E-Book Overview
Although the history of centrally planned economies has been widely studied, the development of socialist thinking on the subject has remained largely uncharted. In this pathbreaking work, Pekka Sutela presents a detailed analysis of recent and contemporary Soviet economic thought. Dr. Sutela traces the competing currents in the Marxist tradition of socialist economies from the Revolution to the present day. In particular he shows how the Gorbachev economic reform program of 1987 rose from the work of Nobel Prize economist L. V. Kantorovich and his followers, and explains why this program subsequently failed. Since then, Soviet economists have tried to abandon their traditional theory of central planning and move along the path toward a market economy. Through extensive research, as well as his long established contacts with leading Soviet economists, Pekka Sutela shows how Soviet economic thinking has moved from dogmatism through reformism to pragmatism.
E-Book Content
Although the history of centrally planned economies has been widely studied, the development of socialist thinking on the subject has remained largely uncharted. In this pathbreaking work, Pekka Sutela presents a detailed analysis of recent and contemporary Soviet economic thought and theory. Dr Sutela traces the competing currents in the Marxist tradition of socialist economies from the Revolution to the present day. In particular he shows how the Gorbachev economic reform programme of 1987 rose from the work of Nobel Prize economist L. V. Kantorovich and his followers. However, this programme failed and the author explains in some detail why this happened. Since then, Soviet economists have tried to abandon their traditional theory of central planning and move along the path towards a market economy. Through extensive research as well as his close and long established contacts with leading Soviet economists, Pekka Sutela is able to show how Soviet economic thinking has moved from dogmatism through reformism to pragmatism. Economic thought and economic reform in the Soviet Union is a most timely study. Current developments in the economy of the USSR are attracting a great deal of attention. This book will therefore be of interest to policy makers, the business and financial worlds as well as to students and academic specialists of Soviet studies and comparative economics. ECONOMIC THOUGHT AND ECONOMIC REFORM IN THE SOVIET UNION Cambridge Soviet Paperbacks: 5 Editorial Board Mary McAuley (General editor) Timothy Colton Karen Dawisha David Dyker Diane Koenker Gail Lapidus Robert Legvold Alex Pravda Gertrude Schroeder Cambridge Soviet Paperbacks is a completely new initiative in publishing on the Soviet Union. The series will focus on the economics, international relations, politics, sociology and history of the Soviet and Revolutionary periods. The idea behind the series is the identification of gaps for upper-level surveys or studies falling between the traditional university press monograph and most student textbooks. The main readership will be students and specialists, but some 'overview' studies in the series will have broader appeal. Publication will in every case be simultaneously in hardcover and paperback. Cambridge Soviet Paperbacks 1 NICOLA MILLER Soviet relations with Latin America 2 GALIA GOLAN Soviet policies in the Middle East From World War II to Gorbachev 3 STEPHEN WHITE Gorbachev in power 4 PHILIP R. PRYDE Environmental management in the Soviet Union 5 PEKKA SUTELA Economic thought and economic reform in the Soviet Union Economic Thought and Economic Reform in the Soviet Union PEKKA SUTELA Special Adviser on Soviet and East European economic affairs at the Bank of Finland and Docent in Economics at the University of