in Economic History was written with the intent of presenting the professional consensus in explaining the economics driving these historical events.

This unique Handbook explores both the economics of the firm and the theory of the firm, two areas which are traditionally treated separately in the literature. On the one hand, the former refers to the structure, organization and boundaries of the firm, while the latter is devoted to the analysis of behaviours and strategies in particular market contexts. the novel concept underpinning this authoritative volume is that these two areas closely interact, and that a framework must be articulated in order to illustrate how linkages can be created. This interpretative framework is comprehensively developed in the editors' introduction, and the expert contributors – more than fifty academics of renowned authority – further elaborate on the linkages in the seven comprehensive sections that follow, encompassing: background; equilibrium and new institutional theories; the multinational firm; dynamic approaches to the firm; modern issues; firms' strategies; and economic policy and the firm. Bridging economics and theory of the firm, and providing both technical and institutional perspectives on real corporations, this path-breaking Handbook will prove an invaluable resource for academics, researchers and students in the fields of economics, heterodox economics, business and management, and industrial organization.

Japan’s dramatic transformation from economic success to economic stagnation offers important policy lessons to advanced countries everywhere that are struggling with stagnation. The term ‘Japanization’ is often used by economists to describe long-term stagnation and deflation. Symptoms include high unemployment, weak economic activity, interest rates near zero, quantitative easing, and population aging. In the global context, what can governments do to mitigate the downward trends experienced by Japan? This judiciously timed book investigates in depth the causes of Japan’s ‘lost decades’ versus the real recovery achieved by the United States, and the lessons that can be learned.

Since the 1990s many of the assumptions that anchored the study of governance in international political economy (IPE) have been shaken loose. Reflecting on the intriguing and important processes of change that have occurred, and are occurring, Profess

The essays are concise, yet comprehensive, and each essay contains a substantial set of references, which an interested researcher or student could follow up. . . In addition to representing multidisciplinary interactions, this collection encompasses several different perspectives within development economics, so the reader can learn, for example, both about neoclassical approaches and dependency theories in the same volume. This makes the collection unique and all the more valuable. . . This is a very good reference collection, as the individual essays are informative and provide a good overall perspective on the topic that they set out to address. The extensive bibliography at the end of each essay adds further value to this collection. Ashwini Deshpande, Economic and Political Weekly These new volumes impress along two dimensions. First, they highlight important connections between economic development and variables such as culture, warfare, and ethnicity, which are sometimes ignored by mainstream economists. Second, they analyze the economic development experience of different regions such as Africa, Latin America, and East Asia. . . a valuable reference for scholars and practitioners in the field. Highly recommended. H.A. Faruq, Choice This two-volume original reference work provides a comprehensive overview of development economics and comprises contributions by some of the leading scholars working in the field. Authors are drawn from around the world and write on a wide range of topics. After providing an introduction to the subject (by examining issues like the meaning and measurement of development, historical and interdisciplinary approaches, empirical regularities and data problems), the contributors provide a wealth of perspectives on, and analyses of, development economics. They discuss alternative approaches to development, the macroeconomics of growth, factors and sources of economic development (such as capital, labor, entrepreneurship, resources and technology), major sectors of concern (such as agriculture, industry, services and the informal sector) and international issues (such as trade, capital and labor flows and technology transfers). Income distribution and poverty, the state and other institutions, and actual development experiences are explored. The contributors provide analytical contributions, as well as the relation between these contributions and real world and policy issues from a variety of alternative perspectives. Scholars, students, policymakers and other development practitioners will all find this comprehensive reference invaluable.

The Routledge Handbook of Global Economic History documents and interprets the development of economic history as a global discipline from the later nineteenth century to the present day. Exploring the normative and relativistic nature of different schools and traditions of thought, this handbook not only examines current paradigmatic western approaches, but also those conceived in less open societies and in varied economic, political and cultural contexts. In doing so, this book clears the way for greater critical understanding and a more genuinely global approach to economic history. This handbook brings together leading international contributors in order to systematically address cultural and intellectual traditions around the globe. Many of these are exposed for consideration for the first time in English. The chapters explore dominant ideas and historiographical trends, and open them up to critical transnational perspectives. This volume is essential reading for both academics and students in economic and social history. As this field of study is very much a bridge between the social sciences and humanities, the issues examined in the book will also have relevance for those seeking to understand the evolution of other academic disciplines under the pressures of varied economic, political and cultural circumstances, on both national and global scales.

Annotation The subject matter of agricultural economics has both broadened and deepened in recent years, and the chapters of this Handbook present the most exciting and innovative work being done today. Following Volume 1, Volume 2 consists of three parts: 'Agriculture, Natural Resources and the Environment', 'Agriculture in the Macroeconomy' and 'Agriculture and Food Policy'. Although agricultural economists have always paid attention to these topics, research devoted to them has increased substantially in scope as well as depth in recent years.

China's rapid rise to become the world's second largest economy has resulted in an unprecedented impact on the global system and an urgent need to understand the more about the newest economic superpower. The Routledge Handbook of the Chinese Economy is an advanced-level reference guide which surveys the current economic situation in China and its integration into the global economy. An internationally renowned line-up of scholars contribute chapters on the key components of the contemporary economy and their historical foundations. Topics covered include: the history of the Chinese economy from ancient times onwards; economic growth and development; population, the labor market, income distribution, and poverty; legal, political, and financial institutions; and foreign trade and investments. Offering a cutting-edge overview of the Chinese economy, the Handbook is an invaluable resource for academics, researchers, economists, graduate, and undergraduate students studying this ever-evolving field.

For more than a century, anthropologists have studied the economic lives and institutions of people around the world. The results of their research and reflection on economy have generally stayed within the discipline and have not been available in an accessible form to a broader readership. This major reference book is intended to correct this.This unique Handbook contains substantial and invaluable summary discussions of work on economic processes and issues, and on the relationship between economic and non-economic areas of life. Furthermore it describes conceptual orientations that are important among economic anthropologists, and presents summaries of key issues in the anthropological study of economic life in different regions of the world. Its scope and accessibility make it useful both to those who are interested in a particular topic and to those who want to see the breadth and fruitfulness of an anthropological study of economics.Economists from a wide range of fields and perspectives - from heterodox to classical, and from industrial economics to economic psychology and sociology - will find much to engage them within this exciting Handbook, as will anthropologists drawn to the significant statements by senior figures in the field. Those involved in development projects will find this an invaluable reference work with which to gain greater understanding of and insight into the reasons for people's economic activities and decisions. The concise treatments of topics will provide invaluable teaching aids and reference for further reading by scholars at all levels of study.

Featuring over 1900 references, drawings, and tables and drawing on disciplines as diverse as political economics, public management, and urban affairs, this versatile text offers comprehensive information on major policy and managerial issues important to local and national economic development. Pulling together the work of over 40 researchers, the book examines the role of government in economic advances and reform, provides a complete, up-to-date survey of the literature on local and national economic development, details local and regional economic progress in the US, adopts an innovative interdisciplinary approach to the study of economic expansion, and more.

The Second Edition of The Handbook of Community Practice is expanded and updated with a major global focus and serves as a comprehensive guidebook of community practice grounded in social justice and human rights. It utilizes community and practice theories and encompasses community development, organizing, planning, social change, policy practice, program development, service coordination, organizational cultural competency, and community-based research in relation to global poverty and community empowerment. This is also the first community practice text to provide combined and in-depth treatment of globalization and international development practice issues—including impacts on communities in the United States and on international development work. The Handbook is grounded in participatory and empowerment practices, including social change, social and economic development, feminist practice, community-collaborative, and engagement in diverse communities. It utilizes the social development perspective and employs analyses of persistent poverty, asset development, policy practice, and community research approaches as well as providing strategies for advocacy and social and legislative action. The handbook consists of forty chapters which challenge readers to examine and assess practice, theory, and research methods. As it expands on models and approaches, delineates emerging issues, and connects policy and practice, the book provides vision and strategies for local to global community practice in the coming decades. The handbook will continue to stand as the central text and reference for comprehensive community practice, and will be useful for years to come as it emphasizes direction for positive change, new developments in community approaches, and focuses attention on globalization, human rights, and social justice. It will continue to be used as a core text for multiple courses within programs, will have long term application for students of community practice, and will provide practitioners with new grounding for development, planning, organizing, and empowerment and social change work.