The political economy of growth: skills, innovation and labour regulation in contemporary capitalism

LIEPP is glad to invite you to the seminar:

The political economy of growth: skills, innovation and labour regulation in contemporary capitalism.

[language: anglais]

 Tuesday June 12th 2018
17:30-19:30

LIEPP seminar room
254 bvd Saint-Germain, 75007 Paris

Please register here

Presentation:

Professor of Economic sociology and Comparative political economy at the University of Florence (visiting professor at LIEPP from May 25th to June 22nd, 2018)

"The political economy of growth: skills, innovation and labour regulation in contemporary capitalism"

Abstract: 

The seminar focuses on pathways of inclusive growth in OECD countries. The first part of the seminar will focus on a comparative analysis of growth models since the beginning of the nineties and emphasizes the importance of productivity and its three key drivers: human capital, innovation and labor market regulation. The second part deals with the logics of action and on policy instruments adopted by public and private actors in each of these three fields in different countries, and on their outcomes in terms of growth and social inclusion. In this part I empasize three main points. First, the study of the relation between productivity and the three above-mentioned drivers shows that it is important to redefine the classical idealtypes of the varieties of capitalism approach: a huge internal variation in liberal, mixed and coordinated market economies emerges when we analyze public and private actions, especially in the fields of innovation and human capital formation. Second, the state - defined not as a single actor but as a constellation of actors that follows different logics, sometimes even in conflict - continues to play an important role not only in terms of regulation but also in the creation of collective goods that directly or indirectly trigger or hinder productivity and growth. This role is characterized by continuity and change: old logics and instruments coexist with new policy tools, and even if new policy goals are emerging the old ones have not disappeared. Third, the state is important, but it is only a part of the complex governance model that regulates human capital formation, innovation and labor market: the role of other public and private actors shall be taken into consideration in order to understand the complexity and the variety of modes of regulation in these fields and their different outcomes in terms of growth and social cohesion. By looking at the interaction among these actors, in which cooperation and conflict coexist, it becomes possible to identify strengths and weaknesses of the different modes of governance and to shed light on some of the reasons behind the trajectories of growth and inclusion in the analyzed countries.

Discussants:  

Patrick Le Galès
CNRS Research Professor of Sociology and Politics at the Centre for European Studies and Comparative Politics of Sciences Po, Professor at Sciences Po

Tommaso Vitale

Associate Professor of Sociology at the Centre for European Studies and Comparative Politics of Sciences Po