Victor M. Polterovich. Towards a New Theory of Reforms.
Recent studies of processes of economic reforms testified that realization
of liberal school recipes resulted in nonadequate losses. Basing on these
studies,the author singles out a number of fundamental mistakes of the
neoliberal conception. The neoliberals ignored costs of institutional transformations;
they thought that creation of the market law framework was sufficient to
form efficient institutions; they overestimated the role of macroeconomic
policy to the detriment of institutional development; they did not consider
possibilities of " institutional conflicts" as a result of institutional
borrowing from other cultures; they did not take into account that efficient
state is necessary for reforms to be successful. The theory of transition
economies is now itself in transition to a new understanding of goals,
possibilities, and technologies of reforms. Using the analysis conducted,
the author outlines the most important directions of necessary transformations
of Russian economic institutions.
Tatyana G. Dolgopiatova. Small Business as the Source of Institutional
Innovations in the Russian Economy.
The article examines the specifics of small business sector institutional
development in the transitional economy of Russia. It shows that small
business adjustment has brought about a number of economic institutions,
for example, business networks and vertically integrated structures. But
business associations as a fully-fledged institution representing and protecting
the interests of small business have not been established yet. Business
ties and transactions are maintained through informal contracts, businessmen'
personal relations. This practice has triggered the development of the
shadow economy. A similar institutional development of the sector has had
mainly negative results. The analysis has used the results of formalized
surveys and in-depth interviews with entrepreneurs and small business managers
held by IPSSA (with the participation of the article's author) in 1992
to 1998.
Valery G. Grebennikov. The Magnificet Monopoly (Essay of the
Statist).
In this paper written as an essày , the author addresses to an acute
issue of what the state is and where the limits of its activities in the
economy and other spheres of social life extend. As the starting point,
Max Weber's definition of the concept is used. While analysing the competing
models of the state as the «instrument of the class domination» or »contract
sociale», the author finds them to be unadequate, the crucial point being
that both these models are characterized in the paper as ideologic reflections
of two polars of totalitarianism: «totalitarian state» and the «totalitarian
economy» where the contract form of social relations dominates over all
dimensions of social life, including political sphere.
Evgenie V. Semenov. Russian Economic Science in the Light
of RFH Competition.
The results of RFH (Russian Foundation for Humanities) competitions
which have revealed the most active and creative part of Russian social
and economics scientists, could be compared with results of a large scaled
and representative study in the science of science. The most urgent problems
of Russian economic science, revealed by RFH competitions, were presented
in the article with the help of RFH unique informational data base on humanities.
The main conclusion runs that qualitative changes in scientific research
subject-matter and in knowledge structures in general should have an affect
on institutional organization of economic science. RFH informational data
base might be useful for state and department scientific policy elaboration
and correcting.
Dmitry S. Lvov, Yury V. Ovsienko. On the Main Directions of
Socioeconomic Transformations.
It is shown that one of the main causes of the Russian economy inefficiency,
total corruption and stealing and etc. is the activities of a group of
people who evade the regulations of law. In the current conditions they
extract revenues far exceeding the results of their actions, which violates
the basic requirement of the efficient economy. There are also discussed
the directions of socio-economic transformations making it possible to
return the country to the path of efficient development.
Igor K. Lavrovski. On Sovereignty of Russia.
Market reform is not feasible without and outside of the strong statehood.
Federal power bodies must be modernized and reinforced to make them capable
of handling a sweeping structural economic change. Russia shall adopt a
policy of two speeds: "soft landing" while maintaining survival chances
for enterprises inherited from the Soviet system plus strong government
support for new market leaders being established. Federal reform and large-scale
economic change will require a recreation of renewed system of economic
analysis and planning.
Alexandra Benham, Lee Benham. Property Rights in Transition
Economy: Comments on What Economists Know.
This article deals with the problem of property rights in transition
economy distribution. The authors consider some historical examples and
analyse property rights of land, their connection with transaction costs.
The problem of privatisation is discussed On historical retrospective the
authors consider the examples of reforms realisation and their consequences.
Soltan S. Dzarasov. Michal Kalecki: Life and Scientific Endowment.
The paper expounds the importance of intellectual legacy of M. Kalecki
,which is connected not only with Keynes but also with Marx, Tugan-Baranovski
and R.Luxemburg .The author shows the Marxist roots of Kaleckianism, and
then analyses in details Kalecki's own contribution to solving the problem
of effective demand, business cycle, investments, pricing and economic
growth. The feasibility of Kalecki's models and ideas, their appropriateness
in the current social economic conditions is of particular importance.
Olga N. Vershinskaya. Annual Bank Conference on Development Economics in Europe, ABCDE in Europe. 21-23 June 1999 Annual Bank Conference on Development Economics-Europe (ABCDE) took place in Paris. The aim of the conference was to call researchers for participation in the development of a new approach to rendering economic help to developing countries, based on the linkage between financial, structural and social issues. From the analysis of papers and presentations key conclusions of the conference are summerised.
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