Suchergebnisse

The most exciting prospect in Latin American political economy and public policy is the possibility of pursuing the objectives of equity and efficiency through the same neoclassical policy instruments. In light of conventional views, this convergence is remarkable, perhaps even shocking. We often juxtapose efficiency and equity, along with the ideological positions associated with each. It is common to link Leftist political approaches both to statism and to progressive income distribution, thereby linking statism to progress.

Certain "realist" views of the international economic regime construe international financial agencies as straightforward reflections of the power and interests of nation states. However, the World Bank's responsiveness to a wide range of demands for new development priorities and approaches also depends on the compliance of its huge staff. The staff's discretion in shaping, implementing, discrediting, or resisting these approaches requires an organizational-theoretic analysis of the sources of acceptance of or resistance to particular initiatives. Role-set theory accounts for many of the motivational sources of resistance. The capabilities to resist new initiatives through "bureaucratic politics" can be understood through March and Simon's emphasis on the importance of absorbing uncertainty. On the basis of these theories and findings on attitudes expressed by Bank staff, strategies can be developed to enhance the Bank's responsiveness to such initiatives as greater emphasis on the alleviation of poverty. Theory and findings also provide a basis for speculating on the characteristics required of an international agency to warrant treating it as an autonomous variable in the international system.