A theoretical and empirical study on the collapse of the 20th century's socialist economic system and its implications in the future

2002 Fiscal Year Final Research Report Summary

• Project/Area Number: 12630003
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Single-year Grants
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: 経済理論
• Research Institution: Tohoku University
• Principal Investigator: AOKI Kunihiko Graduate School of Economics and Management Professor, 大学院・経済学研究科, 教授 (70004207)
• Project Period (FY): 2000 – 2002
• Keywords: economic system / socialism and communism / Karl Marx / Karl R. Popper / Walt Whitman Rostow / Daniel Bell / Francis Fukuyama / John Rawls

Research Abstract

The purpose of this study is to rethink causes of the collapse of the Soviet-type regimes and the 20th century's socialist economic system from a viewpoint of the present time and to study their implications for social formations of the 21st century's society and economy as a post-industrial and post-socialist society.
Here in this report I write especially about the result of theoretical study of Marx's historical materialism and criticisms to him. Formerly I argued mainly about the faults of Marx's own concept of future socialist economy. This time I examine his historical materialism itself that was a basis of his concept for the future. Main problems of it are a too rigid structure of his theory and an ignorance of the effect of essential human psychology upon social formations.
"Introduction of my report explains the framework of this report. "1. Transition: First 10 Ynars"" shows a summarized situation of the economy in the former Soviet and East European countries. ""2. Historical mhaterialism"" first explains the content of historical materialism and then extracts the main subject, that is, difficulties between his historicism (obiectism) and activism as a revolutionary. ""3. Popper, moral radicalism and Marx"" finds a direction to growing flexibility of the theory through considering Popper's criticism on Marx and supports not a historicism but a moderate histerism. ""4. Rostow's view of history and future, and Marx"" considers Rostow as a bridge from Marx to Bell and Fuluyama. ""5. Bell's technological view of history and pluralism"" finds a more concrete way for a moderate historism. ""6. Fukuyam's evolutionary and technological view of history"" does not agree with his assertions about the end of history, but it shows that his viewpoint about social formations which emphasizes not only technology and reason but also human psycohology is effective. ""7. Rawls's and Ichii's justice and social formations"" argues relations between essential human psychology and social furmatisne.