States in the Global Economy: Bringing Domestic Institutions Back In (Cambridge Studies in International Relations, Series Number 86)

The growing interconnectedness of national economies and an expanding awareness of global interdependence in the 1990s have generated lively debate over the future of national governance. In a world of mobile capital, are states vital to the social and economic wellbeing of their citizens? A number of changes in the state's domestic and international environment - ranging from regulatory reforms and welfare state restructuring to the proliferation of intergovernmental agreements - have promoted the view that globalisation has a negative impact, compromising state capacities to govern domestically. This book challenges the 'constraints thesis'. Covering vital areas of state activity (welfare, taxation, industrial strategy, and regulatory reform), the contributors focus on a range of issues (finance, trade, technology) faced by both developed and developing countries. The contributors argue that globalisation can enable as well as constrain, and they seek to specify the institutional conditions which sharpen or neutralise the pressures of interdependence. It is generally argued that globalization has seriously limited the state's capacity to govern domestically. This book questions the thesis that the state's role in promoting social protection and wealth creation has been restricted. Covering a range of areas of state activity and political issues in developing and developed countries, the contributors explore the impact of global interdependence. They argue that globalization can enable as well as constrain, and that the effects will depend on the character of a country's domestic institutions. General opinion holds that globalisation limits the state's capacity for domestic government. This book questions the thesis that the state's role has been restricted. The contributors argue that globalisation can enable as well as constrain, and that its effects depend on the character of a country's domestic institutions In a world of mobile capital, are states vital to the social and economic wellbeing of their citizens? The contributors of this book argue that globalization can anable as well as constrain. An issue of central importance in the globalisation debate today concerns the impact of increasing economic openness upon the state's capacity to govern the national economy.

New avenue of research into the effects of globalisation on the role of the state.