The Ideological Determinants of Liberal Economic Reform: The Case of Privatization
- 1 July 2000
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Project MUSE in World Politics
- Vol. 52 (4) , 520-549
- https://doi.org/10.1017/s0043887100020098
Abstract
The empirical literature on mass privatization in the postcommunist context emphasizes the preferences and power of interest groups in order to account for the design of privatization. This approach has been consistent with mainstream theories of property rights formation that focus on the self-interested, rationally calculated pursuit of wealth and/or power as the motivation behind the development of new ownership arrangements. Absent from these theories, however, are the ideological and cognitive components in the creation of property rights systems. This lacuna is extremely problematic when considering the postcommunist privatization experience in which specific ideologies—such as anticommunism, liberalism, pro- or anti-Westernism, and nationalism—have profoundly influenced the particular form that new property institutions have taken. This article explores how ideology interacts with the distribution of power and the formation of material interests in society. After considering the shortcomings of strictly material-based theories of property regime change, the article suggests four mechanisms by which ideology determines the design and implementation of privatization programs in postcommunist countries.Keywords
This publication has 34 references indexed in Scilit:
- Voucher privatisation in Russia: Structural consequences and mass response in the second period of reformEurope-Asia Studies, 1997
- Political Science and the Three New InstitutionalismsPolitical Studies, 1996
- The Civic Culture at 30 - Manipulation and Consent: How Voters and Leaders Manage Complexity. By David J. Elkins. Vancouver: University of British Columbia Press, 1993. 248p. $65.00. - Citizens and Community: Political Support in a Representative Democracy. By Allan Kornberg and Harold D. Clarke. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1992. 285p. $54.95. - Making Democracy Work: Civic Traditions in Modern Italy. By Robert D. Putnam. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1993. 258p. $24.95. - Compliance Ideologies: Rethinking Political Culture. By Richard W. Wilson. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1992. $44.95.American Political Science Review, 1995
- Justice and the Reformulation of Property Rights in the Czech RepublicEast European Politics and Societies: and Cultures, 1994
- Evaluating the Russian Voucher Privatization ProgramComparative Economic Studies, 1994
- Privatisation in Russia: One step forward: Two steps back?Europe-Asia Studies, 1994
- Privatization Debates in Russia: 1989–1992Comparative Economic Studies, 1993
- The impact of ideas on trade policy: the origins of U.S. agricultural and manufacturing policiesInternational Organization, 1989
- The Renaissance of Political CultureAmerican Political Science Review, 1988
- The Elements of the Concept of IdeologyPolitical Studies, 1987