Collective Action in East Asia

By Gregory W. Noble

As one Asian economic crisis follows another, sending shock waves through the global market, questions about the making and conduct of industrial policy in the East take on a special urgency. Observers are sharply divided as to whether the ubiquitous attempts at cooperation among competing firms in Asia have been a key to competitiveness or a corrosive form of collusion. This timely book offers a close look at the impact of industrial policies on collective action in East Asia--in Japan and Taiwan and, more briefly, in South Korea. Systematically comparative and based on interviews and original research in the local languages, it focuses on forms of collective action such as cartels, standardization, and research and development consortia in the consumer electronics and minimill steel industries. The book combines detailed case studies with analyses of the political, bureaucratic, and industrial environments in which policy is crafted. It also considers how these environments have evolved in the past decade as long-ruling conservative parties have been challenged in all three countries.Among the book's findings is a surprising disparity between the ways in which Japan and Taiwan have handled collective action policy, despite their many historical, demographic, and economic similarities. Collective Action in East Asia also brings to light unexpected inconsistencies in the effectiveness of Japanese policy, which frequently succeeds with R&D consortia but struggles with cartels. Studying both the rapid-growth period of the 1980s and the more recent economic slowdown in East Asia, this book provides crucial information for an understanding of today's global economy.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0801431778
• ISBN13: 9780801431777
• Release Date: December 1998
• Publisher: Cornell University Press
• Length: 272 Pages
• Weight: 1.30 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.4" x 9.6"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

Shortcut to penetrate the phenomenon of "Taiwan Miracle"

With the approaching of Taiwan presidential election which has been suffused with peculiarly the controversial issue of party assets ignited by KMT candidate, this book seemed to emerge at an interesting timing. Nevertheless, this piece of research presented by leading scolars in the field of IR renders an invaluable analysis of the intricate and complex political economy of my beloved country. It's an indispensable reading for those who have been aspired for the glory of the past to stare at some components of truth behind the mist of Taiwan history.

Ruling Party in Taiwan is Stronger

State and party-own enterprises are domaint economic powers in Taiwan before 1980. Behind the USA support, economic policies were shaped by some political elites excluded other social classes. After that, KMT, the ruling party began released more business space for private capitalists especially Taiwanese to get more legislation. So, economic policy was very different from ever not only on subject but also on scale. New KMT is mroe close to capitalist. Now, ruling unit in Taiwan is not only a political party, instead a ruling group conclude big enterprises.