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Embedded Autonomy
In recent years, debate on the state's economic role has too often devolved into diatribes against intervention. Peter Evans questions such simplistic views, offering a new vision of why state involvement works in some cases and produces disasters in others. To illustrate, he looks at how state agencies, local entrepreneurs, and transnational corporations shaped the emergence of computer industries in Brazil, India, and Korea during the seventies and eighties.
Evans starts with the idea that states vary in the way they are organized and tied to society. In some nations, like Zaire, the state is predatory, ruthlessly extracting and providing nothing of value in return. In others, like Korea, it is developmental, promoting industrial transformation. In still others, like Brazil and India, it is in between, sometimes helping, sometimes hindering. Evans's years of comparative research on the successes and failures of state involvement in the process of industrialization have here been crafted into a persuasive and entertaining work, which demonstrates that successful state action requires an understanding of its own limits, a realistic relationship to the global economy, and the combination of coherent internal organization and close links to society that Evans called "embedded autonomy."
Evans starts with the idea that states vary in the way they are organized and tied to society. In some nations, like Zaire, the state is predatory, ruthlessly extracting and providing nothing of value in return. In others, like Korea, it is developmental, promoting industrial transformation. In still others, like Brazil and India, it is in between, sometimes helping, sometimes hindering. Evans's years of comparative research on the successes and failures of state involvement in the process of industrialization have here been crafted into a persuasive and entertaining work, which demonstrates that successful state action requires an understanding of its own limits, a realistic relationship to the global economy, and the combination of coherent internal organization and close links to society that Evans called "embedded autonomy."
344 pages, Hardcover
First published December 12, 1991
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
February 21, 2023
پیتر اوانز در کتاب (توسعه یا چپاول: نقش دولت در تحول صنعتی)مدعی است دولت‌ها در اقتصاد دخالت می‌کنند، برخی دولت‌ها توسعه‌گرا هستند و می‌توانند نقش مؤثری در توسعه داشته باشند، و ویژگی‌های ساختاری دولت‌های توسعه‌گرا را تحلیل می‌کند. وی هم‌چنین نقش دولت در توسعه صنعت فناوری اطلاعات در کره جنوبی، هندوستان و برزیل را تحلیل و مقایسه می‌کند.
این کتاب در انتشارات طرح نو با ترجمه عباس مخبر منتشر شده است.
این کتاب در انتشارات طرح نو با ترجمه عباس مخبر منتشر شده است.
October 23, 2019
I found this book super useful in explaining why we should not take the modern principles of public administration at their face value and apply they without local context or a policy goal.
The key message of the book runs counter to one of the important and classical principles of public administration – separation of government officials from business. The author makes a convincing case in light of the examples of South Korea and Brazil that unless government officials are heavily ‘embedded’ in the business world (industrial interests), they can hardly plan or execute a meaningful economic policy, in particular, industrialization which requires a close and active government-industry relations. Unless there is 'embeddedness' in government-business relations, economic policymakers will face with information asymmetry, absence of feedback effect, unaware of the needs of the industry and unable to continuously monitor the process. While ‘embeddedness’ increases the risk of corruption, but the benefits of this approach outweighs the risks of corruption. So policymakers in developing countries should take such nuances into account in structuring the policymaking process and working relations between bureaucracy and businesses.
The key message of the book runs counter to one of the important and classical principles of public administration – separation of government officials from business. The author makes a convincing case in light of the examples of South Korea and Brazil that unless government officials are heavily ‘embedded’ in the business world (industrial interests), they can hardly plan or execute a meaningful economic policy, in particular, industrialization which requires a close and active government-industry relations. Unless there is 'embeddedness' in government-business relations, economic policymakers will face with information asymmetry, absence of feedback effect, unaware of the needs of the industry and unable to continuously monitor the process. While ‘embeddedness’ increases the risk of corruption, but the benefits of this approach outweighs the risks of corruption. So policymakers in developing countries should take such nuances into account in structuring the policymaking process and working relations between bureaucracy and businesses.
February 9, 2025
Occasionally a bit overly-dense, but overall worthy of a close reading and careful consideration. Evans is pushing against the idea that comparative advantage in international economics reflects immutable characteristics of economies/countries. Rather, countries have agency by which they can change their place in the global economy. The question then is not whether government intervention is good or bad, or whether there's too much or not enough, but what kinds of interventions are effective.
Evans focuses his analysis on characteristics of bureacracies - they must have a cohesiveness and sense of purpose that imbues them with "autonomy," while also having connectivity (i.e., "embeddedness") with the external economic actors they are influencing. Evans lays out a typology of different modes of bureaucracies.
This is one of those books written decades ago that has renewed timeliness. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, we have seen increased acceptance of an active industrial policy in the United States and elsewhere. The discussion of effective and dysfunctional bureaucracy should also serve as a warning for those cheering on current efforts to purge the U.S. federal bureaucracy (it won't). Finally, I'd note that this book has been influential on those informing PRC industrial policymaking.
Evans focuses his analysis on characteristics of bureacracies - they must have a cohesiveness and sense of purpose that imbues them with "autonomy," while also having connectivity (i.e., "embeddedness") with the external economic actors they are influencing. Evans lays out a typology of different modes of bureaucracies.
This is one of those books written decades ago that has renewed timeliness. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, we have seen increased acceptance of an active industrial policy in the United States and elsewhere. The discussion of effective and dysfunctional bureaucracy should also serve as a warning for those cheering on current efforts to purge the U.S. federal bureaucracy (it won't). Finally, I'd note that this book has been influential on those informing PRC industrial policymaking.
March 6, 2025
Evans argues that developmental states are those with a symbiotic relationship between the state and private enterprise. He introduces the concept of “embedded autonomy,” bureaucracy that is autonomous yet bound to society by a set of social conventions. He flips the neo-utilitarian argument that predatory states are those with excessive bureaucracy on its head by claiming the opposite: predatory behavior is associated with the lack of bureaucracy. The book’s argument is organized around the rubric of custodian, demiurge, midwifery, and husbandry approaches of state intervention in the economy.
Evans’ “embedded autonomy” hook seems to be innovative; however, the bulk of the book is a synthesis of the available historiography.
Evans’ “embedded autonomy” hook seems to be innovative; however, the bulk of the book is a synthesis of the available historiography.
July 16, 2009
discusses the role of the state and argues that some forms of states and state interventions can be beneficial for economic growth. the argument is decently nuanced, though the hairsplitting on types of state interventions seems to ignore how good and bad interventions are often (possibly even always) two sides of the same coin.
April 13, 2017
The state can prey on the people or help the people prosper. The difficult part is how to support the industries within the state without becoming a predatory state. Embedded autonomy is the answer for the state to have a proper role.
An embedded autonomy is a structure for a government to have proper state involvement, but only few countries can claim to be similar to this ideal. Embedded means that the state and society are bound together. By being bound, the state has access to networks in different sources of intelligence which creates the resources to get the goals done and the ability to rely on decentralized units. Autonomy means to have the right incentives that reward commitment to the set goals. Having the right internal incentives, allows for a merit based system that fosters individuals to cooperate on implementing policies which revolves around being able to renegotiate continuously.
The states intervention can have either a positive or negative impact on the country, it depends on the structure of the state and the role the state decides to play. If the role is to incentivize more private growth, which can mobilize capital to the sources where capital is needed, but can prevent the private industry from being tolerant to Schumpeterian creative destruction in the future. If the role is for the state to be the producer, the industry will grow internally, but the policy makers can extract wealth from society rather provide it.
To make the case for more contemporary developmental strategies, Evans uses informatics. The emerging tech industries in the mid to late 20th century provide in different countries and their different results to policy strategies are represented quite well in the book.
Although the tech industry is a great example of how the state can help or prevent industries from growing, a chapter about other industries would have added a lot of value. Generally well written.
An embedded autonomy is a structure for a government to have proper state involvement, but only few countries can claim to be similar to this ideal. Embedded means that the state and society are bound together. By being bound, the state has access to networks in different sources of intelligence which creates the resources to get the goals done and the ability to rely on decentralized units. Autonomy means to have the right incentives that reward commitment to the set goals. Having the right internal incentives, allows for a merit based system that fosters individuals to cooperate on implementing policies which revolves around being able to renegotiate continuously.
The states intervention can have either a positive or negative impact on the country, it depends on the structure of the state and the role the state decides to play. If the role is to incentivize more private growth, which can mobilize capital to the sources where capital is needed, but can prevent the private industry from being tolerant to Schumpeterian creative destruction in the future. If the role is for the state to be the producer, the industry will grow internally, but the policy makers can extract wealth from society rather provide it.
To make the case for more contemporary developmental strategies, Evans uses informatics. The emerging tech industries in the mid to late 20th century provide in different countries and their different results to policy strategies are represented quite well in the book.
Although the tech industry is a great example of how the state can help or prevent industries from growing, a chapter about other industries would have added a lot of value. Generally well written.
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