Book
Democracy and Efficiency in the Economic Enterprise

The collapse of central planning was hailed as evidence of the economic and moral superiority of capitalism over any possible alternative. The essays in this book challenge that claim. The case for more democratic forms of enterprise management is considered from a variety of viewpoints. One chapter deals with the philosophical justification for enterprise democracy. The remaining chapters are devoted to the question of efficiency, which has been central to economic debates about ownership and control. The orthodox belief amongst economists is that any shift to more democratic forms of enterprise control would be unworkable.

Table of contents
  1. Introduction
    Ugo Pagano, Robert Rowthorn
  2. Part I: The Philosophical Case
    The Philosophical Case for Economic Democracy
    Robin Archer
  3. Part II: Theoretical Issues
    Capitalist versus Liberal Firm and Economy: Outline of a Theory
    Winfried Vogt
  4. Part II: Theoretical Issues
    Is the Demand for Workplace Democracy Redundant in a Liberal Economy?
    Samuel Bowles, Herbert Gintis
  5. Part II: Theoretical Issues
    The Distribution of Wealth and the Viability of the Democratic Firm
    Samuel Bowles, Herbert Gintis
  6. Part II: Theoretical Issues
    Organizational Form and Economic Evolution: A Critique of the Williamsonian Hypothesis
    Geoffrey M. Hodgson
  7. Part II: Theoretical Issues
    The Competitive Selection of Democratic Firms in a World of Self-Sustaining Institutions
    Ugo Pagano, Robert Rowthorn
  8. Part II: Theoretical Issues
    Flexibility, Power, and Wage Bargaining
    Matti Pohjola
  9. Part II: Theoretical Issues
    Is There a Chance for the Worker-Managed Form of Organization?
    Benedetto Gui
  10. Part II: Theoretical Issues
    Efficiency, Equality, and Enterprise Democracy
    Mario Nuti
  11. Part III: Experience and Evidence
    The Productivity Effects of Employee Participation in Control and in Economic Returns: A Review of Empirical Evidence
    Avner Ben-Ner, Han Tzu-Shian, Derek C. Jones
  12. Part III: Experience and Evidence
    People’s Capitalism: Profit-Sharing and Financial Participation in Capitalist Enterprises
    Milica Uvalic
  13. Part III: Experience and Evidence
    Participation and Self-Management in Developing Countries
    Janez Prasnikar
  14. Part III: Experience and Evidence
    Worker Participation in Socialist and Transitional Economies
    Mark E. Schaffer
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