Craig Calhoun and Georgi Derluguian
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- March 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780814772836
- eISBN:
- 9780814748695
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- NYU Press
- DOI:
- 10.18574/nyu/9780814772836.003.0001
- Subject:
- Sociology, Economic Sociology
This introductory chapter briefly explores how macroeconomic reforms helped developing nations during the global financial crisis. It notes how these reforms were important to the success of some ...
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This introductory chapter briefly explores how macroeconomic reforms helped developing nations during the global financial crisis. It notes how these reforms were important to the success of some developing countries like Brazil, and that macroeconomic failings were basic to the extreme suffering of some economies, like that of Greece. The long boom that preceded the 2008 crash was a period when economic orthodoxy was strong and centered on the building of models often expressed in elegant mathematics but with little purchase on real-world problems of economic development. Orthodox policy advice was flouted by some developing countries, perhaps most prominently and successfully by China. Distinguishing what actual policies helped those countries is crucial, for not everyone experienced development. Among many factors however, two stand out: the implementation by strong states of policies favoring national economic development, not just international capital, and the development of materially productive industries.Less
This introductory chapter briefly explores how macroeconomic reforms helped developing nations during the global financial crisis. It notes how these reforms were important to the success of some developing countries like Brazil, and that macroeconomic failings were basic to the extreme suffering of some economies, like that of Greece. The long boom that preceded the 2008 crash was a period when economic orthodoxy was strong and centered on the building of models often expressed in elegant mathematics but with little purchase on real-world problems of economic development. Orthodox policy advice was flouted by some developing countries, perhaps most prominently and successfully by China. Distinguishing what actual policies helped those countries is crucial, for not everyone experienced development. Among many factors however, two stand out: the implementation by strong states of policies favoring national economic development, not just international capital, and the development of materially productive industries.
