The Economic Project of the Capitalist State

Abstract

In contrast to liberal, orthodox Marxist and structural interpretations which attribute government policy in capitalist society to exogenous forces, the state regularly possesses a significant area of autonomy within which decisions are effectively determined by the political‐administrative elite (PAE). The majority of the economic projects emanating therefrom can be categorized as either aggrandizing populist or economistic. Postulates the choice of orientation depends upon PAE interests. Concludes that a purely aggrandizing project can be expected only in an environment of decisive underdevelopment while a populist one is almost inevitably a temporary response to conjunctural factors; most common, both in the advanced capitalist countries and the majority of Third World countries is a strong predisposition to an economistic project.

Citation

Barchfield, J.W. (1992), "The Economic Project of the Capitalist State", International Journal of Social Economics, Vol. 19 No. 7/8/9, pp. 314-335. https://doi.org/10.1108/EUM0000000000501