Socialist Planning

Socialist planning played an enormous role in the economic and political history of the twentieth century. Beginning in the USSR it spread round the world. It influenced economic institutions and economic policy in countries as varied as Bulgaria, USA, China, Japan, India, Poland and France. How did it work? What were its weaknesses and strengths? What is its legacy for the twenty-first century? Now in its third edition, this textbook is fully updated to cover the findings of the period since the collapse of the USSR. It provides an overview of socialist planning, explains the underlying theory and its limitations, looks at its implementation in various sectors of the economy, and places developments in their historical context. A new chapter analyses how planning worked in the defence-industrial complex. This book is an ideal text for undergraduate and graduate students taking courses in comparative economic systems and twentieth-century economic history. 'Michael Ellman's book is a true classic, erudite, exhaustive and meticulously researched. Written by one of the leading authorities in the field, it remains the ultimate source on the theory and experience of socialist economic planning. Both students and fellow scholars will be pleased to see it brought up to date, incorporating what has been learned since the collapse of the USSR.' Stefan Hedlund, Research Director at the Centre for Russian and Eurasian Studies, Uppsala University, Sweden 'In the Great Depression of the 1930s many people concluded that socialist planning must be a better way to run the economy. But how did it really work - and how well did it work? No one has wider or deeper knowledge of its history than Michael Ellman. This revised edition of his classic Socialist Planning draws new archival revelations from Russia and Eastern Europe and recent lessons from China.' Mark Harrison, University of Warwick 'If there was one professor from whom I learned a lot in my undergraduate, then it was Michael Ellman. He had deep knowledge about how the Soviet system actually worked. He taught me about its successes in eliminating illiteracy and reducing poverty, but above all about its failures. In some sense, learning about the problems of planned economy is the best way to understand the accomplishment of a market economy. This book takes stock of a lifelong scholarship analyzing the rise and collapse of the Soviet planning system. It is a must for anyone who is seriously interested in comparative economic systems in the twentieth century.' Coen Teulings, Montagu Burton Professor of Industrial Relations and Labour Economics, University of CambridgePreface to third edition; Abbreviations and glossary; Important dates; 1. The rise and fall of socialist planning; 2. The traditional model; 3. The reform process; 4. Planning the defence-industrial complex; 5. Investment planning; 6. Planning agriculture; 7. Planning labour and incomes; 8. Planning consumption; 9. Planning international trade; 10. An evaluation of socialist planning; Bibliography; Index.