2005
Roger Schoenman
- Lecturer
- University of California, Santa Cruz
Abstract
Widespread state-business ties are an integral part of the landscape of post-socialism, resulting in extensive corruption and often violence in countries like Bulgaria and Romania. Hence, the accepted wisdom has been that state involvement in the economy, particularly in post-socialist countries, produces corruption and institutional under-performance, and impacts economic growth.
My research questions this conclusion. State-business ties are a central component of big business in well-performing economies of East Central and even Western Europe. Thus, I explore variations in the nature of state-business contacts that have appeared across the post-socialist area. The manuscript under preparation investigates the impact of party systems and cleavages, business-elite origins, and the structure of business networks on the nature of state-business ties in the evolving market democracies of the post-soicalist area.
My research questions this conclusion. State-business ties are a central component of big business in well-performing economies of East Central and even Western Europe. Thus, I explore variations in the nature of state-business contacts that have appeared across the post-socialist area. The manuscript under preparation investigates the impact of party systems and cleavages, business-elite origins, and the structure of business networks on the nature of state-business ties in the evolving market democracies of the post-soicalist area.