Description
Book SynopsisDevelops a way of understanding the process by which economies change. This title explains how different societies arrive at the institutional infrastructure that determines their economic trajectories. It argues that economic change depends largely on 'adaptive efficiency'.
Trade Review"Anyone with an interest in world poverty can benefit from this carefully crafted and closely argued book. It is a pleasure and a delight to read."--Paul Ormerod, Times Higher Education "[North] sets forth a radical reconceptualization of the task and methods of the social sciences in general and economics in particular, providing a glimpse at an economics that refuses to 'assume a can opener.'"--Will Wilkinson, Cato Journal "[This book] provides a sweeping view of the relationships among human belief systems, social institutions, and what [North] calls 'the adaptive efficiency' of societies in coping with changes in demographics, technology, and other factors."--Richard N. Cooper, Foreign Affairs "A courageous attempt to enlarge the arsenal of theoretical tools available for economists."--Diego Rios, Journal of Evolutionary Economics
Table of ContentsPreface vii CHAPTER ONE: An Outline of the Process of Economic Change 1 PART I: THE ISSUES INVOLVED IN UNDERSTANDING ECONOMIC CHANGE 9 INTRODUCTION 11 CHAPTER TWO: Uncertainty in a Non-ergodic World 13 CHAPTER THREE: Belief Systems, Culture, and Cognitive Science 23 CHAPTER FOUR: Consciousness and Human Intentionality 38 CHAPTER FIVE: The Scaffolds Humans Erect 48 CHAPTER SIX: Taking Stock 65 PART II: THE ROAD AHEAD 81 INTRODUCTION 83 CHAPTER SEVEN: The Evolving Human Environment 87 CHAPTER EIGHT: The Sources of Order and Disorder 103 CHAPTER NINE: Getting It Right and Getting It Wrong 116 CHAPTER TEN: The Rise of the Western World 127 CHAPTER ELEVEN: The Rise and Fall of the Soviet Union 146 CHAPTER TWELVE: Improving Economic Performance 155 CHAPTER THIRTEEN: Where Are We Going? 166 Bibliography 171 Index 183
