Suchergebnisse

A prime contemporary concern - how to maintain fair market relations - is addressed through this study of the regulation of bread prices. This was the single most important economic reality of Europe's daily life in the early modern period. Jan de Vries uses the Dutch Republic as a case study of how the market functioned and how the regulatory system evolved and acted. The ways in which consumer behaviour adapted to these structures, and the state interacted with producers and consumers in the pursuit of its own interests, had major implications for the measurement of living standards in this period. The long-term consequences of the Dutch state's interventions reveal how capitalist economies, far from being the outcome of unfettered market economics, are inextricably linked with regulatory fiscal regimes. The humble loaf serves as a prism through which to explore major developments in early modern European society and how public market regulation affected private economic life.

During the last decade, the health care sector has changed rapidly. Due to increased competition, the growing influence of patient-associations and a necessity to deliver health services in a more efficient and effective way, many health care organisations have started projects in the area of patient logistics, clinical pathways, data interchange and vertical integration (Aptel and Pourjalali, 2001). Moreover, the redesign of hospital services and the implementation of integrated care programmes are frequently addressed as being critical strategies to decrease resource utilization and improve

The transformation of consumer desire in the long eighteenth century -- The origins of the industrious revolution -- The industrious revolution : the supply of labor -- The industrious revolution : consumer demand -- The breadwinner-homemaker household -- A second industrious revolution?

In European Urbanization Jan de Vries provides a comprehensive data base for understanding the nature of the changes that took place in European cities from 1500 to 1800. The book is based on an immense systematic survey of the population history of 379 European cities with 10,000 or more inhabitants analysed at fifty-year intervals. Using a wide range of economic, demographic and geographic models, Professor de Vries illustrates the patterns of urban growth, draws conclusions about the significance of migratory behaviour and shows the effects of urbanization on the history of Europe as a whol

Abstract: This article is an exploration of the ways in which affluence undermines itself, based on a reexamination of two influential books: John Kenneth Galbraith's Affluent Society (1958) and Tibor Scotivsky's Joyless Economy (1976). Galbraith's book offered blueprints for the reform of both the American economy and the discipline of economics based on his understanding that the affluent society was driven increasingly by the consumer rather than the producer. The essay explores the strengths and weaknesses of Galbraith's analysis based on an account of the course of American public policy in the decades since he wrote. He had advocated for an expansion of public goods; what emerged instead was an expansion of transfer payments. Scitovsky's account of consumer behavior sought to explain why rising income led to dissatisfied—joyless—consumers. Expanding on his approach, I identify the dynamic of consumer demand that acts to undermine the condition of affluence itself.

Prak and Van Zanden's book Nederland en het poldermodel offers a succinct and vigorous account of a millennium of Dutch political economy by organising its development around the concept of the 'polder model'. This assessment finds much to admire in the book, but subjects the polder model concept to critical questioning, among which: Does the polder model foster economic growth or does it simply require a rich society in order to function? Is the polder model specifically Dutch or broadly European? Is its modern form truly a linear descendant of the corporate bodies of earlier times? Is it really a 'nursery of democracy' or simply a 'hothouse of rent seeking'? As an historical concept the polder model is a moreelusive term than appears at first sight. This review is part of the discussion forum 'Nederland en het poldermodel' (Maarten Prak and Jan Luiten van Zanden).Nederland en het poldermodelHet boek Nederland en het poldermodel van Prak en Van Zanden biedt een beknopt doch krachtig overzicht van maar liefst een millennium Nederlandse volkshuishoudkunde, door de ontwikkeling daarvan te beschrijven aan de hand van het begrip 'poldermodel'. Er staat veel bewonderenswaardigs in het boek, maar dit stuk richt zich op een aantal kritische vragen: bevordert het poldermodel de economische groei of is dat afhankelijk van een hoog welvaartsniveau? Is het poldermodel iets specifiek Nederlands of een variant op een breed Europees verschijnsel? Is het poldermodel in moderne gedaante echt een lineaire afstammeling van de corporatieve instellingen van vroegere tijden? Functioneert het poldermodel als een 'leerschool voor de democratie' of als een 'broeikas van kartelvorming'? Het poldermodel als historisch begrip lijkt uiteindelijk bijna ongrijpbaar te zijn. Deze recensie maakt deel uit van het discussiedossier 'Nederland en het poldermodel' (Maarten Prak and Jan Luiten van Zanden).

Prak and Van Zanden's book Nederland en het poldermodel offers a succinct and vigorous account of a millennium of Dutch political economy by organising its development around the concept of the 'polder model'. This assessment finds much to admire in the book, but subjects the polder model concept to critical questioning, among which: Does the polder model foster economic growth or does it simply require a rich society in order to function? Is the polder model specifically Dutch or broadly European? Is its modern form truly a linear descendant of the corporate bodies of earlier times? Is it really a 'nursery of democracy' or simply a 'hothouse of rent seeking'? As an historical concept the polder model is a moreelusive term than appears at first sight.Nederland en het poldermodelHet boek Nederland en het poldermodel van Prak en Van Zanden biedt eenbeknopt doch krachtig overzicht van maar liefst een millennium Nederlandse volkshuishoudkunde, door de ontwikkeling daarvan te beschrijven aan de hand van het begrip 'poldermodel'. Er staat veel bewonderenswaardigs in het boek, maar dit stuk richt zich op een aantal kritische vragen: bevordert het poldermodel de economische groei of is dat afhankelijk van een hoog welvaartsniveau? Is het poldermodel iets specifiek Nederlands of een variant op een breed Europees verschijnsel? Is het poldermodel in moderne gedaante echt een lineaire afstammeling van de corporatieve instellingen van vroegere tijden? Functioneert het poldermodel als een 'leerschool voor de democratie' of als een 'broeikasvan kartelvorming'? Het poldermodel als historisch begrip lijkt uiteindelijk bijna ongrijpbaar te zijn.