Systems of capitalism are conceived as formed under certain broad logics that apply to all, but which then interpret those logics in distinct ways society by society, seen as the society's own processes. Such processes cluster into three categories: an inspiring context; a transformative capacity; and empowered action. The political role is that of balancing the influences across the total. Each inspirational influence adds a key contribution, as with benevolent empowering authority, and c...

Much of the existing literature within the "varieties of capitalism " (VOC) and "comparative business systems " fields of research is heavily focused on Europe, Japan, and the Anglo-Saxon nations. As a result, the field has yet to produce a detailed empirical picture of the institutional structures of most Asian nations and to explore to what extent existing theory applies to the Asian context. The Oxford Handbook of Asian Business Systems aims to address this imbalance by explori...

The world's systems of higher education (HE) are caught up in the fourth industrial revolution of the twenty-first century. Driven by increased globalization, demographic expansion in demand for education, new information and communications technology, and changing cost structures influencing societal expectations and control, higher education systems across the globe are adapting to the pressures of this new industrial environment. To make sense of the complex changes in the practices and...

There are, in simple terms, three principal kinds of capital that come necessarily into play when a society is evolving towards improving the lives, livelihoods, and qualities of life of its people. The first form of capital is financial – this normally includes physical forms of invested money in plant, buildings, and infrastructure. The second form of capital is human – seen simply as the level and range of skills and capabilities that are available for use in the socie...

Much has been said about the re-emergence of China to its historical position of eminence in the world economy, yet little is understood about the kind of economic system China is evolving. What are the rules of the game of business in today's China, and how are they likely to change over the next decades? The answers to these questions are crucial to business persons formulating strategy toward China, but also for policy-makers concerned with retaining the competitiveness of their nations...

How public affairs are run depends upon the degree of authority and control central government decides to relinquish to regional and local governments, and the extent to which it favors citizen involvement in the governing process. Public administrators do not operate in a vacuum. The context within which decision-making takes place greatly influences public administrators approach to public issues. Consequently, what government decides to do and how it decides to carry it out affects the ...

This book dispels these myths and shows that people rely on the relation-based system not owing to specific cultural factors, but because of the stage of development in these countries. When the market is limited in scale and informal networks are thick, the relation-based system can be quite effective and efficient.

Unemployment is one of the most politically explosive issues in China and has gained further prominence as a result of the present global financial crisis. The novelty, urgency, and complexity of Chinese unemployment have compelled the government to experiment with policy initiatives that originate in the West. This book argues that although China is not a liberal democracy, it has turned to neo-liberal forms of governance to deal with unemployment, which now function alongside pre-existin...

The nature, institutional foundations, and issues surrounding the apparent success of Chinese business networks is examined in this book. Major concepts such as guanxi, xinyong and gangqing, exploring the nature of trust, relationships and sentiments in Chinese business networks, are re-examined. A significant amount of literature has been devoted to the study of Chinese business, and it largely falls into two broad schools: the culturalist approach, arguing for an essentialist formulation...

Choice Outstanding Academic Title 2009!In its quarter-century-long shift from communism to capitalism, China has transformed itself from a desperately poor nation into a country with one of the fastest-growing and largest economies in the world. Doug Guthrie examines the reforms driving the economic genesis in this compact and highly readable introduction to contemporary China. He highlights the social, cultural and political factors fostering this revolutionary change and interwea...

This edited volume represents the first collaborative effort to explicitly view China’s rapid international ascent as associated with the same process that catapulted Great Britain, the United States, Germany, and Japan to international prominence – the emergence of a capitalist political economy. Each chapter therefore applies the capitalist lens to analyze aspects of China’s monumental social, economic, and political transition. Topics addressed range from examinations of China’s industr...

In this edited volume, leading environmental policy experts from China, USA, and Europe provide a contemporary view of Chinese environmental policy, analyzing current discussions among various actors and agencies. The book covers a wide range of topics including the gap between national policy goals and their local implementation, cultural and social factors shaping political behavior, legal and political systems affecting environmental policy creation and execution, new societal forces pa...