Severyn T. Bruyn – författare

This groundbreaking contribution to the comparative development literature offers a cogent analysis of social development in the economies of two vastly differing nations--one a giant nation oriented toward capitalism, the other a small country oriented toward socialism. Taking specific cases of socioeconomic development in each country, the authors build a basis for analyzing and evaluating the success of related social changes in each country.The conceptual framework developed introduces the notion of social contract and the related concepts of worker participation and community development in the corporate economy of both nations. The authors address issues such as professional elitism, changes in the role of labor, and social policies for business--comparing and contrasting the experiences of each nation. Specific cases drawn from other countries, including Israel and Yugoslavia, further describe important traits of regional and community development in modern economies.

A civil society is one in which a democratic government and a market economy operate together. The idea of the civil economy--encompassing a democratic government and a market economy--presumes that people can solve social problems within the market itself. This book explores the relationship between the two, examining the civil underpinnings of capitalism and investigating the way a civil economy evolves in history and is developed for the future by careful planning. Severyn T. Bruyn describes how people in three sectors--government, business, and the Third Sector (nonprofits and civil groups)--can develop an accountable, self-regulating, profitable, humane, and competitive system of markets that could be described as a civil economy. He examines how government officials can organize markets to reduce government costs; how local leaders deal with global corporations that would unfairly exploit their community resources; and how employees can become coparticipants in the development of human values in markets. A Civil Economy is oriented to interdiciplinary studies of the economy, assisting scholars in diverse fields, such as business management, sociology, political science, and economics, in developing a common language to examine civic problems in the marketplace. As an undergraduate text, it evokes a mode of thought about the development of a self-accountable system of markets. Students learn to understand how the market economy becomes socially accountable and self-reliant, while remaining productive, competitive, and profitable. Sveryn T. Bruyn is Professor of Sociology, Boston College.